DIY: Wipe Solution

Hello friends!

Did you know we're cloth diaper fanatics around here?

Well, we are.

And along with cloth diapers come cloth wipes.

The post about all the pros of cloth diapering is soon-to-come but in the meantime, here's this sweet-smelling, easy to make, healthy-to-boot, wipe solution to clean your baby's bum.

Can I say you don't even have to use it for diapering. It has all the essentials for a hand sanitizer, or just a clean spray to wipe down Baby's face after a hot day. I love it.

5 ingredients:

2 cups water

1/8 cup baby wash of your choice

1/8 cup coconut oil

8 drops lavender oil

4 drops tea tree oil

Shake. Spray. Smile.

So, why these ingredients, you're wondering, right?

Tea tree oil is antibacterial, antiviral, anti fungal and antiseptic. Used alone, though, it is very harsh on the skin - great for zits, bad for babies. Adding water and oil help to calm the harshness. 

In addition, the water rinses, and the oil smooths. Coconut oil has hundreds of uses (here are just a few), but for this solution it works as an excellent moisturizer, and also has all the anti-germ properties of tea tree oil. 

The soap cleanses, washing away the traces of germs. 

And the lavender... well, that just smells soooo niiiice. 

Total Cost? So cheap I didn't even bother doing the math. 

Watermelon Smoothie

Is there anything better than a good slice of watermelon on a hot July day?


Well, this watermelon smoothie might come pretty close.


It was an accident, really. I like to think I could eat a whole watermelon by myself (since Daniel doesn't like it. No comment there.) but honestly, after day three I'm starting to feel like a balloon about to burst. This girl can only take so much.


So I threw what was left of the melon in the freezer, and pulled it out the other day to add to my green smoothie.


I started with milk, since we were out of OJ. Added the yogurt, a banana, then the melon. It looked so frothy and pink there in the blender than I just had to taste a spoonful before adding the greens....


O. My. Word.


I was in heaven. I poured half of it into a glass and drank it right there and then. 


Try it. You'll be hooked.

I added spinach to the other half (and some frozen peaches to make it colder) and it was delish, too. :)


3 servings of vegetables and 4 servings of fruit never tasted so yummy.

Mr. Flexible

Yes, that is his big toe lodged between his gum and upper lip.

 ... and now the whole heel in the mouth.

 ...but that big toe is just the best!

Uh-mazed at the flexibility of babies!

p.s. the bottom half of his body is cropped out, because this is generally what every diaper change looks like. I don't need to bother keeping his feet out of the way. He does it all for me! ;)

Now that I've found my toes...

... Naptime is much more interesting!

Two times out of five, Mama finds me like this when she comes to see how my nap is coming along.

I tell Mama, it's simple: why take a nap when you can chew on your toes?

Sunday Best

Happy Lord's Day, Christians!

Thankful for rest and worship today. 

Daniel takes as many preaching gigs as he can these days. Since our church, Hill City, is still only worshipping in the evenings, this means he's available most Sunday mornings. But, it's a lot for Ralphie to go to church twice. It's a lot for him to go to church once. He has his routine, and does so well on it. So, usually, we just stay home in the mornings.

Disadvantage to this: he doesn't get to wear his cute lil southern boy boutique outfits very often!

So this morning when we were sitting outside soakin' up some sun, I thought, why not? Let's play dress up.

Now, Little Man has not been himself the last couple of days. It could be he's a little more mellow because I've been trying to wean him out of his 4th and evening nap. Or, perhaps a tooth is trying to pop through? But, would you believe this is the best smile I could get out of him? That is so anti-Ralphie! 

Favorite <3

Enough, Mama. I am SO done!

Blonde Moment #263

For my birthday this year my sweet Mother-in-Law gave me a TJMaxx gift card. Fun, right? Right. For the past month I have been pondering carefully over what I wanted to use it on, and when I wanted to spend it.

This weekend Daniel's gone. It rained all afternoon. And inside the house was just gloomy and lonesome (except for sweet Baby's coos, of course.) Perfect day to use that gift card, I thought. So we headed out.

Inside the store, I begin my search. Cute little undergarments I've been in need of, a pretty long sweater and new leggings for the fall on clearance, a new leather bound journal, a skinny belt for $2, a super happy orange yoga mat. All things I'd been wanting, at fabulous prices.

I added it all up and I was $8 short of my gift card total. I hate having gift cards with just a little bit left on them, so we circled the store again. Shoes? No. Sunglasses? No. Nail polish? No. Finally, there it was. This beautiful porcelain blue-and-white soap dispenser. Perfect color for my kitchen. Turned it over - clearance for $3.99! I still needed a couple more dollars worth, when I spotted a matched stemmed cup, exactly what I could use to hold my scrubbing brush. 

Goodness, I was a happy woman.

We made it to the check out in high spirits. Excited about every item, and eager to get it all home to enjoy.

The cashier rang me up. $1.25 over my gift card total - pretty darn close! I was happy.

I handed her my gift card and she looked at me strangely.

"Do I need to swipe it, or do you scan it?" I asked, totally ignorant.

She just looked at me again. She was probably thinking, "Is this girl for real?" 

Finally she said, "Honey, you're at Ross, not TJMaxx."

It was a slo-mo kind of moment. A seriously-really-are-you-SURE  kind of moment. 

She turned around and pointed to the big, blue sign hanging from the ceiling. She looked down at the item she was holding, marked with a small blue tag. There it was plain as day, ROSS.

My heart just sunk. I laughed. Covered my face with my hands. Probably blushed crimson, too. I apologized a hundred times, and watched as she sadly canceled each special item on my receipt...

... at least, in my favor, TJMaxx was the next store over. I just hadn't walked far enough.

But really, no excuse. I seriously spent over an hour in a store and didn't even notice it was the wrong one!

Daniel thinks this is worse than the famous Adios! story... Whadya think?

Time with Grandma

We headed down to Tampa, Florida last Thursday to spend some time with Daniel's mom, who is getting ready to move to Ohio. We packed up boxes, went through old school projects of Daniel's, went to a Rays vs. Red Sox game, and hit up the beach. 

Visiting Grandpa

Ralph I and Ralph II

Madeira Beach, Florida. Janet now owns a time share here. So nearly every summer we'll get to spend a week soaking up this goodness. I'm just a little excited. ;)

 Ralphie LOVED the waves. He was a continual smile. So precious.

 He kept looking down as if he wanted to put his feet back in the water. :)

The beach at sunset... it was a gorgeous evening spent with some of the people I love most. These next three pictures just take my breath away. Seeing your husband as a father ... priceless. 

 Be still my heart.

Just Swingin'

Ain't he just so squeezable?!?! Gah... I can't stand it.

Remember

We're visiting Daniel's mom down in Florida, who is preparing to move to Ohio in a month. Amidst the hustle of packing boxes, clearing out closets and drawers, and sorting through what to keep, and what to get rid of, there's Ralphie. And as I was changing his diaper this afternoon, he was simply irresistible. Grabbing his toes and grinning up at me with his whole little face, blue eyes twinkling. 

These are the moments I want to remember. The moments I want to think back on and feel. 

I love that a photograph can capture that for me. 

With the close of my shutter an image is frozen, and a memory is timeless. 

In days to come, I will look at these images and remember

Delight

joy

growth

   

beauty

  

fascination

infatuation

and love.

In months to come I can look at these pictures and remember the warmth of his skin

 the joy of his smiles, and perfection of his features.

I'll remember his infectious happiness

and his sweet voice.

  his baby breath, and velvet skin

And in years to come I will look at these images and remember the miracle of his life. 

Amidst the busy-ness, amidst the mundane, amidst the broken, God gives us life, and it's beautiful.

"Every good and perfect gift comes from above, 

from the Father of lights in whom there is no change or variation." James 1:17