Wednesday, January 30, 2013

TGIMF- Thank Goodness It's My Friday

I am happily finished with my first month of work. This month my schedule was Monday, Wednesday, and every other Friday so my bosses could train me and supervise me. Starting next week I work Monday, Wednesday, and Friday on weeks 1 and 3 of the month and Tuesday and Thursday of weeks 2 and 4. This is so I average 20 hours a week and can meet with more clients on their schedule (if they need to meet on a Tuesday, they only have to wait 2 weeks instead of a month when I can change my schedule). Now, I am off until Monday!

The 4 day vacation is a good thing- it will give me a chance to get my tax forms organized and done for my new business. If I get them done this week, I can make my first order early next week and build my stores (Facebook and website) over my 3 day weekends at the end of the month. It will give me the next 2 weekends off because this weekend Dad is coming up and I'll spend the weekend with him and next weekend is Allison's third birthday!

We have been invited to another girl's birthday (Belle is a day younger than Allison) on her birthday. Belle's birthday is going to be at the Phoenix Zoo! We're going to spend the entire day at the zoo for their birthdays.

Allison requested to have a lunch picnic and playdate at the park for her birthday with 3 of her friends. It's going to be so much fun- they are going to do this on the Monday after her birthday (I'm off that day). She's been planning the menu (Sams Club chicken wraps or enchiladas, fruit plate, cake with ice cream, and Kool Aid) for the past week! She can't wait!

This is a super busy time but I thrive on stress and action! I can't wait to see where this leads me :)

Sunday, January 20, 2013

Life Changes

As if things weren't busy enough at my house with homeschooling Allison, having JR, and working part time. I am considering starting my own business!

It makes me sad to see families paying outrageous prices for cloth diapers. I bought all of mine for less than $4 each. I was looking online to replace a few that were different than the ones I like and saw the exact diapers I use from $3-$20 depending on what website you look at! This got me to thinking about people who don't have time to do all the research I have done on cloth diapers. Why should they have to pay such an exorbitant amount to diaper their child? This led me to ask the manufacturer of the diapers what it would cost to wholesale them to me. Then, what it would take to create a website to sell them on and what taxes I would have to pay to become a legit business. All of this led me to discover I could have a business of my own (with tremendous stock) for less than $2500!

That sounds like a ton of money to me, but I found out that Sam's Club offers small business loans for a low fee (~$70/month). The more I research, the more I realize I want to start my own store! This may not happen in the next few days but I'm hoping by JR's birthday (April 26) that I have it online! I'll keep everyone posted on the details and the website, coming soon!

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Back at work

It's been an odd couple of weeks- I started working again after almost 4 years! It's a part time job (24 hours one week and 16 hours the second week, so it averages out to 20 hours a week). I'm working as a WIC breastfeeding councilor. I've been training the past 2 weeks (how to do my job) and the next 2 weeks will be doing my job with a supervisor in the room. Starting next month (when I'm on my own) my schedule is Week 1, I work M-W-F and week 2 I work T-Th. This month it is M-W- every other F.

I get to take JR to work with me (he's my breastfeeding aid/model) and Allison stays at home with the babysitter/nanny (I don't know what to call her but she's awesome!) Allison looks forward to being with someone different and having their sole attention and I look forward to some adult interaction. I hope this is a job that I stay at for a while, the hours are great, 3 day weekends every week, get to bring JR (so I don't have to pump!), and the possibility of moving up with the county.

Monday, January 14, 2013

Cloth Diapers Again!

I've been using my pocket diapers for the past 7 months. I had a bit of a learning curve, figuring out how to wash them with the hard well water, which detergent to use, and how to prevent leaks. The last one I just couldn't solve with my pockets. I had 3 problems- JR sleeps 12+ hours a night, he sleeps on his side, and he's a heavy wetter. I tried double stuffing with microfiber inserts, adding bamboo, folding inserts, stuffing, not stuffing, everything and still had leaks most nights!

I started researching what other moms used and had good luck with. The answer kept coming back to one thing- wool. Everything I thought I knew (hard to care for, expensive, itchy, and hot) came to a screetching halt when I found Amy's Diaper Stash, a wonderful mom run retailer in Highland Village, Texas. She had a really cute wool diaper cover that looked soft and didn't cost $50-60. I decided to take a chance, for $28. If it didn't work, I could always resell it (another benefit of cloth diapers!). I emailed her and asked her opinion on if it was worth it and what to use underneath. She wrote me back and said she uses prefolds and wool full time. She also warned me that it's addicting.

My next worry was how to care for it. I knew it had to be hand washed but I didn't realize it takes 2 minutes or less of work every couple of weeks. All you do is fill up a sink with warm water, disolve some lanolin and wool wash, and put the cover in. Then, you leave it for 15 minutes, come back wring the water out (without twisting it), and roll it up between 2 towels to get more water out.. All done!

Next, I prepped my new prefolds- 4 hot washes and dries. It took all day but finally I was ready to try it! I got JR from his bath (Daddy's job) and put it on him. I am by no means a pro at using a prefold but I got it on hin and pulled on his wool for the night. Now for the test! When we woke up at 6 (slept a bit later than usual) there was no wet spot in our bed! I felt a bit of dampness on the inside of the cover but nothing on the outside!

After 3 days, I am completely in love! I am already looking at a few more prefolds, wool covers, and a few regular covers. I don't think they'll replace my pockets completely but they make a nice change for things!

Monday, January 7, 2013

What a difference a year makes

This time last year I was at the hospital with my mom as she passed from this world! Then, I was transferred to the other hospital in town to be monitored for preterm labor (I'd been having contractions for a couple of hours). I spent 2 days there, plugged up to machines and meds. I got sent home on bed rest for the rest of my pregnancy.

I've spent most of the day looking at old picture and crying! My mom was more than a mom, she was my best friend. Things are different when you're an only child- and really different when your mom was a SAHM until you turned 17! She knew how to make me laugh, make me angry, and keep me sane!

I wouldn't have survived my first birth without Momma. She lived in my house Sunday-Friday for the first 8 weeks of Allison's life. Was home for a week and back to my house for another 4 weeks (damn emergency c-section and gallbladder removal!)

She taught me how to love and be loved and be a mommy. She let me be who I was with no judgements, no criticism, and no worries. I hope I can be as good a mom to Allison and JR as she was to me!



Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Happy New Year!

Hello 2013! It feels odd to write that- I don't know why.

I haven't written much about homeschooling lately. Allison loves it! She begs to do school everyday, even weekends! I will do about a half hour before JR wants my attention and I have to quit. Some days she'll continue on for a bit longer with "reading" or repeating her days of the week or ABC's and others she is happy to be done.

She knows 30 sight words, all of the alphabet (upper and lower case), the sounds they make, can count 25 without help and 100 if the numbers are in front of her, all of her colors, shapes (even the weird ones like octogon or trapezoid!), and the days of the week in order (but she adds a couple of extra Fridays. Don't we wish!).

I have been using a complete workbook of kindergarten type book with Allison. She finished it up before we took a break for the holidays. I got a new one to start on Monday. She knows how to trace all of her letters but forming them on her own is iffy. My goal is between now and August is to improve her handwriting. I don't care if she can write them (she'll only be 3.5) but I want to see her consistently tracing them with good form. We're also going to work on simple, conceptual addition and sub