~I learned about KaWaii diapers which are just like Bummies but less expensive.

~I wanted the Sweet Peace, until I felt it. The fabric used it supposed to be super soft but for me it actually catches on my fingers, ick. We’ll probably get one with plain cotton fabric.

~I’ve been doing a little research on car seat safety lately, and using accessories that didn’t come with the seat, aren’t proven safe. I’ll be removing the Kiddopatamus support from our list.

~I’m also holding off on getting a Balboa sling as it qualifies as a baby bag, and may be the kind of sling that has too much padding and room that may be unsafe. I’m sad about this because it’s by the Sears family with whom I agree on many baby/child raising ideas.

~I got my PackaBe and I love it!

I don’t know about you, but we found the array of cloth diapering options totally bewildering at first! Fortunately we were able to go to a class called Cloth Diapering 101 at our local eco-store, and that was very helpful for laying out the options and pros/cons. For us, because we wanted to do elimination communication, we chose to go with prefold diapers. They are the thick, flat ones that you fold up to put on the baby (the ones your mother may have used when you were little!). Instead of using pins you can use something called a Snappi which is like an ace bandage clip. Then when you want waterproofing you put a separate cover over the diaper (I like our loveybums fleece cover, but it was too hot in summer, maybe it wouldn’t be good for you in California!). It’s not as easy as an all-in-one diaper like the BG or FuzziBuns, but we liked not having to be waterproof all the time (so that we could tell when he was wet right away, we never wanted him to get used to being wet). We also like how easy they are to wash/dry. The fitted diapers take a lot longer in the dryer because they are bunched up, prefolds are flat and towel-shaped so they finish drying very quickly. And prefolds are *way* cheap. We bought them from our diaper service for 75 cents each when we were ready to be doing our own laundry. (And having diaper service the first 6 months was a godsend, let me tell you!) And I know I’m sort of harping, but if you can find the energy to do EC with #2, even a tiny bit, you will save some diapers and hopefully make toilet learning with the next one easier than with Sara Ellen.

We have the roundabout car seat, too, and we **love** it, it is wonderful and fits even in a small car. And I can change it/move it around myself if necessary, so you know it’s pretty manageable.

I am so excited for you! Congratulations!