my evolution to "that hippie mom" {an earthy mom post}

Otherwise titled: "Who AM I??" 

When I was pregnant with O, we lived in a fourth-floor walk-up condo and I had very set opinions when it came to what kind of mom I would be. 

"Disposable diapers ALL THE WAY! I'm not trucking down two flights of stairs to wash my kid's dirty diapers. That's a) disgusting and b) WAY too much work!"

"Baby wearing confuses me. And it's kind of weird." 

"Buy ALL OF THE BABY PRODUCTS!" 

And it worked for us then. I probably wouldn't have stuck with cloth diapering and I felt like I held O way too much so wearing him wasn't really appealing. That was a different time, a different mind set. And I'll be honest - every time I nursed him I dreamt of bottle and formula feeding - just for a little bit of freedom. 

And I went into my pregnancy with M having the same convictions and opinions. But slowly, I was changing. 

It started with essential oils. A friend, also my boss, used them and we shared an office so I would constantly be hearing about how amazing they were, how they worked for this problem and that ailment. She invited me to go to an information night and I agreed, all the while telling Jordan how "hippie-dippy" this was and how could anyone ever spend that kind of money on something so hokey. 

Well. I had to eat my words coming home that night after buying the Family Starter Pack. Yeah. Turns out I love them. And they do work. They got me through those hard few weeks post-partum (along with other natural supplements and multivitamins) and helped with my kids' coughs and stuffy noses. Before I knew it, I was mixing up concoctions for my family to help with skin problems and other afflictions. I'm THAT woman. 

Once I had M, I realized that I didn't have enough hands, feet, extremities, to handle two children. O still needed a lot of attention and M would scream if I even THOUGHT of putting him down. (The horror!) So, I called my mom, we loaded up into her van and took our circus on the road to the local au-natural mama shop where I got a very detailed and informed lesson in baby-wearing and I bought a wrap carrier so I could have two hands and get things done while still snuggling my baby. And I loved it. A lot. We wore M a lot up until he was about 5 months when he got too big for it, so we've switched to a Bjorn until we learn a new carry position for bigger babies. (This wrap can go up to like 30 pounds and you can carry your baby on your back! How legit is that?!) But I still swear by baby wearing when it comes to grocery shopping with two kids. I honestly don't know what I would do without my carriers! 

Then came the cloth diapers. I was at Wal-Mart picking up {ANOTHER} box of diapers fort M and I looked at the price (admittedly, for the first time in a while) ... $40!!! I had to buy them, my baby needs diapers. How can Huggies charge me such an exorbitant amount of money for something required to take care of my child? Times two (because, yes, I have yet to potty train O ...)!! So the next time I saw my mother-in-law I interrogated her on cloth diapering. And after she gave me tons of info, she lent me hers. I was so nervous but hesitantly I started. And I fell in love. I can't even tell you why I love it so much. I just find it so fun. I love how M looks in only a cloth diaper and I wash them and happily stuff them every three days or so. I liked it so much I bought my own (in a different province, my BFF did the deal for me) and am just so excited to keep doing it. O won't wear them because they don't "feel" right but he's almost done (hopefully) with Pampers. But M is going to sport Bum Genius for as long as he'll let me. Plus. I put coconut oil on him instead of diaper rash cream. Yeah. This is the kind of thing I'm talking about, people. 

And to top it all off - I've been getting my kicks pinning garden ideas for this summer so I can plant a vegetable garden and "live off the land". Since when do I have a desire to plant ANYthing? 

Like I said ... WHO AM I? You guys. What's next for me?