Poopsy Daisy

When I started with cloth nappies 8 years ago when Miss Sunshine was a couple of weeks old, I remember wishing South Africa had the wide range of WAHM (work at home mom) brands that the US had.

Well the cloth community in SA has grown hugely since then and now we do have some awesome brands available locally! One of my favourite brands is Poopsy Daisy.

Charnelle, the creative brain behind this brand.. She is a mamma to 4 and a homeschooler too, so you can understand my excitement right?!

Not only is she a mamma after my own heart but her products at Poopsy Daisy are of excellent quality and workmanship. The fleece night nappy we received was our work horse in our stash and always reliable as a night time option.

This was the beloved Poopsy we received, it's now been passed on to this cutie in the pic. Charnelle no longer makes these but has Windpro Night nappies that I hear are bomb proof! 

Sweetpea fed at least twice at night and went through stages were her output would be considered "heavy wetter", so this night time solution was put through the test.

What we liked about the Poopsy Night Fleece Nappy

• It never let us down as a night time solution, it could hold 8 hours and not leak and also wouldn't leave Sweetpea with a clammy toosh. That was with the 3 inserts it came with. As she got older I added a small prefold in for night time.
• The inserts in my case weren't snap ons so I could choose to have the bamboo side face her bum during the day (natural fabric option against skin) and then the fleece side against her at night giving the stay dry feel.
• Wash after wash  and not one stitch came undone, shrinkage or stretched elastics never happened with this one.
• The fleece does pill after some use but that is the nature of the fabric so expect that to happen.
• Along our cloth journey with 3 babies, I found that I really enjoyed a fold over rise and this nappy has one. Although the design of the Poopsy Daisy nappy has changed to a slimmer cut, I still found this one to be snug and I used the fold over rise on and off for quite a while. It's not just limited to younger babies, as they grow and get taller and slimmer I did find I used the fold over rise again.
• On its full rise setting it will last till potty training. Sweetpea day trained just before 2 and this nappy still had quite a bit of "give" left.

• 

  Another great option for night are hemp nappies with a fleece cover.  These are the fitteds (with and without snaps) and a winged prefold (top right corner)

The different prints and snap colour combos are so gorgeous. Did I mention I have a thing for foxes?

This has a snap in insert but as you can see the snaps aren't exposed on the back so no discomfort for baby when they lie down.

The snap placement on this nappy is awesome. I never had bunching between snaps (I'm not OCD, I promise!) and found that I used the foldover rise on occassion with Sweetpea at her toddler stage too as she slimmed out after a growth spurt so even a handy feature at the end stages of our nappy journey. I will be introducing my new niece at the end of the post but this is Squish in her Poopsy Daisy newborn fitteds. They have a cord snap too that can snap down so the fabric doesn't chafe the cord stump.

This nappy can go coverless if you have a light to medium wetter or can be used with a fleece soaker/longies, wool cover or PUL cover for heavy wetters.

Poopsy Daisy Longies are also available.

Velour nappies.

Squish in her "Dragon scales" side snapping SIO. She was 7 weeks old and 4.8kgs on the smallest rise setting.

Poopsy Daisy stocks:

• Contoured prefolds and prefolds
• Hemp fitteds
• Hybrid fitteds
• SIO
• Pants or loones
• Fleece night nappies
• Mama Cloth (cloth menstrual pads for ladies and girls)

Quite excited about these!

Squish

So let me introduce you to the new member of the family. This is Squish and she will occassionally model some goodies and test out products for the blog/vlog. Ain't she cute?!

For those who don't know, I'm the oldest of 2 children and this cutie belongs to my baby brother.

Squishy right?!

I can't say enough about the workmanship of these nappies. Wash after wash and from baby to toddler to the next baby and it's still going. Every stash needs a Poopsy.

You can find them on Facebook and online.

FACEBOOK

WEBSITE

Hello Again!

Hellooooooo, anybody there?!

Well to be honest I am SOOOOOO surprised that I still had so many views even though I have been MIA for so long.

I  actually had to decide whether to carry on with the blog because life is just too busy for this mamma and my hubster may be a writer but I AM NOT, so it takes me way to long to write a post but alas I have decided to continue what I love doing on here just on a different format. I will occassionally have some posts but will mostly be vlogging because I can talk so much better than write lol!

All our reviews, homeschool and just life will be posted on You Tube with links here.

Life has gone on since I "saw" you all last so will post it all in pics as that's way more fun than reading right?!

Ordinary day at home in the school room. Will be doing a video clip of our set up soon as we get asked a lot about our space.

 Some outside learning, enjoying the warm sunshine.

 This madam turned 4 and to think she was the reason this blog started when she was only 4 weeks old.

Little man decided it was time to cut his curls. I do miss them but he is loving the ease of it and so am I. LOVE this pick of my boys!

Princess has turned 10 and I have to pinch myself on a daily basis that we have approached this age with our firstborn who we thought we would never have.

Miss Sunshine has turned 8 and she is such a treasure with a wicked sense of humour. She is enjoying reading now and loves " little adventures" as she calls them.

Mr MovieMaker, well he worked on another movie this year, wrote a book and a script for a tv series and has just been his awesome self as always. I am so incredibly proud of this guy and all that he stands for. He lost both his parents in a space of a year and was able to stand tall after. He has some exciting things coming soon and I can't wait to walk that journey with him…

We decided this time while we travelled for hubsters work that we would take a train trip instead of fly and man, that was such an awesome adventure. 27 hours of straight family time in 2 cabins on a train… BLISS! We can highly recommend it but will do another pic laden post on that soon.

So please stick around and be part of the change from blog to vlog and send all your requests of what you would like to see on FACEBOOK. 

Snappy Nappy Review

We received a Snappy Nappy to test out by Tiny Hiney…

We have used this nappy for a year and a half and its a definite in my books especially for new comers to cloth nappies. Let me tell you why:

• It's considered an All in Two system which means the inserts can come apart from the cover. This is great for new comers to cloth as it's easy to use. The inserts just snap in and its ready to go once the size in the front has been adjusted to fit your babe.
• If the insert gets soiled and the cover is fine, you just clip the dirty one out, throw in your nappy pail and add new insert, tada! Easy as 1 2 3!
• As the inserts are seperate they can be tumble dried seperately so no risk of affecting the PUL cover which is great for winter rainfall areas like ours.
• It's a good option if your baby goes to daycare or has a nanny during the day because of the ease of use and it's daddy proof!
• Takes up less space in the nappy bag as you pack one cover and a few extra inserts.

1 day time large insert at 14 kgs and 27 months.

No gaps around the leg and snug fit with 1 insert

With one insert

• We use 1 insert during the day and it was sufficient for 2 hours for Sweetpea. At night we added the night booster which clips in first to the cover and then has snaps on so that the day cover (which has microfleece on top to keep baby feeling dry), is clipped onto that. It doesn't move around inside the cover/shell because of the interior snaps on the cover.

• I prefer not to have Sweetpea's skin exposed to the PUL for long periods of time so although we used this nappy for night time with great success I eventually was using the inserts in different nappy options for night time ( like inside a fitted for an extra boost) and then used it during the day with either the day insert or the cover with another nappy = Versatile nappy

2 large size inserts.

2 inserts day time and night time inserts snapped in cover.

2 large size inserts clipped in this cover. 14 kgs and 27 months.

2 inserts side view. Even with double stuffing it isn't creating gaps at the leg that could cause leaking.

2 inserts, I think it is still pretty trim considering it is used as a night time option. 

All rise settings unsnapped and on the last 2 snap settings on the  waist tabs.  This was  around 14 kgs and at 27 months. she is already day time potty trained and only using a nappy at night time.

Colour options

• The covers come in 4 colour options and have double gussets on the inside which is great for exclusively breastfed babies and their runny poop!
• This cover is undergoing some changes so a version 2 will be out soon.
• This is a really reasonably priced option and for what you get it's worth it.
• The cover has 4 size settings on the rise and the stomach tabs have cross over snaps so should fit a wider range of sizes.
• Inserts come in 3 sizes too.
• Inserts can be used in Best Bottom and Butons covers and vice versa.
• It is a durable option and could last a few children. Our sets were used daily and have now been passed onto another little one and it's still in good condition.
• I did find that the microfleece topped insert (day insert) tended to stain easier than some of my other inserts but it always responded well to a few hours in the sun.

Small - yellow, Medium - teal, Large - purple

You can find them and many other cloth related products over at:

TINY HINEY

Beautiful Earth Body Products Review!

So we received a few products from Beautiful Earth to review. It's not our first time testing out their products and was super excited to try them again as we really enjoyed them the previous time.

We were sent the following:

We have used a lot of different natural products over the last 7 years in our attempt to be "greener" and chemical free. This hair and body wash from Beautiful Earth is one of my favourites.

• The smell of mandarin, lavender and calendula is so refreshing and I love that it lingers on their skin till the next morning
• It has just enough foam which obviously the children love but as a natural mamma I know the more the foam the more I don't want it on their skin! This product has a slight bit of foam which is great if you are planning on adding a natural product to a new mom's shower gift who isn't aware of the chemicals added to conventional baby bath care products.
• Miss Sunshine has very sensitive skin and this bodywash didn't irritate her skin at all.

                                     

• This bum cream is fantastic… for your mamma heels! Yip I just said that! We went away for a family break with friends and my heels got so bad from walking around the pools barefoot. This cream was all I had that was thick enough to make a difference and it worked like a charm.
• It's cloth diaper safe too
• The scent is amazing and because it's base is shea butter Ive actually used it on Sweetpea as a moisturizer after bath time and I love the smell of lavender as I lay next to her.

• Gentle enough for sensitive skin
• Doesn't have a very strong scent so great for young babies who would be stimulated with a very strong smell
• Our whole family used this bar and it lasted a family of 6 a month. Not bad for a natural soap.

• Goes on easily so this is great for my oldest 2 children who cream themselves as it goes on quick with no mess
• I love that it comes in a pump bottle and not a tub as it's easier for a mommy with a squirmy baby and for my kiddo's to use on their own, 1 pump tummy, 2 pumps legs, you get my drift?

• I've left my fav for last though! This chest rub has been great for me in a few ways.
• Miss Sunshine is sensory sensitive so strong smells really affect her. Luckily she isn't a sickly child but after our much needed family get away she came back under the weather and a tad chesty. She wouldn't want me to put any of the other natural chest ease rubs on her because of the strong scents but she was fine with this one. And it worked! She definitely slept easier after applying on her chest, back and feet.
• Again I love that it comes in a pump bottle. It was so easy for me to lock the pumps and pack in our vanity case to take with on our trip.
• This makes a great gift for a new mom as they often get the bubblies and bum creams but this gets forgotten and is always needed in the middle of the night.

This company prides itself on being the only company in South Africa that's products are certified Natural and they should be proud. Their products are of great quality and service is amazing. They have a larger range for the whole family.

Skin care range looks amazing!

Family Body Care range

Home and outdoor range

Their pricing is so reasonable and they have an extensive range which is really worth looking at. They offer trial sized box sets to buy for each range so you can test it out first or give as a gift.

Beautiful Earth

Mum 2 Mum change mat review!

We were sent this gorgeous Mum 2 Mum change/play mat from the South African distributors called Wonder Baby!

We had previously purchased some of their bibs at a baby show and I just loved how absorbent they were, good quality cotton and the clever snap placement that made it easy to use from newborn right through toddler hood. What I noticed about it being velour toweling was that it didn't seem to stain and well as a mamma of 4 I always replaced most of their bibs after each chid as you know how stained they become, so this was an extra bonus.

  

Their facecloths look awesome and a great size to use as cloth wipes I think, plus the COLOURS, oh my!

What we like about the Mum 2 Mum change/playmat:

• It's a generous ( 74cm x 74cm) size so makes for easy changing, especially at public restrooms etc. No more thumbling around to make sure your baby doesn't touch the public baby changemat surface!
• It's made of the same cotton velour toweling as the bibs I mentioned earlier. So easy to clean and no staining.
• It has a nylon backing so dries quickly but prevents leaks to the surface below so great if baby makes a wee while changing on a friends bed or carpet while you out visiting.
• Fits easily in the bag to take along with you.
• I found that before Sweetpea was walking I used it a lot as a play surface for her.

To your right is the changemat, my mini first aid kit, 3 nappies, Faye & Lou Cozio and then under this there is still a spare prefold and cover just incase and a spare set of clothes.

Plus Little Man thinks this cape gives him super powers!

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Mum 2 Mum FACEBOOK