Quick, before I get Sidetrack'd

I’ve officially been a cloth-diapering Momma for almost 7 months now, and the longer I do it the more I like it. In fact, Matt’s even come around to it and admitted not long ago that it wasn’t nearly as bad as he had thought it would be. As for the babe in cloth – he’s doing great: no diaper rashes, no terrible eczema outbreaks, and he looks too darn cute running around in his Fuzzi Bunz. To further make our point about cloth for Boo, every time he’s in disposables for any length of time (more than 24 hours usually) he ends up with a yeast infection.

All of that to say that I am totally sold on cloth and will definitely be using cloth from the beginning the next time around. We love our Fuzzi Bunz, but I’ve seen a new diaper around lately called Gro Baby and I am very intrigued by this diaper. They are a one-size which would be great starting from birth, and they have a reusable shell with a snap-in liner which would reduce laundry.

Anyway, my wonderful SIL introduced me recently to a new blog (well, new to me at least) called Green Kiddos, and there I found a link to a Gro Baby giveaway. So, this is my post entering said giveaway. I would love to try these diapers!

For more info on the diapers check out The Natural Baby Company; for more info on the giveaway, check out the Gro Baby Facebook page.

It’s the first day of Spring, my thirtieth birthday, and the beginning of UBP ’09. Definitely time to party!

Hi, I’m Jana. Welcome to my little corner of the world. Come in, help yourself to a piece of strawberry cake, and stick around to chat for a while.

For those of you who are new to these parts, let me tell you a bit about myself…

I am wife to the love of my life, Matt. God has entrusted us with two precious lives in the form of our 2.5 year old, Little, and our 11 month old, Boo; and I have had the privilege of being at home with them since Little’s birth. I lead a life filled with blessings – a great family, great friends, and, most of all, a great God.

I started blogging a little over two years ago and chose to name my place Sidetrack’d because, well, because I’m very easily distracted. You will find me writing on a wide variety of topics – funny anecdotes from everyday life, my faith, books, baseball, cooking, and anything else that strikes my fancy. I write because I enjoy it and because it is a much better way to record my children’s milestones than trying to remember to write in their baby books.

Feel free to hang out for a while, look around, and if you like what you see, subscribe to my RSS feed.

Thanks for stopping by today; I hope to “see” you again soon!

Oh yeah, if you’re interested, here’s the recipe for the yummy strawberry cake we’re enjoying for my birthday I’ll post the recipe the first of next week.

Thanks for 5 Minutes for Mom for hosting another great party! Be sure you check out all of the prizes they are giving away, too. If I were to be so fortunate as to win a prize, my three top picks would be:

Prize 7 – Ergo Baby Carrier offered by A Giveaway Addicted Mommy

Prize 3 – $25 Gift Certificate for Happy Panda

Prize 106 – Melissa & Doug Dress Up Set offered by Good for the Kids

And if those are already taken, I would love any of the following:
1, 4, 8, 16, 18, 19, 21, 26, 28, 37, 38, 43, 44, 45, 50, 52, 62, 70, 77, 78, 79, 83, 88, 91, 93, 95, 99, 105, 118, 122, 123, 125, or any of the other prizes related to babies and toddlers/preschoolers.

I might have a bit of a stroller addiction.  I’m always on the lookout for the latest and greatest in double strollers and have found several that I think I would really like.  However, today I saw a review of the Bumbleride Indie Twin side-by-side at S.I.M.P.L.E. Reviews and I think I’m in love.  This stroller looks great!  And how much better would it be if I won a $600 stroller than if I had to buy it?!

If you’re in the market for a double stroller check out the review and giveaway (or don’t and increase my chances to win :-)).

When Little was a baby I had a standard front carrier with all of the straps and buckles and what-not.  I used it until she was 5 or 6 months old and she was long enough that her feet hit against my legs (almost at my knees; I’m vertically challenged) and she was heavy enough that it hurt my back if I wore her for any length of time.  I enjoyed having her in the carrier, but it made my back ache and I was constantly struggling to keep the straps tight enough to keep her in the right position.

When I found out I was expecting Boo, I knew I wanted to be a babywearing Momma, and I knew that I wanted a different type of carrier.  I did some research, found some answers to questions at Adventures In Babywearing (Thanks, Steph!), and became a little more educated about what types of carriers are available.  In December my nephew was born, and my SIL was singing the praises of her Sleepy Wrap.  Based on her recommendation, I purchased a wrap and started wearing Boo when he was a couple of weeks old.

Boo and I have both loved our Sleepy Wrap.  In fact, it has saved my sanity on more than one occasion when he has been super fussy.  I tie it on, pop him in, and he is generally off to sleep in a matter of minutes.  

Now that it is HOT in my part of the world, we need something that is a little cooler on both of us.  I decided a few weeks ago to get a pouch or sling and began searching for just the right one.  It took me several hours of surfing to settle on this pouch.  I received it a couple of weeks ago, but have had a bit of trouble getting the right size/fit.  After shrinking it yesterday, I think I’ve finally got it to the correct size.  Boo rode in it yesterday afternoon for the first time and seemed to like it; again, he was asleep in minutes.

Then, I was talking to Lu on Monday about different carrier options and the issues I was having with my pouch.  We started looking around a bit at various websites and on eBay and I stumbled upon a ring sling that I fell in love with.  It is an adorable lime green with blue polka dots cotton fabric.  So, I bid on it and won the auction!  I’m awaiting it’s arrival in the mail any day now.

I still want a mei tai, and I’m sure I could come up with a few more if pressed.  And then last night at Lu’s place I saw a link to a great giveaway that I just had to sign up for:  Along for the Ride is holding a contest to Win the Essential Babywearing Stash from Along for the Ride (one Beco Butterfly, one Hotsling baby pouch, one BabyHawk Mei Tai, one Zolowear Ring Sling, and one Gypsy Mama Wrap).  I mean, what babywearing Momma could resist a chance to win five (count ‘em…one, two, three, four, five) new carriers including the mei tai that’s on my list?

I’m telling ya, it truly is an addiction; I mean, this is more fun than shopping for shoes! 

I’m known around here for being a messy Momma.  I have a tendency to splatter food on myself when cooking, get flour everywhere while baking, and bleach my clothing while cleaning.  All-in-all, it is amazing I have any clothing fit for wearing out of the house; guess it’s a good thing I’m a stay-at-home-mom.

I’ve often thought about getting an apron or asking for one for birthday or Christmas, but I always seem to find a reason not to – find something else I want, decide I don’t really have the money to spend, forget.  However, each time I have a grease stain that won’t come out or a new bleach spot on my shirt I find myself wishing I had been wearing an apron.

It would be really great to have a nice, pretty apron that made housekeeping a bit more fun (or at least tolerable).  And now, I (and you, too) have a chance to win a great apron from Flirty Aprons; just visit Simple reviews (this post) to get the details.  I think I would have to choose the Blue Chocolate apron if I won.  

And even if I don’t win the giveaway, I should probably look into getting an apron.  My clothing budget would thank me.

The ladies at 5 Minutes for Mom are hosting a big Mother’s Day Giveaway the next couple of weeks.  They always offer great prizes, so click on the banner above or the one in the sidebar to check out what goodies they are offering.  

An Ordinary Life has teamed up with Sleepy Wrap to offer a great babywearing giveaway – one lucky winner will receive a new wrap (in either black or red) plus $100 cash from Sleepy Wrap!

I’ve had my eye on these wraps since my SIL got hers; she has raved so much about it that I decided I definitely need one when Baby Boo arrives. The Sleepy Wrap website has a bunch of great testimonials as well, such as, “Your Sleepy Wrap is awesome. My son JuÅ¡ likes it very much. I can’t imagine my life without it.” by Nika K.

And now I should say that if you’re interested check out the contest here, but I really don’t want to because I want to win this one myself!

The ladies at DE Review are offering the chance to win a great ring sling (open or closed tail) from slingcarrier.com. This would be a great addition to my budding (or soon to be budding) sling collection. If you’re interested, click here or on the button in the side bar.

The ladies at MamaSpeaks have put together a nice gift guide for your Christmas giving needs this season.  The guide is divided into several categories: Rockin’ Tot, Girly Girl, Daddy Dearest, Knocked Up (for the mom-to-be in your life), Baby Makes Three, and Toy Joy; so there are ideas for people of all ages and areas of life.  They are also giving away great prize packages in each of these categories!  Check it out by clicking the MamaSpeaks button in the right sidebar.