Garrett’s E.C. Progress (taking himself potty)

Garrett is 17 months old now and I’d say our Elimination Communication (E.C.) journey has been a pretty half-hearted one. I took the attitude of pottying Garrett with a grain of salt because I didn’t want any stress involved. I attempted to have the attitude of “it if works, great. If not, I’ve lost nothing.”

In the beginning I took him potty all the time and he did excellent and as a young baby he refused to poop in his diaper. As he got older he didn’t mind as much and would poop in his diaper if I didn’t get to him in time. Then around the time he started walking or thereabouts he started fighting the potty quite a bit. He was too busy and didn’t want to be bothered so I didn’t push it. I just let him go in his diaper but I would try to remember to take him when it crossed my mind.

A few weeks ago we picked up a Baby Bjorn Potty at a consignment shop and since then our potty success has skyrocketed. We all ready had a Baby Bjorn Little Potty (which is much smaller) and I like it but it’s size makes it difficult for Garrett to take himself to the potty without help because it’s so low to the ground. The blue potty we picked up is the perfect size. He backs up to it and goes.

Combining the new potty with keeping him naked from the waist down while we are at home has equated to him being “potty trained” during the day. He will completely initiate going to the potty and take himself without any assistance as long as he doesn’t have any clothes on. If he has underwear or a diaper on he will sometimes go in it without seeking me for help to get them off. I expect it will be another three to six months or so before he can reliably get his clothes off by himself to go potty. I have also noticed that since keeping him naked at home he has also started holding it better when he is in a diaper when we go out for the day or during nap.

Garrett mastering the potty has been just another reminder that my “baby” is quickly outgrowing his babyhood. So sad. But this is definitely a welcome change. He gets very excited when he goes potty and sometimes in his eagerness he tries to carry it to me (the little white part removes from the base) which has resulted in potty being dropped all over the carpet (yuck).

All though the concept and process of EC is very natural and makes total sense to me I am still sometimes baffled to watch a 17 month old stop in mid-play run over to the potty, go, and then resume playing as if nothing ever happened without any interference from me (except to wipe his bum after he’s gone poo). It’s a little amazing at times.

Read Full Post »

EcaPants Cloth Diaper Review

EcaPants

Revolutionizing Cloth Diapers…

Let me preface this review by saying that this is by far one of the most impressive products in the cloth diapering world that I have ever tried. If you practice Elimination Communication or are attempting to potty train your child this is a MUST HAVE product.

The Scoop

EcaPants are designed to be trim fitting and quick and simple to flip open so that the baby/child can use the potty. Instead of trying to hassle with completely removing the clean diaper and then putting it back on, patent pending EcaPants are designed to stay on the waist, via a waist belt.

This makes putting the diaper back on after using the potty simple and quick and most importantly, possible with one hand. EcaPants are also a saving grace for older toddlers who have little patience for diaper changes or anything else that gets in the way of their exploring. It is the ultimate training diaper.

EcaPants come in various styles. There are waterproof and non-waterproof EcaPants and also snap closures or velcro closures. There is also a waterproof pocket style EcaPants that is currently being tested before becoming available to the public.

Inside of the new “pocket” style

The waterproof EcaPants like the ones we tested are made with a waterproof polyurethane laminate (PUL)outer with an inside flannel layer and a hidden internal cotton sherpa soaker.

The Crunchville Experience

Inside of maroon “original” style

Garrett and I received two EcaPants diapers in the mail from Lisa, the owner of EcaWare Baby and the inventor of EcaPants. Since we practice Elimination Communication (infant potty learning) we were very excited to give these a try. We received a brown EcaPants in size small and a rich maroon EcaPants in size Medium. The brown EcaPants is the newer “pocket” style that is currently being tested and the maroon is from the original line of Ecapants.

-Sizing and Fit-

We tried out the brown pocket style first and I was very impressed with the fit. He is at the tail end, waist wise, of being able to fit in the size small but even so the diaper fit snug and securely without being too tight. The waist belt has 4 snappable positions and Garrett is in the largest setting on the size small.

When I tried the medium maroon EcaPants on Garrett I was surprised at how well it also fit him. Like most cloth diapers I was expecting there to be a funky transitional period in which the smalls were getting to be too small but the mediums were still too big. EcaPants seems to have created a diaper that seamlessly moves your child from one size to the next. In the mediums Garrett was on the smallest waist setting.

I found the fit of the EcaPants diapers to be trim and overall to look great. They didn’t appear bulky under pants and even the newer pocket style with the added soaker remained trim. I love the low cut features of this diaper. It allowed Garrett to be more comfortable without all of the extra bulk around his tummy that makes the sitting position look uncomfortable on some diapers the way it gathers around his waist. I also noticed that the fit between his legs was very trim which creates a much more natural fit.

In general, EcaPants look great. The craftsmanship is excellent and the colors are great.

-Functionality-

I expected there to be some awkwardness in figuring out how to put the diaper on and in flipping it open to take Garrett potty. To my delight it was simple and pain free.

To put it on I simply laid Garrett on the floor…

snapped on the waist belt…

and pulled the diaper up between his legs and secured it in the back with velcro…

Wha la!

When it was time to go potty I was able to hold Garrett in one arm and unsecure the velcro with the other hand and flip open the diaper to allow Garrett to go potty.

For parents that practice EC this makes the “in arms” phase of pottying so much simpler and faster. Putting the diaper back on after Garrett went potty was the best part. I didn’t even have to sit down or lay him down to put the diaper back on. I supported him in one arm and used my other hand to flip the diaper back to the front and then secured the velcro on each side.

I love that it is possible to get the diaper back on securely with only one available hand. Genius I tell you! For those wiggle worm children who refuse to lie down for diaper changes this would certainly be an answered prayer.

Other super features include the velcro (it’s actually aplix). With other velcro diapers the velcro can begin to fray over time due to washings (think bumGenius). EcaPants all ready had that under control by sewing a protective edge around the velcro. No fraying, no accidentally scratching baby and I think it makes the velcro look nice.

Equally important is that the velcro attaches in the back. Obviously this allows the diaper to flip back and be out of the way but as an added bonus it keeps the velcro away from babies belly so that there is no chance of baby accidentally being scratched by the velcro.

-The Wash-

EcaPants have a pretty straight forward wash routine. Secure the velcro to the wash tabs. Do a hot wash and dry on hot. I followed the wash instructions and the diapers held up great. There was a normal amount of pilling on the flannel (pictured below).

The velcro stayed securely attached to the wash tabs. My suggestion, however, would be to use the dryer sparingly when drying your cloth diapers. The longevity of your diapers will last much longer if you line dry them. This goes for any cloth diaper.

I also appreciated that each EcaPants diaper had washing instructions included with it.

-Real Life Application (AKA The Pee Test)-

We’ve used both diapers several times and have found them to be very reliable in containing any misses. We used the diapers on outings, in the car and at naptimes and had great success. We only had one incidence of wicking and that was because Garrett had a large pee and he was in the original EcaPants that does not have a pocket for additional absorbency. Even so, the wicking was very minimal. I liked that I didn’t need to use the additional soaker in the pocket style diaper and that the diaper was still waterproof without it.

The other benefit of this diaper that is very useful for EC and also for older children learning to use the potty is that unlike most pocket diapers, EcaPants do not wick moisture away from baby’s skin. This helps to create a stronger association between urinating and being wet thus increasing the likelihood for potty success.

Since my son refuses to poo in a diaper we were not able to test EcaPants capabilities in containing poo. I imagine it does very well since the fit is so secure around the thighs and the back.

Wrapping it Up

-Suggestions, Observations and Wishes-

- I found that on the smaller sized diaper that the waist belt had a tendency to want to rise up above the outer shell of the diaper. All though this didn’t affect the functionality of the diaper, visually it is distracting.

- EcaPants are not for everyone. Since they are designed with EC and potty learning in mind they will not be an optimal diaper for those not wishing to take their children to the potty because inevitably you would experience leaks.

- All though I love that the velcro adheres in the back I imagine that this might make it somewhat cumbersome for the “do it yourself” toddler. However, since I don’t have a toddler I’m not sure if it makes it cumbersome or not, it is still reachable so perhaps they are able to detach it just fine. It is definitely something I’d look into if I were buying these for the older potty training toddler.

- My son doesn’t poo in his diapers so this was not an issue for us but I noticed that with the pocket having the insert in the middle and exposed that there is a high likelihood of poo getting on the fingers when removing the insert.

-If your child is a heavy wetter with even one pee you will want to invest in the new “pocket” style once they are available since there is the option to add extra absorption.

-Overall-

I absolutely LOVE this diaper. It is the answer to my EC wishes and makes pottying my son simple and quick. I can’t wait until the new pocket style becomes available so that I can buy a dozen of them. I’m not sure if I’ll use them for our night time diaper since we aren’t really practicing EC at night but it will definitely be our diaper of choice during the day.

NOTE: This is the first of many product reviews that I will begin to conduct on the site. All of the reviews will be archived on the Product Reviews page for future reference. If you have a product you would like me to review please email me.

Also, please keep your eye out for an article about Elimination Communication (EC). I am hoping to get this completed after our move.

Read Full Post »

Little Tidbits

This post is just a bunch of random tidbits. Updates about Garrett and the family, etc.

First of all, I can not believe Garrett is all ready 3 weeks old. The time flies. He is growing so quickly. I weighed him today and he is exactly 12 pounds. His face is changing and it is neat to see his personality bloom. He started smiling on Thursday, which is wonderful. He has the most precious smile. I haven’t been able to get it on camera yet. Cami got to see him smile for that first time with me so that was special. I can’t wait to hear him laugh. Who wants to bet it will be Camden that gets him to laugh first? He is a roly poly little little thing and can roll from his side to his tummy or from his side to his back. He hasn’t yet rolled from his tummy to his back again but he’s been close.

Garrett is a pretty easy going little guy. He usually only squawks when he needs to go to the bathroom. He took to Elimination Communication (EC) like a pro. He is pretty good about letting me know when he has to go and he pretty much refuses to poop in his diaper. The only time he gets good and mad and cries his little heart out is when he has to poop. His tummy still hurts him sometimes when he has to go but he is starting to get the hang of it and about half the time he is calm through them.

Camden is still adjusting great to being a big sister. Camden says her favorite thing about having a little brother is that she gets to help “pick out his diapers. That is my favorite part about being a big sister, helping you.” How sweet is that? She is also a cloth diaper fanatic like me. LOL. I was antisipating a lot of regression from Camden and maybe it is too soon and the regression will come later but so far so good. She only slept in our room for those few nights when she was sick and then one other night she came in, in the middle of the night and told me that she didn’t, “want to be lonely” so we let her hop up into the bed with all of us. She is going to bed good at night and will even let Mike put her to bed, which is nice. There is a bit too much movie watching but I’m not going to worry about it right now.

The move to Bellingham is a bit stressful. Yesterday it looked like we weren’t going to be able to move directly to Bellingham and would have to move to Moses Lake for 6-9 months first and that really stressed me out. The hormones are definitely there because I had a hard time rationally talking about it with Mike and instead became a blubbering mess. Luckily there is no housing available in Moses Lake right now. All of the apartments are full and have a six month waiting list. So if we do move to Bellingham in October, which was the original plan, there is a chance that Mike might not have work right away. It looks like no matter what we do the transition isn’t going to go as smoothly as we hoped. Cross your fingers for us.

Next Thursday our ward at Church is going to throw Garrett a baby shower which is so sweet. I will try to get some pictures of that.

I swear I originally had a lot more to say but my brain isn’t working anymore, so that is all for now. Here are some pics:

2 1/2 Weeks, holding his head up so high!

Two weeks old

The Family Bed

Sweet Little Baby Hand

Read Full Post »

One Week Old

Garrett is a week old today. I cannot believe how fast this week has gone by. It is hard to put into words how wonderful it feels to become a mother again. It is hard to understand the love and the power that resides within it and how consuming and overpowering it is. Hard to understand how it is possible to love someone so much that you’ve just only met. How it is possible for my heart to open so wide and have enough room and love for both Camden and Garrett is beyond me. I suppose it is just one of those mysteries of Motherhood.

This week has gone by in a blur but it has been great. I am still on that “high” and I keep waiting to come down from it. There’s that constant bit of tiredness that accompanies a new baby but it is hard for me to get any extra sleep because I still sleep in such a light state because every little peep has me popping my eyes open.

There are so many things that are better this time around because I am more relaxed. I think my favorite is co-sleeping. With Camden I never intended to co-sleep. In fact, I swore to myself that I would never co-sleep when I was pregnant with her but wound up co-sleeping out of necessity because my little girl refused to sleep unless she was in my arms and she never slept for more than an hour and a half at a time and usually it was more like an hour. With Garrett I knew that I wanted to co-sleep again and it has been so wonderful, relaxing and natural. He sleeps so peacefully snuggled up against me and the best time of the day is in the early morning waking up to each other and just staring at one another and enjoying one another’s company. Garrett also loves skin to skin contact (Camden hated it) and this has been just another precious thing to enjoy with him.

I feel like a broken record but I love my little guy so much. He has funny little quirks (like hair on his earlobes and silly pinky toes that overlap his other toes) but he is just an absolute ball of perfection. For the first few days he didn’t like to open his eyes much and when he did he mostly just opened the right one. He still does that sometimes and I like to refer to it as his “pirate eye.” He also has the squeaky girlish squeal that is both hilarious and annoying. We keep joking with him that he better stop doing that before he meets his Uncle Dave or he’ll never live it down.

He is such a mild and calm little baby but for the first few days it was tough because he was having problems with his digestion and would scream at the top of his lungs when he had to have a bowel movement. It was so hard to witness because he would be peacefully sleeping and then just begin screaming and thrashing about and I knew something had to be wrong. I was so thankful that the chiropractic adjustment solved his digestive issues and he no longer wakes from sleeping and screams and the whole house is able to sleep much better now.

He does not have a very high frustration tolerance though and does not always give much warning that he is getting mad – all though this does seem to have gotten better since his adjustment yesterday. He seems pickier about what position he wants to be held in and if he starts to cry you have to be very quick or it will turn into a scream.

Yesterday, his umbilical cord fell off and so we were able to start using cloth diapers. Hooray! I love using cloth diapers which must seem so silly to some people. I have also started practicing EC with him part time and so far it is going really well. I’ll post more about the details of this later but so far today I caught quite a few of his bowel movements and a couple of his pees.

Garrett is also very strong. He almost rolled himself over yesterday when he got angry. He can also hold his head up really high and for quite a long time. I’m going to try to get a picture of it because Camden could hold her head up really well as a newborn too but he can hold his head up higher than she could at nearly 3 weeks old.

Garrett sleeps like a dream. I’m not counting on it staying this way and assume it is because he is just a very tired newborn but he will sleep for 3-5 hour stretches at night which is absolutely wonderful. He is nursing well now too. At first it took a bit of work because he was so tired the first few days and he also struggles a bit with a lazy latch and doesn’t like to open his mouth wide enough but he is getting the hang of it now. Engorgement is finally gone and I am very thankful for that.

Camden loves being a big sister. She is all ready getting protective over Garrett and made sure to tell Lisa when she visited that Lisa could not take Garrett home with her because it was “her” brother. So cute. She comes over to me periodically throughout the day to say hi to him and talk about how cute he is or give him hugs and kisses. First thing in the morning she comes into the room and every day this week she has said “where is my brother?” and I have to show him to her. I think she is afraid he’ll leave or disappear. Unfortunately, when he becomes mobile and can terrorize her possessions I think it will be less of a fear and more of a plea. LOL. I am surprised at how much Camden does not hover around and mess with him too much. It has been really nice for her to love on him and enjoy him but for her to still go about her regular activities.

So far Garrett seems to enjoy the car. He’s only been on two car rides but he’s handled it pretty well. Today we went out to dinner with the girls and took them to Sonic. I wore Garrett in the moby wrap and he slept the whole time. I cannot overemphasize enough what a lifesaver it is to have a wrap and to wear your baby.

I’m sure I could drone on and on and on about this little guy forever. I just can’t believe that Mike and I have a son. We feel so blessed and so overjoyed.

Read Full Post »

Super Cloth Diaper Cuteness

So I have a new obsession with cute newborn cloth diapers and that obsession is being nicely fulfilled with Nanipoo diapers. They are the most reasonably priced newborn diaper (besides prefolds of course) that I have found that is both affordable, super de duper cute and made with excellent craftsmanship. It is hard to imagine how Shannon, the maker, is able to make such excellently crafted diapers and maintain such a great price. For the newborn diapers they are only $8.50 a piece. These are fitted diapers with snap closures and they have a little cutout for the umbilical cord. They are one of the truest to size newborn diapers that I have seen. On the downside we won’t be able to use them long. On the plus side they will actually fit! I intend to sell mine when our baby grows out of them and use those funds to buy more diapers.

So far I have 13 Nanipoos and I wish I had a bajillion more. LOL. I have slowly amassed them by saving up paypal from selling things and stalking her Hyena Cart, where she sells them. We don’t know if we are having a boy or girl (I suspect girl) so I have bought cute prints for each gender and some are fairly gender neutral. I just plan on selling the ones we don’t use.

For those who aren’t too familiar with cloth diapers, fitted diapers technically require a cover if you want them to be waterproof. We just intend on using them at home for the most part so we won’t need a cover plus we’ll be doing EC. If you were to say, take baby in the car or use these for bedtime, etc you’d want to put a waterproof cover on them.

My favorites are the monkey diaper (pic didn’t turn out well), the fishy mosaic and the yellow with pink flowers. Of course they are much cuter in person than in picture and they are SUPER SOFT inside. Here they are for your viewing pleasure…

Read Full Post »