Cloth Diapering

I am resurrecting our much-neglected blog to share a bit about our decision to cloth diaper our little girl in October and to help folks who are interested in helping to better understand what we need to get started.

After much thought, consideration, and a TON of research Joshua and I have decided we would like to cloth diaper our children for economical and environmental reasons (See http://www.thirstiesbaby.com/customer-center/cloth-diapering-101 and http://wellnessmama.com/3692/why-cloth-diaper/).

If you're like me a couple of weeks ago, you have no idea how to go about cloth diapering or even what is needed to start. There are several different styles of cloth diapers that vary in price and it was extremely confusing to try and make heads or tails of what might work for our family.

For those of you sweet people out there who are getting us a shower present and are interested in helping us start our diapering collection that we will use for our future kids, I've tried to make it easy for you. I have put all of our diapering items on one Amazon registry with assigned priorities to what we really need versus what is nice to have.

To be completely transparent, though, our initial strategy is this:

1. For the first week or so we will use disposables until our baby's meconium passes. (If you're not a parent and have no idea what that is-- I recommend NOT looking it up, it's pretty gross)

2. After that, we will primarily use OsoCozy Cotton prefold cloth diapers (size 1) with a Snappi and a Thirsties Duo Wrap Cover (See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2i5bi4KJRw). All of those are on the amazon registry. Essentially, you change the prefold diaper every change and the diaper cover every 3 or 4 changes (assuming it doesn't get dirty). The plan is to do this for the first 3 months or the duration of my maternity leave.

** Side note: We envision ourselves cloth diapering in our home when we are taking care of our kid (probably about 80% of the time) but we are not stressed about 100% cloth diapering. When we travel or other folks are watching our kid we'll probably use disposables.

3. After I go back to work, we're not sure how easily our childcare will be able to support cloth diapering SO I also registered for some thirsties Pocket Diapers. These puppies are essentially like disposable diapers (i.e. no folding or covers, etc). You just wash and re-use which makes it easier for folks who are not familiar with folding the cloth diapers. You can also add extra inserts into the pockets for more absorbency overnight.

The trade off is price-- they're a bit more expensive and can only be used the one time before washing. We plan to still use prefolds and covers in our home on nights/weekends which is why I registered for the OsoCozy Size 2 prefold diapers for when our child gets bigger.

I've also included some accessories on the registry that will help us get started:

- Various sized wet bags for keeping diapers while on the go
- Special diaper cream that can be used with cloth diapers
- Cloth wipes-- because if you're washing diapers why not just throw in the wipes too? That way we don't have to have two separate disposal pails.
- Wool dryer balls (can't use dryer sheets for diapers)
- And of course laundry detergent for all the laundry we will be doing!

SO that's what we're thinking for now. But who knows the future? We'll just have to respond to life's challenges the best we can and revise our strategy accordingly :)

If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us!

It Starts With Food

All right people, January was a quiet month for us but it was largely because we went a little crazy and decided to give the Whole30 thing a try.

For those unfamiliar, the Whole30 is a clean eating challenge for 30 days. No added sugar, no dairy, no soy, no grains, no legumes, no artificial preservatives (MSG, carrageenan, sulfites, etc) .

If you've done the math you realize that leaves us with eggs, meat, seafood, vegetables, fruit, and healthy fats (avocado, extra virgin olive oil, clarified butter, coconut oil, macadamia nuts, etc). Nothing processed.

That's a lot of cooking/ preparing.

The Whole30 is also super into grass-fed beef, cage free chickens, wild caught fish, and all that good stuff. Which is great.

If you have a bottomless pit of money.

SO

I have put together this post to try and capture our experience (well, mostly my experience since I'm writing this post and Joshua had a little bit of a different journey than I did).


I'll start off by saying that the Whole30 website has this timeline that matched my experience pretty well for the first five days. I went through the whole "What's the big deal?" phase and then the "Hangover" phase when not eating sugar for a few days started to catch up and then the "Kill all the Things" phase when my body realized this 'no sugar' kick may be permanent and launched it's full scale rebellion (although I attribute some of my bad mood to the frigid weather and stressful events at work).

During my "Kill all the Things" phase I was at the gym talking to one of our CF buddies, Creston. Nice guy, young engineer like us, works for GE. Anyways, I was asking him if he was doing the Whole30 challenge with our gym (because our crossfit gym decided to do it together for the month of January). He just looks at me, shrugs sheepishly, and says all nonchalant, "I already eat that way normally. So I don't have anything to change or cut out."

I have never wanted to punch somebody in the face so much in my life.

I'm serious, I was ready to tackle him.

After that phase, I deviated from the timeline. I was never THAT exhausted and my pants never felt tighter, but my cravings did get pretty intense at some points. I didn't miss bread, or pasta, or Asian food, or milk as much as I thought I would, but MAN, I craved sweets (ESPECIALLY chocolate) more than I ever had in my life.

Well. That, and cornbread. Which I am still trying to figure out what the heck happened there.



When it came down to the last two weeks I expected to feel amazing, like a million bucks, "Tiger Blood" as the Whole30 people call it (do not ask me where that name came from I have no idea).

And I did feel that way, sometimes.

But sometimes, I didn't. I just felt....normal?

It was confusing. But we stuck to the 30 days. Dutifully stayed off the scale until the end (Well I did anyways). Handed over our paychecks to Whole Foods. And ate.


Outcomes

Benefits we observed:
- Skin cleared up (but definitely got worse before it got better)
- I slept better at night
- I didn't get hungry between meals
- My nails got stronger
- I lost ~8lbs and 4% body fat,
- Joshua lost ~4lbs and 1% body fat

Benefits we hoped we see but really didn't:
- Waking up easier
- Boundless energy all the time

Some negatives:
- I had some crazy mood swings as my hormones settled
- The skin breaking out before it cleared


I journaled often during the process and Joshua and I discussed the program as went went along. Here, I have tried to summarize some of our thoughts on the Whole30:

Before I even get into the other stuff, I just want to mention that I am incredibly grateful that my husband did this with me. Being completely honest, had it been just me, I don't know if I would have made it past the first week. It was, at times, awkward to make so many new things and use ingredients and cooking techniques that we'd never tried before and I could never have made it work without Joshua's can-do attitude, his laid back manner, and his skills in the kitchen.



Things about the Whole30 that I love: The Eating Parts

During the 30 days we ate some seriously good food. I don't know if it was because we were eating everything organic (which I had always thought was a bit of a scam), if it was because we cut out sugar and so other muted flavors became more vibrant, or if we were just so hungry that anything was bound to be awesome, but everything we ate was SO SO delicious.

I always thought I was a bit weird because I just didn't like food as much as other people. But I seriously fell in love with eating this past month. I was worried, going into it all, that we would get worn out by certain things (likely eggs or chicken) and that eating would be boring. This was one area that completely blew me out of the water. We loved the recipes in "It Starts with Food" and we LOVE this girl. We even bought her cookbook, too.

I also took the opportunity to try some things that I thought I didn't like again and found that they were really delicious! Things like:

- Ground meat (beef, turkey, pork, etc)
- Tomatoes
- Mushrooms
- Peppers (green and red)
- Curry Powder
- Coconut
- Pineapple 
- Almonds
- Pecans

We also tried some things that we'd never had before that we found delicious. Like:

- Turnips
- Parsnips
- Sweet Potatoes
- Coconut Milk


Some of our favorite dishes were:
Breakfast- Sweet potato hash browns and friend eggs.
Lunch- Chicken salad with apples and almonds, creamy thai soup
Dinner- Coconut shrimp and spaghetti squash (with remoulade sauce); lemon thyme chicken thighs with roasted root veggies; pecan crusted salmon; spaghetti squash with tomato meat sauce (man, typing this is making me hungry)
Anytime- Berries of any kind; almond butter.



Things about the Whole30 we didn't love but weren't awful either: The Cooking and Cleaning Parts

It was challenging to prepare all the food we would need for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We certainly got our money's worth out of every kitchen gadget, pot, pan, and appliance we own. And of course, using all the things also means cleaning all the things.

Kitchen gadgets that were the most helpful:
 - Peeler
- Crockpot
- Food processor (which we purchased during our Whole30)
- Juicer (not the appliance, the manual kind)

It was a real challenge, especially at first.Our dishwasher ran every single night (for just the two of us!) There were times when I would look at the chaos of our kitchen and wonder if it was ever going to be clean again.

But, eventually, we found something of a rhythm. It became a discipline to keep our kitchen functioning, which was good for us I think. We learned tricks and shortcuts and did a lot of cooking at once so we only had to reheat later on.

We learned some new recipes and techniques and some things because almost fun.

I discovered I really like making my own paleo mayonnaise. I never have cared for mayonnaise that much before, but the paleo stuff is so good as a dipping sauce (I'm sure it sounds really gross). I also enjoy making my own dressings and condiments. I found a ranch recipe that I like better than the real stuff and super delicious remoulade sauce that is really great with fish (or chicken, or beef, or....okay I use it on everything).

I also learned how to make bone broth, which made me feel super awesome and grown up. There's a odd excitement in making everything you're eating yourself.


Things about the Whole30 that I HATE: The Paying Part

This eating style is not cheap.

I had a small idea about how much it would cost and so I suggested we save up some extra money for January's groceries.

We spent all of that by day 17, a little over halfway there.

When I think about how much we spent on groceries, it makes me want to cry. We spent more in January on groceries than on rent.

Rent! Let that sink in.

Sure, the winter time makes produce and stuff more expensive. And sure, we committed 100% to grass fed, cage free, wild caught, organic, we sing our cows/chickens/fish to sleep at night and everything. But MAN. Eating well should never be that much. I don't know, maybe we did something wrong. Thank God for my number-crunching husband who did some budget magic and balanced out all of our expenses.

My eyes have been opened to this whole wonderful idea of responsible farming for produce and animals and the Whole30 people encourage you to 'Vote with your Dollar' but we don't have that many dollars to vote with.

This was probably the most stressful thing about the whole30. Because, like I said, the food was delicious we were feeling better (and losing body fat) but it was simply unsustainable for the future.

But what can we do? Go back?


Post Whole30: Reintroduction

Right now we're on day 33. Or what we call 'The Reintroduction Phase'.

Basically, for the next week, we reintroduce a food group (i.e. dairy, soy, etc) one day, keeping everything thing else Whole30, and see how we respond. Then spend the next day Whole 30 compliant. Then reintroduce something else the following day. Rinse and repeat.

On Saturday (day 31) we reintroduced dairy. I've read about people having mucus or digestive issues when doing a milk reintroduction but neither of us responded negatively to dairy. Well, my skin broke out just a tiny bit, but nothing crazy.

Today (day 33) we're reintroducing gluten-containing grains. Breakfast (french toast!) was fine but we'll see how the rest of the day goes.


Basically, past this Friday, we don't really know what eating in the Harkey house looks like. We definitely have some ideas of what we want to limit or leave out of our regular diet altogether but we're trying to find a happy medium between BiLo and Whole Foods (we're currently exploring Publix).

So wish us luck and, if you think about it, pray for us because we have a sincere but ignorant desire to treat our bodies with respect and honor the temples that God put in our stewardship. Looking in the bible, it's clear that health and nutrition are important to God and that gluttony is a real hindrance to a relationship with Him which is no good for us.

Also, when I planned out this post I dreamed I would take all sorts of pictures of the yummy food we've been eating but I only took two. But you might as well see them, so here they are:

Prosciutto Wrapped Frittata 'Muffins'

Chicken Nuggets and Sweet Potato French Fries

Love you all,

Oh, Christmas Tree

Merry Christmas everyone!

Joshua and I have had a really wonderful holiday season so far! It's nice to be home with our families and not at work! 2013 has been a great year for us with a lot of changes, a new town, a new home, new work, etc. and we are really looking forward to the new changes that 2014 will bring!

One of my favorite Christmas traditions is setting up a Christmas tree. My family grew up with a fake tree but Joshua is in the die-hard 'real tree' camp so we go and get a real one every year. I love picking it out with Joshua and then stringing the lights up and going through all of the ornaments. I usually like to get our tree the week after Thanksgiving so that we can enjoy it for a few weeks before we leave for Georgia. 

Joshua has started making fun of me, but before bed every night, I will shut off all the lights and sit on our recliner and just gaze upon our beautiful tree for  like 10 to 15 minutes. I love sitting there in the dark, with the only light coming from the tree, and soaking in the peace and beauty of Christmas. And I just  think our tree is so beautiful!

Before we left Greenville to return to Georgia for the holidays I took a few quick photos of our tree and some of my favorite ornaments. Check 'em out!

That has pieces of our wedding program in it! Mrs. Nightingale made that for us!

This was from the trunk of our tree last year!

This was from our Anniversary date when we went hiking round Mount Mitchell!

From our family to yours, we hope that you all have a wonderful Christmas full of laughter and rest, reflection and peace, family and presents, and all the joy of the season!

Love,

We'll Call It...Puzzles!

Something else that has been going on in the Harkey house this past fall is jigsaw puzzles!

Last year, for Christmas, we were given two puzzles of the exact same castle (but from slightly different angles) and we finally (almost a year later) got around to putting them together. One is 1000 pieces and the other is 2000 pieces.

Here are some pictures!

 

 

But Sugar Is So Tasty...

This past summer we had some friends, Nathan and Raina, come and visit us. When they were here they told us about something that they had done before they got married this past summer called the Whole30.

Now, if you're super health savvy then you have probably heard of this, but to me it was new information. They told us that it was basically a clean eating challenge that is meant to kind of reset your metabolism and break down a sugar dependency.

It peaked my interest so, naturally, I went full-on research mode (I swear, sometimes I feel like Hermione) and did a little digging on the internet. Apparently the Whole30 was developed by a couple named Dallas and Melissa Hartwig. They have a website dedicated to the program and general health philosophy (found here) but what was even more exciting was that they had written a book so that I could read up on all the science behind the plan and the exact details of how food affects different aspects of my life (again, channeling my inner Hermione).

It's called 'It Starts With Food'

We haven't done the program yet (I'm still in the research phase) but I finished the book a few weeks ago and I think I've bought into the idea enough to give it a try for 30 days. No sugar, no grains, no legumes.

Luckily for me, my loving husband is on board with doing it together so I think the plan for now is for both of us to start on January 2 after the Holidays (I am a planner). This gives me plenty of time to do some research about different farming practices, scope out how to buy well-raised meat (something they insist on), figure out what the heck ghee is, and wean myself off of sweet n low in my coffee.

I will definitely share some of our thoughts as we're going through the challenge, but if you think about it during that time, please pray for us! I'm sure we're going to need it as our self control and restraint will be refined!

Ain't No Mountain High Enough

When we moved to South Carolina this past summer, one of the things that we were most excited about was the abundant availability of beautiful hiking trails.

You see, Louisiana is very flat. Which meant no hiking for us.

But now that we're back in beautiful Appalachia, the great outdoors' beckon is simply irresistible. And I would love to say that we make time to go hiking and hit the trail at least once a week, but unfortunately I'd be lying terribly. Remember that busy fall I've been telling you about these past few days?  ....well it's carried over into other areas of our lives besides the blogoshpere.

We've only been hiking twice since we moved.

But a couple of weeks ago we did manage to make it out to one of the most recommended trails from my coworkers: Table Rock.

It was BEAUTIFUL. I'm kind of glad we waited so long to get out there because the weather was perfect (high sixties and sunny) and the autumn leaves were simply stunning (leaves changing colors is another thing you miss out on in Louisiana).

Table Rock is a more strenuous hike (7ish miles round trip...the real killer is the ascent) but there's something about breathing in the fresh air and your muscles burning as you climb to the top of a mountain that really makes you feel alive.

As always when we do finally get to the spectacular views at the top, I wished that I could have just teleported down the mountain. It's immensely satisfying to work hard and peak at the top of a climb, but spending the 1+ hours to get back to the bottom always feels tedious to me.

Anyways here's some pictures of our beautiful Sunday hike!

 

Side Note: I don't know this kid. I just thought that him climbing this tree would make for a good picture.

Don't Wish it Was Easier...Wish You Were Better

I have never been a super athletic person. Sure, when I was a kid I played soccer for a few years and I was a pretty decent goalie at the height of my traveling career. And yeah, I danced in high school, but just for fun and not seriously enough to do any sort of real conditioning.

College was a great place to be active without having to put forth any real effort to make time, what with pick up Frisbee games, a super nice 24/7 gym at my disposal, intramural sports, and even walking to class (if it wasn't cold/ raining/ I felt like it). But when Joshua and I got married and moved to Baton Rouge it was so easy to come home from work, plop down on the couch, and read a book or watch TV or just sit and talk until it was time to sleep.

But MAN, after 9 months of a significant decrease in activity, we were seriously feeling it.

We weren't sleeping as well, I had gained a little weight (let's face it, Joshua doesn't have that problem), and our bodies just weren't as spry as they used to be.

So when we moved to Greenville we had decided that we wanted to be more active, and since our schedule was going to change anyway, might as well make the change when we relocated.

I thought long and hard about what would be the most efficient and effective way to get back in shape. Because we work 9 hours a day, there's not a ton of spare time to dedicate to a gym (and we're definitely not at a level where we wake up at like 4am to work out). Also, because neither my husband or myself are very gym-knowledgeable, chances are if you set us loose in a gym we wouldn't know how to design an effective workout for ourselves.

That's how we became Crossfitters.

Crossfit is a sort of group personal training program. The workouts usually include some type of strength training, metabolic conditioning, and core components. The workouts take 15-40 minutes to complete but they are HIGH intensity, so you're getting a lot out of your time.

YES we do double unders (well, try to) and burpees and hand stand push ups (against a wall) and all of the other crazy crossfit terms that you hear. And YES we do the snatches and cleans and push jerks and all the other crazy lifts that I had no idea even existed before 5 months ago. And YES I have felt like throwing up and wanted to cry when I read our WOD (workout of the day) and thought I was going die after some workouts (not really, but being dramatic makes me feel better).

But all in all it's been AWESOME.

We really do like it a lot, which is a big surprise to me. Don't get me wrong, we're not like competition level dedicated, but the program has really motivated us to be more active and to push ourselves farther than we would on our own.

It's also a social thing. So it's been nice to meet other people in our community by connecting over how much we despise burpees or trying to teach each other how to improve our squatting form (unless you're Joshua and have perfect squat form...ugh).

Crossfit is also competitive, which is one of the easiest ways to motivate me to push harder, run faster, or lift more.

     

This is Tommy. He owns the gym we go to and has been super great getting us started with Crossfit!

That last pictures is not from Corssfit, but our time with our buddies from the gym inspired us to train for our first 5k race. Joshua came in first place for his age division and I...well I was just happy to finish the thing without stopping. I would have laughed at you a year ago if you told me that I was going to be able to run 3 continuous miles.