Back and Better Than Ever! (With new labels!)

I'm back from my "vacation" from sewing. I still have some school work to finish up for this semester so things aren't 100% in full swing. And, well, it's hard to get my head wrapped around a sewing schedule again (no more laying around during Bibbit's naps watching Dr. Who...)

But, Lamb Babies is back and better than ever!

These are my brand new labels! Don't you love them?! I got them from this great shop on Etsy, and they're fade-proof and fray-proof especially designed for use on cloth diapers!

And here are some things that I've been working on:

 Upcoming "Farm" stocking!!! Don't worry, there'll be more!

Fleece Hybrid Fitteds! (These still need snaps...)

Buying *new* fabric!!! (These^ are organic prints by the way!)

Getting ready for a Valentine's Day stocking!!!!

Stay tuned! There's lots of wonderful things happening at Lamb Babies in the new year!

Thank you for making this a wonderful first year (half-year?) in business!!!

~Citrus Lane December 2012 Review~

This is my special gift to my little guy, my Bibbit.

This month's theme: "a few of our favorite things"

Citrus Lane had an awesome Black Friday deal where I was able to purchase a 6 month subscription for WAY below normal cost.

I talked to the husband, and came up with the idea that I would give him something(s) in the December box for Christmas, and then the 6 month subscription would end in May (his birth month) so it'd be perfect for his birthday!

*I opened this box in secret so he wouldn't see what was in it!

This box was physically  huge because of this awesome airplane from Green Toys! Bibbit is going to love this on Christmas morning! This company makes items from recycled milk jugs, they are free from "nasty stuff" and they are made in the USA! Bibbit has been all about vehicles lately and I'm so glad he got this super cute plane. ($15--already worth my money...YAY!)

This is a cd by Renee & Jeremy "It's a Big World!"

 I'm already familiar with their music because it pops up on the Pandora station I made for Bibbit. They are really good, all acoustic, very mellow, perfect for background music, naps, and quiet times.  All songs are original except they do a cover of Bob Marley's "Three Little Birds" which is one of my favorites on the cd.  I also love the title track and "Night Mantra." ($12)

Next up is a photo album/brag book by Pearhead.  At first I was a little "eh" about this just because I'm terrible about putting pictures in a photo album, I can never decide which ones I want to go in them, or maybe I just never get around to it.  Anyway, Citrus Lane suggested making this a photo book for your toddler to look at pictures of mommy and daddy, and other family members. I LOVE that idea! Bibbit loves looking at pictures of family, so that's what I'm probably going to do. Also, this is a really cute green and brown, which sort of ended up being Bibbit's colors, because I wanted to buy things that were gender neutral in case we have a girl in the future. ($8.95)

I love these pouches.  I don't see why people think they are only for babies?!?! Bibbit is 18 months and loves them for a quick snack, and this brand GoGo Squeez, I've actually seen at the store in the applesauce aisle, not in the baby section! My husband and I have taken these on road trips, camping trips, etc. It's an awesome way to carry fruits around. ($1.29)

Treat for mommy!

 I've been craving dark chocolate lately so I was so happy to see this.  It is 100% made in Madagascar "from bean to bar." That's kinda neat. Anyway, this isn't a creamy, melt in your mouth chocolate.  It has more of a bite, and is the kind you just have to let sit in your mouth awhile.  I really like it, and it actually has hints of cherry in it! Yummm. ($1.50)

And a $15 gift voucher to ecomom.com! I've never shopped here, but I've browsed their site and they have a ton of awesome items, from wooden toys to countertop compost pails! I can't decide what I should get...maybe some play food for Bibbit's toy kitchen? ($15)

This box was so worth the money that I paid for it.  I'm really happy with the diverse products in this box, and I absolutely can't wait to give Bibbit his airplane on Christmas morning!

All opinions are my own. I purchased this item with my own money.

Glory Bee Body & Honey Monkey Butt Healing Ointment~Review~

Molly from Glory Bee Body and Honey so kindly sent me her Monkey Butt Healing Ointment to review.

 Molly is a mommy to three little ones and has a background in herbology.  Like me, she was unable to complete her college studies due to pregnancy, but that didn't stop her! Molly uses the Bible verse Isaiah 61:3 as her inspiration:

"To console those who mourn in Zion,
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”

Molly says it best, "It was clear to me that God was aiming me in a new direction. After installing a few beehives He began to inspire in me a buzzing of new ideas and formulations to try. I have been blessed to be able to use my knowledge of herbs and bees to make high quality body care. It is my desire that the Lord be Glorified, hence the name 'Glory Bee.'"

This is chocked full of good stuff that is all designed to help heal and protect your little one's bum-bum. 

"...it is made with healing herbs like comfrey, known as the knitting herb because it draws skin together to heal. Calendula that soothes and heals and lanolin which protects and creates a barrier."

AND, Molly and her husband harvest many of the herbs from the mountains, and the oils she uses are organic! How awesome is that?

I love this product!

It has a slightly sweet herbal smell which is right up my alley.  I put some on my hand when I first got it, and it rubbed right in, and I couldn't stop smelling my hand!

Let me tell you, a little bit goes a long way!

I've been using this on Bibbit (19 months old) almost exclusively in his diaper area and it's done a great job of keeping his diaper rash down.  I also used it on his dry winter skin, arms and legs, and it totally softened up his skin.

There's so many other uses for it too: eczema,  minor abrasions & scrapes, 

I even used it a few times as an overnight facial moisturizer with great results!

I'm happy to announce that 1 person will win a 1oz glass jar ($8) of Monkey Butt Healing Ointment as part of the Green Resolutions Giveaway Hop January 16th-30th 2013!

Come back here in January for a chance to win this great product!

All opinions are 100% my own. I received this product in exchange for my review.

One of my favorite Christmas songs...

This song is so beautiful, so under-rated, and so appropriate especially in light of recent events.  I urge you all to watch it and listen to the lyrics.  It's beautiful... 

The Elusive Doctor (Doctor Who?)~my attempts to find fabric!

I was sick. With a cold. In bed during Bibbit's naps which I usually reserve for sewing time.

And I did it.  You sci-fi gurus would be so proud (yes, that means YOU big brother!). I started watching Dr. Who.  Then I started watching Dr. Who until 1 am. Whoops. 

Now, I'm hooked.

Now, I want to make a Dr. Who diaper....but I can't find fabric!

Spoonflower (a site where you can create your own fabrics, which is pretty cool) sells a TON! I urge you to check them out. But they're all more expensive than I'd like to pay, like $3-$4 more PER DIAPER of pure materials, and apparently, they fade A LOT.  Like going from really vibrant colors to a vintage washed out look.  Which could be cool, I guess.  

They're just not meant to be washed in hot water which we all know is imperative to the clean diaper process.

Okay, this talking cookie jar is pretty unique.

 

So, this is where YOU come in! Can you help me find some fabric?

Who is your favorite Doctor? 

(I'm still on the David Tennant episodes so I can't decide yet, and well I haven't watched any of the vintage episodes...)

Would you like a Tardis print, or a Dalek print?

Wool Dryer Balls~DIY Tutorial

Now that the cold months are upon us (we're in the northeast) the time for line-drying in the sunshine is over.

I still hang up small things on folding racks like socks, and light weight shirts, but thicker items like jeans and hoodies take absolutely forever to dry so I use the dryer.  Or, when it's time to get those diapers all nice and fluffy again. But on the other hand, we all want to save energy and money right?

Have you heard of wool dryer balls? If you frequent the eco-friendly mommy blogger giveaways, then  you've probably seen them all over the place.

Well, if you're like me and never win any giveaways, or if you've noticed the price-tag on those dryer balls, let me tell you, they are super easy to make!

Here's what you need:

1 skein wool roving
Your hands
Washer/Dryer

I got my wool roving at Michael's in the yarn section on sale for $2.99 a skein (regular price was $5.99) though I'm pretty sure Joann's has them too. It kind of looks like fuzzy yarn.

Here's what you do:

1) Find the loose end of the skein and pull some length out.  Start by wrapping the yarn around and around.
2) Keep wrapping the yarn around, forming a ball. Make sure it's tight!
3) When yarn is all used up or when it's the desired  size, securely tuck the end into your wool ball. (You may want to weave it in and out a few times to make sure its nice and tight.)
4) Wash them on hot, and dry in your machine several times.  This will cause the yarns to tighten up or felt.  I just put them in the laundry whenever I was washing on hot, and whenever I used the dryer...I didn't make a special "laundry day" for them or anything.

Ta da!

 

*I found for the skein that I bought, 1 skein makes 3 balls.  (About baseball size) I've never had any unravel either, though they do get a little pill-y, like the picture above.

You could certainly make them bigger if you wanted, just knot the new yarn on the end and keep on wrapping!

Whenever you use your dryer, toss these in instead of dryer sheets.  They can reduce your drying a lot (for me about 10-15 minutes for 3 balls) by separating your laundry and letting the hot air get in between fabrics.  The wool also acts to soften your fabrics! AND you're saving energy and money! Woot!

These are a great way to green up your laundry system, especially with all those cloth diapers!

We're sick...

We've been sick around here.  All except the husband...doesn't it always seem that way?

So, I'm taking a few days off to rest.

I'll be back though, don't fret, don't worry your pretty little heads.

See you soon.

:o)

All Decorated for Christmas

Twas the month of Christmas,

and in Lamb Babies house...

Our stockings hung by the window with care...

Last Thursday, we went to a nearby city to see the Holiday Train! This was our first year going and Bibbit LOVED it! A lighted train stops at the station, and stage comes down out of the side of one of the cars, and  a band performs Christmas songs! It was so much fun, despite the fact it was wayyy beyond Bibbit's bed time! (and a little chilly)

Then today we got our tree! YAY! Last year we were in the moving process right around Christmas time and didn't get our tree until like a week before Christmas...I definitely like having the tree up for a few weeks.

 

Bibbit helping, although he does have his first cold :( I guess 18 1/2 months isn't bad for being sickness free though, right?)

 Our Christmas tree.  Our 3rd ever in our married life, and Bibbit's second in his entire life!

I love colored lights, don't you?

What's Going On in December (Happy Birthday to me!)

Starting today December 1st is the Merry Fluffy Christmas giveaway!!!

Sarah from Mommy and 4 Peas in a Pod did a review of a Lamb Babies diaper. Read it here. And now we'll be giving one away in your choice of boy, girl, or gender neutral print! While I sent Sarah a diaper with the original design features, the diaper YOU could win will have the new features. You only have 1 week to enter so ENTER!!! There are incredible prizes available! (I'm definitely entering)

Christmas diapers are currently available on Etsy, and let me tell you, they are awesome!

<--Over there on the sidebar is an Etsy mini shop which links to the real shop, check them out if you're interested, like this gorgeous sparkly tartan print available in an all-in-two and a hybrid.

And guess what? There will be FREE SHIPPING all December long to celebrate the season of giving!

(Use code FREESHIP)

I will also be taking a vacation from making new items for Lamb Babies for the month of December to relax and enjoy the season and to crochet Bibbit some play food for his toy kitchen.

 I will still be available to ship out orders.

I will also be posting markdowns later on this month to clear out the stock for the new year...

out with the old, and in with the new!

Molly from Glory Bee Body and Honey so kindly sent me her all natural, organic, Monkey Butt Healing Ointment for a review, which will be happening in mid-December, for the Green Resolutions Giveaway Hop in January! Stay tuned!

I will also be giving away a prize during the Green Resolutions hop, one of my new fitted diapers with fold out soaker (it will come with snaps).

These diapers are even a great way to green up your cloth diapering as they are all organic!!!

You can find more information about them in an earlier post and they are also available on Etsy in your choice of fabrics and snaps!

If you're a wahm who makes eco-friendly items including cloth diapering items, let me know and I will be happy to do a review!

Lastly, Merry Christmas & Happy Hanukkah

...and a very Happy Birthday to yours truly on the day after Christmas!!!

Bluum November 2012~Review~

Last month I had an offer where I received the Bluum box for half price at $6.  For those who don't know, Bluum is a subscription service that sends 5-6 deluxe sized samples of items for mom and baby.

I wasn't going to continue it to save money, but I forgot to cancel by the first of the month....that's something you have to be careful about with these types of services, they usually automatically renew without letting you know.  If you want to cancel, you have to manually cancel your subscription.

Anway, the theme for November was "Bundle Up" so I guess it was all about being comfortable as the the temperatures dip. (Bad picture-taking warning...lighting was bad)

 The first thing I pulled out of the box was a teether toy.  It's a super cute walrus, but my 18 month old doesn't use these.  I've recently found out Bluum is supposed to be for 0-12 months (though I thought originally they were 0-24 months) and they will be making a toddler box soon, so that's good.

 The next item was two tea packets. I love tea. (Oops mega-flash)

 Then a sample of organic agave nectar and organic coconut sugar.  I'm anxious to try the coconut sugar, I didn't even know that that existed! Apparently it can be used 1-1 in your recipes in place of white sugar...too cool.

 This is one issue of a "baby magazine." I really like this.  It is filled with short stories and poems, beautiful illustrations, and Bibbit really likes it too.  These are expensive! 9 issues costs over $30 bucks normally! Wow! To me, that is A LOT of money to spend on something like this, but the quality is really nice and the stories are cute.

 As a bonus, I received two small samples of Caldrea stain remover. I just used some earlier, and one little packet actually goes quite a way.  This also has a really sweet floral smell, almost old-fashioned but in a good way!

We were also supposed to receive a mud mask, but because of Hurricane Sandy, the product didn't arrive to Bluum in time (they are based in NYC), so they sent out an email saying the product would be in next month's box.

However, I did in fact remember to cancel my subscription this time around.  The baby box is too young for Bibbit, and besides the teether and magazine, a lot of the other samples seem like things you could just get for free. Maybe with the mud mask (I don't know if that was just a sample or a full-sized product) the $12 would be more worth it, but for me this time around, it just wasn't.

The Finished Product~~all new quick dry fitted prefold!

Well, here it is!

Lamb Babies new fitted prefold!

All natural and one size fits all (10-35+ pounds)!

I blogged about the original design here, and it took some time to figure out how to place the elastic and how to make this a turned and topstitched diaper (many of the diapers that are similar to this are serged) but I like turned and topstitched better because its gentler on baby's skin. :o)

 6 total layers of absorption!!! I can make these in bamboo and/or hemp organic cotton.

 Bamboo fabric (folded over part) and hemp (part laying flat)!

Here's the current snap colors I have (though I'm running low on orange and green).

For $2 extra, you get to choose your color snaps for a fold down rise like the other Lamb Babies diapers.

I love these!!! I will be putting a few made-to-order ones up on Etsy this Friday 11/30 at 5 pm if you're interested! They will be $18 without snaps (they can be pinned or Snappi-ed) and $20 with snaps.

I'm so excited about these and I hope you are too!

Lamb Babies is getting a facelift!

I'm changing some things up as far as diaper design!

Right now, the Christmas diapers I have available on Etsy feature these new changes! (The "character" diapers have the new larger rise as well.)

I am so happy to be unveiling these new changes that will make easier to use and more absorbent diapers!

1) Larger rise.  This means that the diapers now come up higher in the back so they'll fit more babies for longer!

The cover is longer from top to bottom!

2) Cover can be machine dried! The new design and pul allow for machine drying on LOW, even with PUL!

3) Thicker inner.  The previous diapers had a layer of bamboo fleece attached to pul for the inside of the diapers.  Now, I plan on using a separate hidden layer of pul, topped with thick and soft hemp organic cotton fleece.  This will make for a more absorbent diaper.

4) Hemp+Bamboo.  The inner is hemp/oc, the insert is bamboo/organic cotton fleece, topped with hemp/organic cotton fleece.  My favorite fabrics combined to make a super diaper!

5) New insert/soaker design.  Four layers of a thicker than previous bamboo/organic cotton fleece (still in a quick-dry fold-out style) topped with an optional lay-in soaker of hemp!  So, now you can customize your absorbency and decide whether you want hemp or bamboo next to your little one's skin!

 Four layers of thicker bamboo/organic cotton fleece.

Snaps in and can unfold for quicker drying!

Topped with an added soaker of two layers of hemp/organic cotton fleece.  You can always tuck it in between layers of the bamboo soaker too!

I'm so excited for these new changes! The new diapers will be squishier, more absorbent, larger, and still as cute as ever!  

I will be incorporating this new design full-time in 2013! Meanwhile, help me clear out the old stock, and get your Christmas diapers in this new style! :o)

My Thankful List

This year I am so thankful for many, many things.  Here's my list in no particular order:

 

1) Family.  Both my biological family and my church family.  They are all wonderful, unique, caring individuals.

2) Our abode.  At the end of last year, my husband graduated from college and we moved to a much better place.  I love our little home and I am so grateful for it!

3) My husband.  He is the salt to my pepper.  He's goofy, I'm mellow.  He's mechanical, I'm artsy.  He makes me laugh every single day and I heart him to pieces.

4) Bibbit.  This past year Bibbit has started crawling, then walking, now running and jumping.  He can ride his bike, talk a little bit, drink out of a big boy cup, and *sometimes* sit on the potty.  I'm so proud of him.

5) Creativity.  I'm so thankful that God has given me a talent to be creative, to make things like cloth diapers for all of you, and the ability to make our home beautiful.

 

 Our family tree I painted, and the mushroom footstool we built together.

And oh, there's many more, especially Thank YOU for supporting me in this little endeavor of mine! I appreciate it so very much!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope you enjoy your day :o)