It started with my "as green as possible pregnancy" - eating well, going outside, yoga.. I must say I bought just few pregnancy clothes, most of which are in use now for breastfeeding to make them longer lasting, and few of them- organic cotton. Other pregnancy clothes I had handed down from a friend and my mom (a dress she wore expecting my brother 22 years ago, that's a real eco-vintage!!!). Some more I bought were just regular dresses (maxi dresses for example) and tops that I could fit my bump in, but all of those are going to fit me next summer as well. So that's about my green "pregnancy -> after pregnancy" wardrobe.
I also prepared my body and mind (and my husband) for natural birth. Our choice was a birth centre that reminded just a regular house to have feeling of being at home, and we already arranged the midwife for waterbirth there. Unfortunately a week before Emily arrived my doctor sent me to cardiologist and even though I had no heart problems since the surgery when I was 2year-old, and I was in perfect shape, she put the note in our papers that we must have hospital birth. Crying my eyes out we saw the hospital and accepted the fact. Well, our little one surprised us and soon after that we had to go to hospital.
I must say- no matter what they say, the hospitals are still not very friendly to families who have their own wishes on how the birth should go on. They actually do not promote natural birth, they promote birth that is easier for doctors- using medical interventions, drugs, injections and birthing positions that are easier for doctors. So we had to fight in the hospital. Not gonna go in too much detail here and I just want to focus on positive. Even though taking 1,5 hour shower is not very green in terms of water usage, it's much greener and at least natural to my body and my baby than having an injection to reduce spasms. Breathing and exercising also has only positive effects on me and are clean in nature. So we took the showers, exercised, relaxed with massages, music, burned aroma candles (all natural origins), and drank handpicked camomile tea from our garden. With much love our baby finally arrived!
We had our Weleda Baby Calendula soap already packed in our hospital bag for washing our little one. Well, we had to ask twice for hospital staff to use it! I find it ridiculous that they would try to refuse and use their own (I'm afraid toxic) baby washing liquid. Yeak. At least I know that my child has never seen those chemicals. Also now we bathe her only in pure water with some chamomile tea added, and after bath- warming massage with Weleda Baby Calendula oil.
With baby there is usually another huge issue- diapers. We have bought Disana cloth nappy system, but our little one is so tiny that the nappies make her bum too packed, so we have left it for using a little later. So for now all her diapers have been only either Nature Baby or Moltex that are little more friendly to our planet than the regular big brands. We also do not use any baby wipes at home, best for her little bum- tap water, where she's washed at every nappy change. If we have to change on the go, we have NatraCare organic cotton wipes with organic apricot oil.
One may think that baby doesn't need much clothes.. well, with all the "skipped the diaper" accidents and million burps- she does! Part of her clothes I have bought organic cotton, most from Frugi.. Oh, I really do love Frugi! The quality is fantastic! Unfortunately the price is not always what we can put up with, so part of her wardrobe is from "regular" shops. However, I noticed, that now H&M and other lower price shops are having organic material baby clothing that makes me really happy! That means that organic clothing is more available to wider public and that middle class brands are making a change in this superconsumerism world! Another positive note- I have bought also some second hand, and we have quite few handed down clothes. Some are from myself (!!!), some from my kid brother, some from my friends baby. So we are giving them second or even third lifetime :) And my plan- either to give all of them away to another child or to save it for later - Emily might have a baby brother or sister in a while! I just wish that organic clothing would be a little more happy-priced.
Nothing too much to talk about the babyfood yet since she's living on breastmilk at the moment. But I am also preparing "milk bank" on green carpet, so when we want to go to theater or somewhere, grannies can feed our little one with my defrost breastmilk. Now I just have to continue eating well, local and seasonal myself. And it is so super-easy at the moment, when we're harvesting everything from the garden! Mmmm.. delicious goods. For extra vitamin boost I have my fresh juices- carrots, beetroots, nettles, spinach, apples, pumpkins etc. Wonderful season!
Even though she doesn't really play with toys yet, we already have quite many of them. I our tradition, everyone seeing the baby for the first time, comes with a gift.. I love some of them so much- hand crocheted dolls, wooden toys.. but then- we have received also quite a lot of colourful plastic stuff already.. Well, not really a lot, but still- I just don't like plastic toys for my little one... It just feels, smells and I bet tastes as well so plastic.. unnatural... yeak.. I just don't know how to figure out how to let others know that we are trying to not have these kind of toxic toys for our baby. Many of them know already, so we have those nice handmade toys. I hope we will have more of those.. and if there's anything plastic, let it be at least really good for developing her skills!
One of the best features of living at my parents in countryside- fresh air. Little one loves to sleep outside, tucked in wollen blanket in the pram. And the windows are still open even during the night. Love the countryside! And with the pram it's so easy- we go to garden to harvest the carrots or apples, to forest walks to pick mushrooms, cranberries and cowberries. Sometimes we also return with basket full of.. plastic bottles, cigarette packs, plastic bags, broken toys etc.. everything you can pick up in the woods... I just can't leave it there for staying forever.. It's horrible. So we make an effort and make it cleaner and greener everytime we go by!
