Cloth (and natural parenting in general) Newbie

[Luke's_mummy]

Hiya. I'm Alice, 18 and young mummy to 5 month old Luke. I want to introduce cloth nappies but OH isn't happy to use them whilst we're still living with my mum as he doesn't want to put the extra washing on her bill. We don't have very much money so I was wondering whats the cheapest way of building up a stash?

I often babywear, but Luke is starting to get heavy and I'm quite small, I currently use a wrap but I was wondering if somone could suggest anything that will be better as he gets older.

Luke's teething and stuff like bonjela isn't working, and I don't want to give him calpol constantly (obviously) is there anything a bit more natural, that works?

The other thing is about me instead. I was wondering if anyone has any expierience of using homeopathic medicines for depression (post natal or otherwise) I have a friend who does homeopathy and she's reccomended me taking sepia, I was wondering if any one had ant expeiences that they could share of using homeopathic medicines for this perpose, good or bad?

Sorry for all the questions, I've been lurking here for ages, but after a chat with arcainegirl, she's encouraged me to post So hi!

 

[jen1604]

Hi Alice

Have you tried posting an ad on your local freecycle for cloth nappies?Also ebay cheapies,some people swear by them and its cheaper than buying branded nappies

I can't give you any advice on babywearing I'm afraid as I've just had to give up to myself due to my back just giving up on me and being so painful as LO has got bigger

Welcome to natural parenting honey Its always lovely to see more of us young 'uns in here xx

 

[Arcanegirl]

Alice welcome to np

Theres a post somewhere in here to ebay cheapie nappies they would be a great start toa stash build up We started out with 12 cheapies when Alex was 4 months old and went from there.

With baby wearing, what about a woven wrap or a mei tai style carrier?

 

[Missy89]

I had acupunture for depresson whilst TTC as I did not want to take meds at the time obviously, it really really helped, its expensive but I have heard that you can get it from the nhs if you have a natural supporting doctor

 

[LittlePants]

Real Nappies for London have a very good incentive scheme. It depends where in London you are, but you can check out if your council is involved, and how much they will give you HERE The cheapest way to build up a stsh is to get anything you can from the council and start with that. then every time you use a washable nappy, put whatever the disposable would have cost into a jar. Be absolutely strict with yourself, but at the end of a few days you'll have saved enough to buy another nappy! ETC! The more washables you have and use, the quicker you save up for more!

Another tip is drying. That can be difficult in winter, and tumble dryers cost an arm and a leg to run. A flat platform ceiling pulley is fantastic for drying any washing, including nappies, as it puts the washing high up, which is the warmest part of any room! The flat platform ones mean you can store piles of folded clothes on them as well, which makes them much more versatile than the traditional curved ones.

My washing dries about 3 times as fast on a pulley as it does on an airer. I've got mine over the boiler, which is fantastic, and it used to take 24-36 hours to dry on an airer beside the boiler, but on the pulley it dries in about 8 hours!

It also means your drying is out of the way while it's drying, instead of draped all over the house, or on an airer, taking up floor space.

 

[Callie-xoxox]

YAY Alice!!!!
I am glad to see you over here!
More teen mom's I am glad I was starting to feel alone over here.
I just started with cloth and its amazing I am addicted to buying nappies!
That is the only down fall about it. You WILL get addicted.
The best way to get a stash I would say is Ebay
I love my ebay cheapies alot. they have never leaked
and they are great for the money
Also there is a a cloth nappy buy and sell on here
its where I got ALOT of my nappies
Since Luke is big it will be easy to get some good nappies that fit!
97K gallery is a good ebay nappy
abcfashionstore Is a good seller
good luck!!!!
P.s where is my letter

 

[Eala]

We started with ebay cheapies as well Ended up using more disposables for a couple of months, as my Mum bought us box after box, bless her! We'd had a few problems with the fit, that was mainly down to inexperience on my part, I think.

I would try and get a few different types - buying pre-loved is a good way to try things out too. I don't think we'd have that that break if, rather than buying a whole bunch of Ebay cheapies, we'd tried out different nappies too

With regards to baby wearing, have you thought about a ring sling or mei tai that would let you carry your LO on your hip as he gets bigger?

I know my Mum used St John's Wort for depression, though I can't remember if it worked for her or not. I do know that even though homeopathic remedies are natural, you still need to be very careful to make sure that they are safe for you - some of the most poisonous substances on earth are "natural"

What about alternative therapies like reiki or reflexology? I found reiki (both receiving it and learning how to give it) helped me take big steps when I was suffering badly with PTSD (and the depression which comes with it) There are also massage techniques which incorporate healing and metamorphosis, so it might be worth looking at alternative therapy centres in your area?

 

[mandarhino]

You can wash nappies on a 40 degree wash so it won't add to much to your mum's bills.

The Real Nappies for London voucher is worth £54, at least it was when I got it in 2009. Most boroughs offer it. You can buy a fair few nappies with that, though you do need to spend it in certain stores. You could supplement with Ebay cheapies though and get a big sized stash for a minimum amount of cash. Certainly cheaper than what you'd spend on disposables on 6-8 months time.

I got a Baby Hawk mei tai when mine got heavier. Pretty good on the back.

Afraid I didn't find the homeopathic teething remedies did much for her so I use Anbesol when she's in loads of pain. Are you BFing? That is the one thing that seems to be best at relieving pain for my daughter, even now at 16 months when the molars and incisors are coming in.

 

[Eala]

Oh, I missed that you asked about teething too

Absolute best thing for us was getting an amber necklace for LO. We also use Nelson's "Teetha" granules which can help settle her if she seems grizzly with her teeth

 

[Hen]

some people swear by ashton and parsons powders for teething as well (you can get them in boots). We've never used them as they contain lactose and Lottie is intolerant, so have an amber necklace instead. turn out she's now cut her first tooth, and the first I knew o it was her sticking my finger in her mouth as if to say"look mummy, aren't I clever!!"

I haven't tried ebay cheapies yet, but I know lots of people swear by them, we have some terries and prefolds which are great, but if you're trying to convert anyone then the easier the better

Oh and carriers; I love my mei tai, it's so versatile, but i still like my moby wrap as well. Hoping to try out a ring sling at the local sling meet next week. Might be worth seeing if they have one close to you that you can pop along to and try out some different types.

 

[jms895]

Hi hun welcome over!

I can definately recommend St Johns Wort for depression, I took it for anxiety and it really helped! xx Also essential oils such as lavendar and frankincense.

Defo try the ebay cheapies you can get for about £3 or £4 a nappy so so so cheap!

Hope you can persuade your OH! There are some gorgeous nappies out there! And buying preloved off here is great we all do it to build up our stash and swap and change x

 

[Luke's_mummy]

WOW! Thank you SO much for all the replys. Callie, I'll post on saturday or monday. PROMISE!!

With the nappies my local council wasn't on that list sadly, but I was looking at bay cheapies and it looked reasonable. Now to convince the OH!!

With regards to teething, how do the amber neclaces work and how are they made safe for LOs? I've got some ashton and parsons so I'll try that today. He's having a bad day with it today, It's going to be a long day!

I'm not BFing sadly I couldn't Luke had problems with latching, he could barely even latch to a bottle at birth, let alone my breast! He's doing well though!

Babywearing, I made a wrap out of cotton jersey. I can do a hip carry in that, so I just need to learn it better!!


Heres me and my Lukey
https://i890.photobucket.com/albums/ac104/myeggoispreggo_17/SAM_0075.jpg

THanks for all the replies!

 

[jms895]

Awww gorgeous !

 

[jessabella]

awwwwwwwwwwwww you are super super cute...I miss all my peirecings!

 

[Callie-xoxox]

I cant wait to get a letter
I am soo bored all the time!
I am glad you are over here now!
And I am not alone yahooo!
xxxxx
How is Luke doing and Charlie?

 

[hopeandpray]

He looks so cute in the wrap. Just a word about St Johns Wort, it affects the effectiveness of the pill and alot of hormone based contraceptives. That might not be an issue but just thought I'd mention

 

[Luke's_mummy]

Callie, we're all doing good, it's charlie's birthday on monday so i have a big cake to make! And Luke is doing really good thanks How is Lyrik doing? And I'll send you a present to appologise for how long its been

 

[lynnikins]

amber is a mystry to me as to how it works but it does lol, and they knot each stone/bead on individually so if it breaks theres only ever one loose stone

 

[T-Bex]

We got a box of terry's for £12, and then some 'nappi nippers' for £3.50. You'd need a few wraps as well, but at a push, you'd be able to do it for under £40 for the lot, if your really sticked to a budget.

I was going to suggest using the Ashton powders too; I've not tried them yet, but I've heard good things about them.

 

[Eala]

Having used both the Ashtons powders and the Nelson's ones, we've preferred the Nelson's ones. For us, the effect from them seems to last longer, and my LO prefers them too. Neither is overly expensive, so you could always try both and see what you prefer!

As Lynnikins said, amber necklaces from reputable sellers will be small beads which are individually knotted. The thread will be designed to snap if too much pressure is put on it, but only 1 bead will come off. From the ones I've seen, the beads are usually around pea-size, so not really a huge choking risk anyway. Baltic amber isn't a stone, it's hardened sap. When it warms up (against baby's skin), it releases minute amounts of oils into the skin, which have soothing an anti-inflammatory properties.

Hope that helps