Meet Me on Monday Week 18

Questions:

1.  My current weather is _______?

90* at 11:23am on Halloween. It was too hot for Baby J's duck costume, so we switched to a 50s poodle skirt outfit earlier this week. I also had to put our carved pumpkins into the fridge overnight to make sure they lasted throughout the weekend for today. They were out all night, so I'm hoping they last for the trick or treaters tonight!

2.  What is your favorite sound?

Music!! I love listening to music of all kinds and singing along. I also love Baby Js laugh. It makes me smile and laugh, too.  

3.  What is the worst flavor of ice cream?

Gosh, this seems like a silly question. I can't think of a flavor of ice cream that is just not appetizing. I don't venture out much though. Personally, I am not a fan of Rocky Road-I don't like marshmallows.

4.  What magazine do you look for when you are stuck in the waiting room?
I like to read through Cosmo or Self or something along those lines. I don't like the ones all about ads or just with pictures. I like to read. Usually, I'll bring a book because lately I've found waiting rooms don't have a good selection of magazines that entice me.

5.  What is your favorite condiment?
I like spicy mustard. I don't like ketchup or mayo, so it kinda limits it. I love ranch dressing, but I guess that's more of a dip. I actually just looked up the definition of condiment to see if it could be considered one, and technically it can as a condiment is something used to give special flavor to food, but thought I should stick with the basics. :)

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Crazy Carvings

Happy Halloween! I love this time of year: the beginning of cooler weather, the start of the holiday season and plenty of reasons to make delicious foods of all types!

Every year I strive to have the best pumpkin around. I have no talent when it comes to art, but now that there are kits for amateurs like me to use, my pumpkins always look great. At least I think they do!

One of my favorite things to do before I decide on what to carve is look on the internet to see designs and other people's work. Every year I see something that is new in the pumpkin decorating world and I'm always amazed. People can be so creative!

This year I have seen a ton of birthing pumpkins. Pumpkins carved and placed to look like they are giving birth. I have seen some babies carved into pumpkins to look like they are in utero and some breastfeeding pumpkins. I did look to see if I could find a pumpkin related to cloth diapering; however, no such luck. I would have done it myself, but I was running low on time and had to pick something quick.

Here are my family's pumpkins for 2012 and some of my favorites from across the internet.

Raiders pumpkin on the left, Lee picked the design, but didn't carve, so I did. Elmo in the center-Baby J's pumpkin carved by me. Bat in the moon on the right, my pumpkin carved by hubby since I had to do his. :)

Feel free to share your pumpkins with me! 

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Meet Me on Monday Week 17

Questions:

1.  My favorite kind of animal is _______?

A koala. I collected them when I was little and saved a few that Baby J now plays with.

Baby J and I went to the San Diego Zoo last month and saw the koalas.

2.  Do you like your handwriting?

Sometimes. Now that I am on the computer a lot more, it's harder for me to write a lot at a time. Carpal tunnel was bad when I was pregnant and comes back when I try to write.

I had to teach cursive to my fourth graders. They loved it!

3.  What is the last movie you saw?

I watched Beauty and the Beast the other night with Baby J. She was super grumpy and loves to snuggle and share popcorn. This was her first time seeing it, but she tried to sing along to all the songs because that's what I did! 

We didn't get to watch it all the way through. We were already on to other activities by this point, but I left it on in the background just to hear the music.

4.  Do you buy things on eBay?

I have before. It's not somewhere I regularly go to find deals though. My husband buys a ton of things off eBay. Mostly car parts and boy stuff.

5.  What did you have for lunch yesterday?
I didn't have lunch yesterday! :( I know, I know, it's not good to skip meals, but I was at a show for Bum Luxury and just busy. I did have a later breakfast and an earlier dinner w/ a little bit of snacking at the show. Only bad things that were oh so good though! :)

Pampered Chef Caramel-Filled Cashew Cups-oh so good! I ate 3!

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Microfiber, Hemp or Bamboo? Find the right insert for you!

I've had a lot of people ask me lately what the difference is between the types of inserts so here is a nice breakdown of the pros/cons of each. Feel free to add your own in the comments.

Type	Pros	Cons	Price
Cotton	·         Natural fibers ·         Soft ·         Inexpensive ·         Fast drying	·         Can be bulky	$
Microfiber (MF)	·         Absorbent ·         Inexpensive ·         Soaks up liquid quickly	·         Manmade fibers ·         Can get the stinkies ·         Can be bulky ·         Cannot be placed directly against skin	$
Hemp	·         Most absorbent ·         Natural fibers ·         Trim ·         Naturally anti-microbial	·         Can get the stinkies ·         Very rough/stiff when line dried ·         Takes longer to dry than MF ·         Soaks up liquid slowly	$$
Bamboo	·         Absorbent ·         Natural fibers ·         Trimmest ·         Super soft	·         Stains easily ·         More expensive	$$$

Types
Cotton
Microfiber (MF)
Hemp
Bamboo		http://bumluxury.3dcartstores.com/Sweet-Pea-AI3_p_43.html

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Meet Me on Monday Week 16

Here we go again! Please share your answers in the comments, or link to your blog post in the linky.

Questions:

1.  The thing that scares me the most is __________?

Cockroaches scare the bejesus out of me . They are the most disgusting things and I hate them. Yuck!

It gives me the heeby jeebies just posting this picture.

2.  Do you like nuts in your Chocolate Chip cookies?

No-I like chocolate chips in my cookies! There's not enough room for nuts.

These look soft and delicious! It's fall now, you know what that means? Baking season!

3.  If you couldn't change the channel, what TV show would drive you from the room?

A boring sport, like baseball or golf, would drive me out of a room. That's not fun to watch. Honestly, if I was forced to have this on my TV, I would just pick up a book. I can ignore it.

4.  Pulp or no pulp in your Orange Juice?

It doesn't matter if there's a ton of pulp or none at all, I love OJ! Especially w/ a little champagne mixed in...oh! I wish I could have a mimosa! 

5.  Who do you miss the most?

I miss a lot of people. I don't have any family in Arizona except for my hubby and Baby J, so it's hard at times. I've also grown apart from many friends I thought I'd be close with no matter what. It makes me sad, but then I wonder if they were the friend I thought they were.

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Why shipping isn't free

As a consumer, I love getting free shipping. As a retailer though, free shipping is no where near free. 

When I add up the costs of shipping, it can be really astounding. Let's just talk diapers. If a person buys one diaper from me, I can use a 6x9 polymailer. They are .0739 cents each. Seven cents doesn't seem too bad. These polymailers have adhesive, so I can skip the tape to close it. 

Next, I need to label my package. I can buy the self adhesive labels that average about .0359 cents each. 

To print these labels, I also will need ink for my printer. The average cost to print one page varies, but it looks like the mean is around seven cents. Printer style/brand and ink costs has such a wide range, so we needed to find an average.

Right now, my package is costing about eighteen cents to mail. Not bad. I do need to add the cost of shipping though. If I am just mailing one diaper, the cost is a minimum of $1.75 and can go up to $3.41 (I believe that's the highest if mailing first class which would be anything under 13oz.) This is for a package mailed in the US. International shipping is much more expensive. I paid $5 and change to mail one diaper to Canada. 

Since I like to make sure my customers get their orders as soon as possible, I usually mail same day instead of getting a pick up from my mailman which would delay mailing until the next day. This means I have to drive to the post office, using my gas money and cause wear and tear on my vehicle. Fortunately, the post office is about 10 minutes from my house so it's not a huge burden; however, time is money and it takes time to do this! This is not something I will calculate into the cost though. It's also difficult to estimate the cost of gas since everyone's car is different and gas prices fluctuate from corner to corner. We all know that gas isn't free though, so why should shipping be? 

With the expenses we were able to calculate, our one diaper package would cost between $1.93 and $3.59. If we were shipping more than one diaper, and it was over 13 oz. the price jumps exponentially. The best way to mail larger packages, is to try to fit them into a Flat Rate Box (FRB) or Envelope (FRE.) Sometimes, you can select Parcel Post when mailing USPS and it will be cheaper than the Flat Rate. The FRE is $4.75 and you can stuff that baby as full as you want as long as the little flap will close. You might have to use extra tape though, and that will cost you more. 

If I'm mailing anything that could break or leak, I will need to add expenses to make sure that doesn't happen-bubble wrap, plastic bags, separate packaging, etc. It all adds up. 

So the next time you are looking for free shipping, think about all these costs. Someone has to pay for them. 

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Meet Me on Monday Week 15

I know I haven't been as consistent with this as I would like, but here I go again!

Questions:

1.  The best part of waking up each day is __________?

It depends. Sometimes I'm not happy about waking up because it's early and I'm wondering why???? Usually though, the best part of waking up is seeing Baby J's smile when I go and get her. She always starts the day excited and energized. 

2.  How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are?

I feel that I am young at heart. I love playing and being goofy. I love going out with friends and having game nights. I think I would be in my early twenties. Not that my body agrees, but I can work on that!

3.  Red or Green Apples?

Green-that was easy! :) Although, I did have some yummy red apples yesterday. Juicy and crisp! Apples are so much better when someone slices them up for me-which is exactly why they were so delicious yesterday, thanks to my friend Twinkle!! Honestly, I like the reddish, green ones the best. :)

4.  Do you forgive easily?

Hmmm...I would say yes, but I always remember. My husband might say no, I don't forgive easily, but he's not writing this blog. 

5.  If you could live in any home on a television series, which would it be?

This is difficult. I don't watch enough TV to be able to pick the perfect home. I do like the new house on The Real World: San Diego though, and what a great location!! Yes, I watch the show. I started watching it in college-that was the thing to talk about in Wichita Falls, TX, and I have been addicted, for about the last ten years. I love the drama!

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1st Friday Fluff: Fuzzibunz One Size

Fall is in the air and I've decided to make a change. Starting today, I will be doing a 1st Friday Fluff post on the first Friday of each month. 1st Friday Fluff will be a review/giveaway from Bum Luxury. Instead of giving away free diapers to other bloggers, I thought I might as well do it myself! We shall see if it works for me... :)

I've decided to start with the very first cloth diaper we chose to use on Baby J: Fuzzibunz One Size 


My husband and I first came to the decision to try a Fuzzibunz one size diaper when we went to the diaper class at Zoolikins (formerly Wildflower Diapers) in Scottsdale, AZ. We drove a good hour to get there and it was totally worth it. I had never heard of Fuzzibunz and went in thinking I wanted to try a bunch of other brands. 

The first feature that grabbed my attention was the adjustable elastic. I had been researching diapers my entire pregnancy and had only heard of the snap down rise for OS diapers, so the idea of adjustable elastic fascinated me. Not only did it seem more of a customized fit, the look of the diaper was neater and cleaner without a front full of snaps which only confused my husband.

Lee, my husband, loved the soft feel of the fleece. He couldn't believe how soft it was, especially as he and I stood there touching a table full of cloth diapers. The Fuzzibunz microfleece lining just felt softer than all the other pocket diapers.


The price was average for a one size pocket diaper, so I was okay with that. I was hesitant to pay $19.95 for one diaper, but the comparable brands were within a dollar or two more, and they didn't have the adjustable elastic. Also, the Fuzzibunz One Size came with two inserts, when most of the other one size pockets only came with one. 

We went home and I did more research to be sure that this was the diaper for us. I decided to buy ten and go from there. 


As Baby J grew in my belly, she always measured large. I was hesitant to invest in newborn diapers because of this. I had heard that one size diapers wouldn't fit a newborn, but didn't want to waste money if I wouldn't need a newborn stash. I came to the conclusion that if none of the one size diapers I bought Baby J fit, I would do a rental for the first few months. 


Baby J came out at 9lbs. 7oz. and the Fuzzibunz One Size fit her just fine. I had adjusted the elastic according to the packaging for newborns. The legs weren't on the tightest settings, but the waist was. Since I only had ten of the Fuzzibunz, we bought ten more right away, since none of the other diapers I bought fit her. They were huge and gapped at the legs. 

1 week old

Almost 2 months

Four months old

11 months

12 months-not the best picture of the diaper, but how cute is she??

During Baby Js first month, I found an amazing deal for used FB OS diapers on Craigslist that I just couldn't pass up. I bought twenty six more Fuzzibunz. When Baby J was about 3 or 4 months, I did wonder if they were really going to be a one size diaper. She was pretty chunky and they were seeming smaller and smaller. As soon as she started moving though, I had to tighten the elastic back up. I have only had to adjust it about four times overall in fifteen months. Not bad. 

Edited to add: I use Fuzzibunz One Size as our main overnight diaper as well. I started with just the microfiber inserts, then doubled it up. When that didn't work, I stuffed it some more, but that created an awkward fit. I finally invested in some hemp inserts and they work great. Now at fifteen months, we use one M/L Fuzzibunz hemp insert and one of the larger OS MF inserts that came w/ the diaper for overnight. I occasionally add a doubler if I feel the need.



After many months, I did notice some PUL issues with some of the used Fuzzibunz I bought off Craigslist. I did contact Fuzzibunz and they replaced my diapers even though I had no receipt and told them I bought them used. I couldn't believe it! I was so elated and glad that Fuzzibunz is a company to stand behind their product. To cover the shipping I paid to send back these diapers, Fuzzibunz gave me some freebies with my new diapers: Leggies, wipes, and doublers. 

I used Fuzzibunz exclusively for the first eight months. They worked, and I saw no reason to switch it up. I then joined some online cloth diaper swap boards just to see what was out there. I couldn't understand how people bought and sold cloth diapers all the time. Well, I soon became addicted and now that Baby J is fifteen months old, I'm still buying diapers just to try them out. My husband refuses to use any of the new diapers and will only use the Fuzzibunz. He likes the fit the best and it's easy for him to snap them on and take them off. 


The Fuzzibunz one size is my favorite diaper I've tried so far, and I've tried a lot. I think the price is competitive, the customer service is amazing, and the quality is top notch for a product made to be peed and pooped in and washed every other day. 

The only thing I wish Fuzzibunz had was a choice of prints. I love the solids to color coordinate with outfits, but I love print diapers, too. Now that Baby J can take off her snap diapers as well as aplix ones, she has to wear pants all the time, so I guess the diaper color/print doesn't matter. Except I find it important to match undergarments to outfits, so I do need a variety of colors!


I'm anxiously awaiting the new Fuzzibunz Elite One Size diaper. I find it hard to believe this diaper can get better, but we shall see!

GIVEAWAY

To enter the giveaway to receive a free Fuzzibunz one size diaper, fill out the Rafflecopter form below. 

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