Shameless Fluff Piece

LOL Yes this is a Fluff Piece in more ways than one. We got Fluff Mail this week. the five new Alvababy diapers I bought came. Now don't get me wrong I know that they are made in China and I know that they undersell American made WAHM diapes but we buy those too, however if I didn't buy from places like Alvababy, we could not afford to cloth diaper. Not only are their diapers cute and affordable, but they are one of the highest quality diapers on the market and in my opinion hold up better than many companies like Bum Genius. You never know what you are going to get with a WAHM unless you have ordered from them a few times, but you always know what to expect with Alvababy.
The one WAHM Mom run company though that I love is called Babycoon Designs. She makes almost exclusively "geek culture" kids and baby clothes and diapers. My all time favorite pocket diaper and favorite fitted diaper that we own are both Babycoon. Her quality is on par with Alvababy, though more expensive, worth every penny. She is also a local company to where I live and very approachable. She always helps out a customer and goes the extra mile to make sure her fans and customers are super happy.
My other favorite 11 pockets that we own are all Alvababy. We own tons more in various brands and quality levels but those 12 (11 alva, 1 babycoon) are my favorite.
So without further ado.. some cute diaper pics to oggle.

Here is our 11 Alvababy pockets and our one Babycoon pocket.

And here are the 5 new Alvababy Pockets we just got. I love Fluff Mail... don't you?

Bucket Filling Isn't Just The Absence of Bucket Dipping

As the Mom of a Kindergartner I am very familiar with "bucket dipping" and " bucket filling". These are the easy to understand concepts that most schools across the US, which help to allow kids to understand and correct their own behavior. A bucket dipper is an individual who participates in an activity which is harmful either physically or emotionally to another individual. This is a pretty easy concept. Not being a bucket dipper can be a challenge but most kids have it mastered. The bigger challenge, and concept is in being a bucket filler.
What is a bucket filler? Doesn't that just mean not bucket dipping. No. To be a bucket filler, you have to go above and beyond. It is not enough to just be someone who is not harmful to people. A bucket filler is helpful to people. Not just helpful but kind, builds up their friends, and is forgiving and loving to even their enemies.
This concept goes so much further than the classroom though. Even in marriage, adult friendships, workplaces. It is not enough to simply not hurt people, you need to build up people. Don't just make sure your kids are fed and dressed, make sure they really know you are there for them, that they are loved and happy. Don't just do your homework, do it well, put in the extra effort, show your teacher you really care. Don't just not fight with your spouse, show them you miss them, love them.
So you may wonder why I am writing this. Honestly, this was a conversation I had with Bug. He was sad that he did not win a "bucket filler award" yet, when he hasn't been a bucket dipper in a really long time. I asked what kind things he had done to help his friends, or compliments he had given his teacher, or extra hard work he did on schoolwork, or friends he had said kind, friendly things to. He looked confused. "but I am not a bucket dipper!" I had to explain that all he is doing is being bucket neutral, which sadly the schools don't really teach kids that bucket filling is more than the absence of bucket dipping, and they are growing up in a world where most people are bucket dipping and self serving. To them simply not hurting people for personal gain is a really huge step. Yet it's a first step. There has to be a second side to that. It is so hard to remember that. We live in a world where we so long ago forgot how to build others up, we self promote, collect friends like trading cards, and only spend time doing the bare minimum in relationships.  I myself am horribly guilty of this. I think most of us are.
So let's take a page from our children, and remember to be bucket fillers. Bucket fillers not just bucket neutral.

Handmade Halloween

Well it was another handmade Halloween this year, and the first with two kids. I have to say coming up with and hand making 3 costumes this year (Hubby had to work) was both fun but difficult. So the costumes this year were Princess Leia, Darth Vader and an Ewok. We had a great holiday and for the first time ever I trick or treated while baby wearing!
The Darth Vader costume, the only parts I didn't make were the helmet (which was given to us) and the light saber. The Ewok costume was entirely handmade except for the upcycled monkey costume feety pajamas I used as the base. The Princess Leia costume was completely handmade.
So without further ado... here are the pics! I didn't end up getting any pic of myself as the biggest Princess Leia ever with all my baby weight but I got lots of the kids.