Making a Start

So during my pregnancy, I gave a lot of thought to diapering my babe. I really wanted to use cloth, but was daunted at the thought of doing so without running water. I considered the fact that when cloth was the only option, running water was a luxury...thought about a ringer washer, but we don't even have a well on the property. All of our water comes in 5 gallon blue jugs. That's a lot of hauling water. I haven't ruled it out, and I have some definite ideas about how to set things up so that cloth might work...and we do have access to laundry at the hotel (aside: P is buying the Westminster Hotel here in Dawson!)...but for now, we're using disposables. I hope to eventually use a combination of cloth and disposable.

All of that being said, I've also been reading/thinking lots about "elimination communication"...which is basically learning to recognize when babe has to go, and giving them the opportunity to do so outside of a diaper. Eventually, the hope is that your baby will intentionally signal you that they have to go, and that they might even wait to do it in the potty. Asheya, my doula, did this with her daughter, and she passed along to me a little baby potty. I love this idea...not only because it saves on diapers, but because it is a really cool way to communicate with your baby from a very early stage.

SO...I've been hesitant to make a start at this, mostly because very young babies tend to pee often...but two days ago I was changing him and I figured: what the heck. I sat down with the baby potty between my thighs, and settled him in my lap, and whispered "psss, psss" in his ear (because you're supposed to develop a cue they'll recognize/associate with the potty) and after a few seconds...HE PEED! In the potty!! I was so excited and so happy for him! We tried a few more times that day but he freaked out. I guess it was his way of saying "I don't have to go right now, mom!" I tried again the next day, and...success! I caught another pee! Right now I'm just testing the waters, so to speak, but in the next couple of days I plan to spend a couple of hours hanging out with him, diaper-free, so I can watch and see what sorts of signals he might be giving me right before he pees or poos. And then I'd like to start doing this on a regular, part-time basis. I feel like using EC and cloth diapers, with disposables at night or for outings, would be a really great combo for me, without putting too much emphasis on any one of the three. I don't want to stress too much about this...there are way more important things to focus on, living with a brand-new human!



And now, on a totally unrelated note, I would like to announce Dawson's newest couple:

Pete and Lily, lover-dogs!