For those wanting to be more self sufficient...

[hsm5grls]

thank you Pat. I think that is the route I am going to take. Just seems better than throwing away so many dirty diapers.

 

[MissPrissy]

The baby wipes and using cloth diapers reminded me of something else.

When babies first begin to breast feed the milk can be too acidic and burn their little bottoms in first couple of days. It did to all of my babies. When they have to have medications or they have an upset stomach it is the little hineys that pay the price.

Here is a recipe for an ointment that will coat, protect and heal their bottoms fast.

Take a tube of A&D ointment (it can be store brand as well) and squeeze it all out into a dish. Take a bottle of unflavored plain Mylanta and mix in as much of the Mylanta as you can keeping it in an ointment form. You can mix in a fair amount without making it runny. It needs to stay relativley thick. It will turn cloudy and begin to turn whitish. whip it all together really well until it is soft and creamy.

The ointment coats the injured skin, the mylanta nutralizes the acids and the vitamins A & D heal the skin.

I will NEVER buy another tube of buttpaste or cream. You know the name brands I am talking about with zinc in them.

Now, remember, sometimes diaper rashes can be fungal based (little red spoltches with a white pin dot in the middle). Take your baby to the doctor for the proper treatment. Some can be yeast on those use some yogurt to sooth the skin. If it doesn't clear up there is more to it and you need to see a doctor. I also advocate feding babies yogurt. Mine began to have at least a little spoonful as early as 3 months old.

Make sure you sanitize the cloth diapers well. Use super hot water and bleach to kill germs otherwise your cloth diapers will harbor bacteria and will cause your baby to get and keep a rash. Which is not a good thing.

I hope this helps someone.

 

[patandchickens]

I hope many of you will take this in the gently amused spirit in which it is intended...

...but I really have to chuckle at a lot of the things being proposed as 'self sufficiency'. Most of this thread seems to be about how to imitate highly 'manufactured' fancied-up products that we have been brainwashed by those who make money selling 'em to believe that we need. Phhhthttt

Taking one kind of soap and mixing it with other things to create more-complicated soap is not, to my mind, 'making' soap, as such

And scented soap, powders to sprinkle on floors, oven cleaner, diaper wipes, etc are NOT by any stretch of the imagination the sorts of products that a person needs.
It would be a whale of a lot more frugal, and make you even more self-sufficient, to break free of all the weird consumerist beliefs our culture has gotten stuck in. Things are supposed to smell like things

-- try getting used to what things are really like, as few household smells are actually bad (if your house smells 'like cat', you need more litter boxes cleaned more often, or need to fix the cats' reasons for not always using the boxes).

Use a lot less laundry detergent than the package tells you to -- yes, even if you have hard water. They are in the business of selling lots of laundry detergent dontcha know - why listen to *their* recommendations? Experiment and see what works - I get fine results with less than 1/4 the recommended amount. Ditch the fabric softener, it is a needless expense and just one more pointlessly fragranced set of chenicals.

Use a self-cleaning oven, it's much more energy-efficient anyhow as long as you only run the clean cycle when it really needs it. For non self cleaning ovens, and for oven racks, scrub up spills and splashes as soon as the oven cools and you won't need harsh chemical cleaners.

Nobody needs diaper wipes. Use little squares of an old flannel blanket or such. If you insist on disposability (and for bad poos, *I* certainly do <g>) and don't like how plain toilet paper works, use half a paper towel (the select a size ones are great) moistened with plain water, end of subject.

Coupons... if you can find coupons for flour, oil, that sort of thing, fine, but do not let coupons for highly-processed foods and unnecessary household products suck you into maintaining that distinctly UN self reliant lifestyle just at a 10% discount.

You know?

LKook around the house, and at each product, stop and seriously ask, what would truly happen if I did not have this, or had a less fancied-up version. THAT is the way to get out of the consumer fast-lane and safely onto the ground of self sufficiency

Just my $.02 (which would cost closer to $.85 if done with all of the tv, magazine and grocery-store trappings that are assumed to be necessary for civilized life these days, LOL,


Pat

 

[hsm5grls]

I have a little patch of Aloe Vera plants in my yard specifically for butt rash. I open it and keep it in the fridge. It heals the bottom quick. Be careful to cut all the spines of the side and keep in wrapped in the fridge.

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
Or, to prevent problems 95% of the time before they even start, my brilliant midwives <g> recommended that you just rub olive or other bland cooking oil on the new baby's bottom, renewing it every few changes as it starts to wear off. You must start with a new unopened bottle, and make sure to dry the baby's bum really thoroughly (blotting) before oiling, but it works great.

[

Make sure you sanitize the cloth diapers well. Use super hot water and bleach to kill germs otherwise your cloth diapers will harbor bacteria and will cause your baby to get and keep a rash.

I dunno, we only wash them at 125 F and have had no problems. May help that I hang them dry in the sun every wash or 2. Direct sunlight (thru a window is fine( is also a great treatment for diaper rash - just leave the baby diaperless on a towel (etc) on a waterproof sheet such as an old showr curtain.

Although, I will admit that I also use Penaten zinc cream if a rash develops in the 'legpits', whichh are tough to air out

Pat​

 

[MissPrissy]

Good words, Pat.

I spent my time doing the cloth diapers and paper towels for really messy bottoms.

But I have to confess, at 40 and having my last son, I threw my hands in the air and gladly give my money to the Huggies manufacterers. I am leaving a huge carbon footprint these days.

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
Forgot to mention - diaper pins are ok but I cannot say enough good things about what is called a "Snappi" (I think i have that spelled right?), it is a stretch grippy thinganajig to use instead of pins for holding a prefold on the baby. Can't hurt baby; cheap; and mine have lasted literally years each!

Good luck,

Pat

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
ROTFL -- been there, doing that, getting the t-shirt

I used cloth about 90% of the time with our now 3 1/2 year old, til #2 was born last May. #1 only got toilet trained last fall, and I could not deal with (well ok, chose not to deal with) giantly poopy preshooler diapers *and* a new baby, so Harry went into disposables. (Though by then, he only used maybe 3-4 per day). #2 is now past the 'harmless milk-only poo' phase and on to solid foods, and I have to confess I am using disposables more than half the time now.

At 42, I have to say that I think there is a reason people are 'meant' to have babies while still young, energetic and unarthritic

Laughing at ourselves

,

Pat

 

[JenniferJoIN]

Quote:
My boyfriend and I are the ones who spend $130 at the grocery, but proudly hand over our $.50 coupon!! The cashier usually says something like "I guess every little bit helps..." hee hee.

 

[miss_thenorth]

I used cloth diapers, bought mine used--the velcro ones. You can add additional liners to absorb more urine. I have to admit I cheated though----Thre are little disposable liners you can buy-- I got mine at walmart-- These liners would catch the poop, and you would toss that part out. It was a long time ago, but i think they wre even flushable.

for baby wipes, alot of the times, I just used a washcloth. I had to wash the diapers anyway...

And for powder--just used cornstarch. My kids are 20 mos apart. I had two in diapers for a long time.

Vinegar is my best cleaning agent. I wash my wood floors with vinegar, I clean mirrors and glass with vinegar, clean sinks showers and tubs with vinegar, use it in the rinse cycle in my washing machine in place of fabric softener. It takes out the soap residue, and leaves clothes soft. Fabric softener is baaaad.....

And Pat.... wondering when we were gonna hear from you