Gardening

I don't know if I have a "greenthumb" or not. I've never really planted much. And I'm not really sure where to start. At all. I use all of herbs at our house for cooking as well as quite a few vegatables even though Cody isn't a huge fan of that. I could probably be a vegatarian if I wanted to be, but I don't think I could drag Cody along on that one. Plus, the little boy loves his beef and chicken. He likes veggies too, just not a much. But that being said, I have no idea how to grow any veggies or herbs or anything. But considering the amount that I buy from the grocery store since our farmer's market season doesn't start until May 1st, I think I'd be saving money if I bought a couple of books. Luckily Cody's gung-ho about this garden because at this point I don't think you'll see me on my hands and knees in a garden. I think my job will be supervising as I'm currently 33 weeks pregnant. We'll see.

But other than the garden being a source of food for my family, it brings back memories of a simpler time when my grandmother would take me to the small garden she had behind the house and I could pick strawberries and well, really anything I wanted. I also remember my other grandmother and grandfather always having a pepper garden and I loved seeing the joy it brought them. My grandmother's real love was flowers but she loved just being out in the sun, with her hands in the dirt. Spring Breaks with her were spent at local farmer's markets looking for seeds or at local gardening stores. She always let me plant snap dragons because those were my favorite and when I came to visit in the early summer, they were usually still there. But then again, I am a little nostalgic at the best of times. I have a tiny porch that I sit on and wave to people from during the warmer weather. I still wave to farmers as they pass me on country roads. I believe in saying "Ma'am" and "Sir." I believe in being polite, not being afraid to get your hands dirty, just good old fashioned living that you don't see very often anymore. I believe in a place where people are proud for their accomplishments and are always willing to help out a friend or even just someone they just met. I know. I want a Utopia and it's probably not going to happen, but that doean't mean that I can't try. That doesn't mean that the aliens will not be brought up that way.

Anyway, I kind of lost track of where I was going with this. Sorry. I guess the point of this post is if you have any gardening tips, please let me know. Plus, I need tips on how to keep a pesky little wiener dog out of said garden.

My Rockin' Green Review

I tried my Rockin' Green laundry detergent yesterday and I have to say...I love it! It left Alien #1's diapers sparkling white, which TMI warning, they were kinda bad this load. My entire laundry room smells great and really the diapers smell...well, they don't smell like anything, which it wonderful because it means there's no soapy residue left on them which is a big no-no for cloth diapers as it messes with the absorbancy of the insert and the waterproofness of the shell. I'm also excited about washing the rest of my family's laundry in it since it's so much better than putting artificial chemicals on our skin. I'm pretty stoked! I also got pail/wet bag powder with my order. It was cherry almond scented as well, but my wet bag smells awesome! I'm really excited...about laundry. How sad is that? I also found a place in Oklahoma City that sells Rockin' Green Soap and cloth diapers as well as other natural baby products. It's called The Green Bambino and I can not wait to go check out what they have. They've only been open for a week or two but from what I've read, the reviews are great. I hope that it helps get more and more families into cloth diapering and just a more natural life style in general especially since it's one of Oklahoma's only cloth diapering stores.

I now have the diapers line drying outside because the sun bleaches out stains and makes them smell even better. I'll probably start drying all of my cloths out there soon (weather permitting) except towels. Line drying towels doesn't keep them as soft. Cody is out working in the yard and hopefully we might get an herb and vegatable garden started soon. I think we're going to plant some flowers around too. Pretty soon our house will be ready for spring and summer and most importantly, Alien #2

I'm gonna Rock a Soak today!

Lesson Numero Uno: Enid is not very eco-friendly when it comes to laundry detergent. I can't find any that are completely free of smells, dyes, enzymes and brightening agents. Most cloth diapering companies require this in order to keep the warrentee on them good. So I broke down and bought something called Rockin' Green detergent. It comes in awesome scents using essential oils (a very small amount) and all natural ingrediants. It comes in another formula that is made for those with soft-water or children with sensitive skin. I ordered some "Classic Rock" in the vanilla almond scent and some of the "Soft Rock" (which is the one for sensitive skin). They also have a formula coming out soon called "Hard Rock" made for those with hard water, which we have here in Enid so I might try that next time as it should be released by the time I need it.

The soap should be here today and since Alien #1 is going to his dad's this weekend, I will be washing all of his cloth diapers again but this time using the Rockin' Green. which is supposed to be aclean rinse with no bubbles and erase all the residue left by previous detergents. I'm excited!!! Cody has been making fun of me because I have a ridiculous obsession with tracking packages when I order them and the tracking said it should be here today. Luckily my mail man comes by around 11:00 so it should be here any minute.

I'll try it and let you guys know what I think!

It's Rex Manning Day...

That's kind of what I feel like anyway. I'm having major "mommy" moments lately. There the moments where I stop and I think, "Oh my, I'm about to be a mom of two." With just Smasher I can still get by with my semi-childless status. I mean I'm always a mom and yes there are things that I get really excited about in the baby world, but I could usually separate myself from it if need be. I've recently decided that this is no longer possible. I talk about Smasher non-stop and about how excited I am for 8 to be here. I get stupid over things like cloth diapers, baby clothes and Moby wraps. I mean, I am getting a little sick of myself now. I can't imagine how The Hubby is dealing with it. He is so supportive and a great addition to our little family.

This past week has kind of been awesome. I've got something that I ordered almost everyday and I now I received everything!!! I got all of her feeding supplies last week and then today my new Moby and all of their diapers came in. I kind of want to test the Moby of Smash, but I don't know if he'd like it much. I may have to let The Hubby try it since I'm sure my back would hurt after too long. I'm about to start washing all of the diapers since in order to get the maximum absorbency out of them you have to pre-wash them about 5 times or so. They should be ready by tonight though and I think Smasher will be wearing them tomorrow. Hopefully we can say "goodbye" to the disposables in this house. I know my mom is still going to use disposables on him though and probably everyone else will too when I'm not around, but at least he won't be in them all of the time.

So, going back to me having a "mommy" moment. Actually there were two moments today. The first having happened after my mailman left a brown box on top of my mailbox (it was the Moby.) I rushed in and opened the box and wanted to try it right away but I don't think Smasher would have it, plus I can only carry him on my back and right now..well, that just doesn't seem like too much fun. The second moment was when Smasher and I rounded the corner and I saw a huge box sitting on my doorstep. I just about screamed like a little girl at a Jonas Brothers concert (my new favorite analogy, by the way.) I got in. Put Smasher down for a nap and tore open the box. I'm missing like four of them. Three of them I knew about and they will all be to me by next week, so it's all good.

So, my unexpected life has got me excited about cloth diapers (which while VERY cute, will ultimately be holding poo), Moby wraps and baby clothes. How did I end up here again? I must have gotten lucky somewhere along the way!

So, for now, auf wiedersehen....I have laundry to do :)