Recently I made, what I believe, is a responsible choice to try out cloth diapering. I’ve been wanting to cloth diaper even while I was still pregnant, but the thought of doing laundry, and, all this information are.. overwhelming. Flats? prefolds? Pockets, AIO, AI2. (WHAT?) Then, there are inserts, hemp, microfiber, bamboo, stay dri, natural, organic.. ARGH!!!

The first switch I made was switching to cloth nursing pads. Previously I was using disposables nursing pads and they are so expensive! It’s about RM30/week. So, my husband suggested the washable ones and I cringed everytime he suggested it, thinking about the extra laundry + overwhelming new baby. Then, I found a good deal, 8 pairs for RM32, I didn’t think twice and grabbed them. It turned out to be extremely comfortable (no wonder I was so cranky before, my breasts were uncomfortable! haha) and the laundry wasn’t that much at all!

Now, fast foward. When Sara was barely 5 months, I got brave and bought some pocket CDs (that’s cloth diapers) from Teddy Genius. Since they were on clearence, no harm.

My logic: I can do washable nursing pads. That means I can do CD, too.

I initially got three. And now I’ve increased my stash to, to, well, a few of various brands. Now, I’ve been CD-ing (let’s keep up with the lingo, folks!) for a month and I have to say that it’s a wonderful experience, I enjoy it and I’m definitely ready to CD full time.

There are four reasons why I PERSONALLY  love cloth diapering; cost efficient, environment, comfort and health.

1. ENVIRONMENT

I am, by no means a hardcore green person. I do try when I can, to recycle. (I don’t know if Malaysia has pickup services for recyclables). However, the amount of disposables we’re throwing away is crazy! During Sara’s first 3 months of life, we have thrown away about 1000 disposable diapers into the landfill. That is an awful lot of diapers, it’s INSANE! Now, imagine that average babies are on diapers for 2.5 to 3 years. That’s almost 8,000 diapers for just ONE baby!

To give you the visual, it’s probably equivalent to a full rack at the store.

According to Real Diaper Association, it takes approximately 250-300 years for a diaper to decompose! Whoaaaa

When you think about the mountains of landfill, it’s kinda irresponsible of us humans to do that to our own environment for the sake of “convenience” of taking care of our offsprings. Don’t you think? There are people who genuinely believe human shouldn’t procreate for environment’s sake.

Sure, disposables come in handy during overseas trip and such, but on day-to-day basis, it makes sense to use cloth. Here’s some light on our landfill situation. Now that my perspective has changed, I will consider switching to cloth pads too, once I get my period back. 

Before I had Sara, I always had my own ideas about parenting. What I’m gonna do, how am I gonna deal with her fussiness or whatever, and that includes the kind of baby gears that I might like.

For example, when it comes to carrying Sara while we’re out an about. We bought a nice Bumbleride stroller which we love. I never thought about buying a baby carrier whatsoever because I thought it’s not ‘cool’. (what is cool anyway?)

Then, when Sara was around 6 weeks, she started to become fussy. She wanted to be held, and she wanted comfort nursing almost ALL the time. She nursed for up to 1 hour and a half at one time. Day or night. Everyday felt like a battle. I was stressed out because I felt constrained.  So I started to make a research on how to cope with this. I read an article which suggested babywearing.

I had never considered babywearing before, and I was overwhelmed by the many types of baby carrier. There are ring slings, wraps,soft structured carriers and few others. I did tons of research. Finally, I rented a linen Jumpsac ring sling from SentuhanBayu. Once I got it, I practiced wearing it for a week, with help from youtube and the facebook babywearing support group. Oh, once I got it right, things started to get easier. I was able to put my fussy baby to sleep in just a few minutes, and let me add -handsfree! Of course I love that!

After 2 weeks of wearing her, she fussed a lot less. A LOT. Nursing time gradually reduced to 45 minutes,  30minutes, then 20, and now only 10 minutes. Any longer, she’d puke the excess milk. And then I realized one thing, she wanted comfort nursing because well, she wanted to comfort herself. Also, all she wanted was to be close to me!  With the ring sling, I was able to provide her just that, while still going on with my life, chores or whatever needs to be done. Surely I won’t be able to do heavy chores with baby in front of me, (ironing is a risky task, unless if I pop her at the back!).

So, once my ring sling rental was over, I went ahead and made my own right sling. Of course!

lightly padded shoulder ring sling

I used cotton drill (the fabric used to make uniforms or men’s shirt). It’s sturdy because it has additional diagonal weave, I wasn’t able to rip it apart. Since it’s that sturdy, I only have to use one layer of it. Linen might be a better option because it gets stronger over time, but it’s not my favourite because I find it too warm on me. I made two, one with gathered shoulder and one lightly padded. I’m surprised to find the simple gathered shoulder is more comfy! Perhaps that’s just my preference.

 simple gathered shoulder ring sling

Oh also, the sling rings are made especially for this purpose. It’s unwelded aluminum rings, and weight tested and made in US. I bought them from Snuggbaby.com

Before I knew it, ring sling is a staple wherever we go, even with our stroller. Whenever she’s awake or doesn’t wanna be alone in the stroller, I just pop her right in and she doze off. Now she enjoys looking around at eye’s level. One of the best thing about it, I don’t have to keep an eye on the stroller during shopping, because she’s literally right under my nose. haha! Babywearing is so practical and serves as a useful tool for parents. I can’t imagine caring for Sara without it.

date with my best gal

breakfast with ze hubster

Makan-makan with family

working outside

Babywearing is a mutual. My baby gets the love and security she needs and I get my hands free. WIN-WIN. Period.

Contrary to my misconception about babywearing, it doesn’t make my baby clingy at all, if anything, it made her less clingy because she’s so secure and she knows that I’ll always be there for her. Plus, it makes me feel like a supermom, being able to ‘wear’ her and make morning coffee for my husband. 😉

Oh, a bonus. I learned how to nurse her in the ring sling! Yep, I can NIP on the go!  It’s such an achievement and it brought babywearing to the next level. I can now walk around while nursing her in the ring sling! No need to find a seat anymore. I even shopped while she’s nursing discreetly! woot! *dances like a monkey* It certainly makes my life 100 times easier and Sara is a happy baby Alhamdulillah!

Who knew I would be so into natural parenting. I enjoy it so much! Next up: cloth diapering. yeah, you heard me. CLOTH DIAPERING.

P.s, I’m putting her to sleep in my ring sling as I’m writing this.

p.p.s, NIP = nursing in public

*IMPORTANT NOTE*

Before babywearing, ensure that you do enough research to make sure that you are pacticing safe babywearing. Using suitable carriers for baby’s age and using it correctly is very important as safety is vital. These list should get you started on your reasech.

Babywearing Reasources:

• Ergonomic carrier vs crotch carrier
• TICKS rule for safe babywearing
•  Babywearing 101
• Benefits of Babywearing
• More benefits
• Malaysian Babywearers support group

A couple of weeks ago, I was breastfeeding on a lounge chair in a mall. Coincidentally, the baby room was just a few steps ahead. Then came a mom from the baby room, and she told me to use the nursing room as it was empty. I told her, “no thank you, I’m good”. Actually I feel sorry for moms who rely on nursing rooms because I know it’s not the most convenient thing. In fact, I stay away from nursing room.  Here’s why.

1. It smells like diaper change. People constantly coming in and out changing their babies. Of course it smells like baby’s stools.
2. It’s usually small and lonely (I don’t think my husband enjoys accompanying me because of the diaper smell).
3. Most of all, I hate having to feel like I’m hiding to feed my baby. I’d like to feel free feeding my baby wherever I please, thank you very much.

When I first went out in public, I was terrified and insecure about breastfeeding in public. We started bringing her out at 3 weeks. At first I was self-conscious about nursing in public (NIP). I had to run to the nursing room to feed her and even at the most familiar mall, I still didn’t know where the baby room was because I never noticed it before!

A week before I had the guts to go out, I practiced nursing my baby in the nursing cover, she was barely 3 weeks old then. The practice was for me, and for her to get used to. Luckily she’s not a fussy baby and she doesn’t mind being in the nursing cover at all. However, even then, I still didn’t have the guts to NIP during our first outing. Either I resort to rely on nursing room or pack expressed breast milk (EBM) and hot water. Packing EBM is such a hassle, do you know how heavy those icepacks are?

Finally, I gathered my guts and breastfed in public for the first time at Subang Parade when I was out with my sister. Then, slowly I started feeling confident. Next thing I knew I was breastfeeding her everywhere. In Ikea, The Mines, in restaurants, whenever, wherever as long as there’s a seat. So all it took was practice! and the right gear.

Me, nursing Sara at Wangsa Walk, KL. More on this nursing cover here.

Here’s some tips on NIP (based on MY personal experience)

1. Get the right gears to breastfeed discreetly. Nursing wear, or breastfeeding-friendly wear will certainly make it easier. For added privacy, get a nursing cover.

2. Be aware of the feeding time and your baby’s early cues. Screaming baby attracts attention, and may make NIP difficult. So, as soon as you see the cues, find a place to NIP.

3. It’s all about mentality. If formula-fed babies can feed in public, breastfed babies should get the same rights. Try to think of it as advocating breastfeeding in this world where formula feeding is becoming the norm. Actually, you should feel blessed to be able to give the best for your baby!

4. Don’t hesitate to ask for help. You’ll be surprised how accommodating people can be when it comes to nursing your baby.

Once, I needed to NIP when I was at a department store, and there was nowhere to sit. Not even outside the store. So I just asked one of the staff for a chair, and they kindly grabbed a stool for me and I nursed her right there, at one of the aisles like nobody’s business. Cool ey?

There was also this one time when I was at a mall with Sara alone, I saw a row of lounge chairs but not one was available. There were several elderly and then I saw one healthy able guy. So I politely asked him to give up his seat so that I can nurse Sara. Fortunately he respected my request and kindly gave up his seat. The point is, you can have faith in people and hope they’ll be nice to you. 😀

Another reason to NIP? Convenience. Baby’s hungry? Sure, just find a seat, pop up my nursing cover and within 20 minutes, she’s done. Compared to bottle feeding, I have to mix the formula with water or heat up the expressed breast milk and while all that, try to calm the hungry baby. Oh, that’s just too much trouble for me, especially having to pack so much! Bottles, water, hot water, the milk. What if I forget one thing??

With NIP, I only have to pack for her diaper change and I’m all set. I find NIP is very empowering. I love it! It’s a win-win for me and Sara. She gets to feed on cue, and I get to have my freedom. Sure, it slows me down a bit, but hey, it’s just 20mins every 2 hours. I might as well catch up on instagram or just have a chat with my husband while I’m at it.

Next up, learning how to NIP on-the-go!

As many of you know, I gave birth to Sara, on 31st October. It was an amazingly beautiful day, indeed. Sara is now 27 days, she’ll be 4 weeks tomorrow. As far as my recovery, I finally feel a lot better now.

Although my pregnancy was smooth and relatively easy than other women I know, it was really tough and challenging. If you ask me when I was pregnant, I would say being pregnant is not worth it! Yes, that sounded bad.

Then came labour. I was really terrified of labour. I was. I researched so deep so that I could be physically and mentally prepared. I practiced visualisation every day and think positively about my labour. 6 hours in labour, and it turned out to be the most painful yet the easiest thing. It went smoothly according to my visualisation, Alhamdulillah.

Now, the postpartum. It is the worst thing about having a baby. It’s a lot of pain. Contraction pains, breast and nipple pain, body aches, perineal pain, pelvic girdle pain, you name it. My recovery was slow and I was in 3 weeks of agony. I cried so much.

The first 2 weeks, I lost hope that I will ever recover. I guess it was the baby blues talking. Came the third week, I started feeling more sane, and tried to think positively about my recovery. Soon, I started to see improvements. Talk about mind over matter!

Now that my baby blues are completely gone, I’m starting to enjoy taking care of Sara. It used to feel like a chore, perhaps it was all those pain I was feeling. I love waking up in the morning to Sara. She’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. To us.

I can never forget the first time she was thrown onto my chest right after she came out. Yes, thrown is the exact word. I looked at her and I did not know what was this moving thing that just came out of me. She looked so pale and grey. Guess  I was still fuzzy from the labour. Then, she was taken away, the nurse put a blanket on and swaddled her. Soon she was given back to me while the doctor sutured my perineal tear.

I looked at her and her eyes were wide open glancing back and forth between me, Eddie and the surrounding. She looked like she was trying to understand where she was and what was she seeing (although she probably couldn’t see anything clearly then).

Immediately, I fell in love with her. I was shedding tears of joy. I’m  truly happy that she came into this world. She’s so perfect and beautiful. I had never been so thankful in my life before. Everyday, since she was born, I thank Allah for this gift. I feel so blessed for having her.

Sara, a few hours after she was born.

9 days old

21 days old

If you ask me now, she is definitely worth it. It was worth all the pain, agony and not to mention, all those emotional roller coaster. Truly, she is a gift. And she’s my personal achievement.

P.s, Read my husband’s story on my labour.

P.p.s, I will write about labour and postpartum recovery soon.