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Showing posts with label Family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Family. Show all posts

Where were you on 9/11?  Did you have kids yet?  Were you still a child yourself?  I'd love to hear your stories (just leave a comment below).  

I was newly married and in college.  I was working retail at a mall and listened in my car on the way to work as the first plane flew into the towers.  As I walked in to the store everyone was watching the news in the breakroom.  The mall closed not long after and everyone went home.  My husband was working at the airport at the time and had to go in later that day.  Even though the airport remained closed for days, they were still required to report to work.  By the time the first anniversary came in 2002 I was pregnant with my son and remember how much things had changed, how scared I was to be a parent, how much I feared another attack.  Our lives have changed drastically since 2001, but I'll always remember every detail of that day.  

What about you?  


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Remember 9/11

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From of all us at DiaperShops.com we wish you a very Merry Christmas. Enjoy the day with your family and friends.

We appreciate you all so very much!
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Merry Christmas from The Cloth Diaper Whisperer

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For Christmas Eve I thought it would be nice to have my 8 year old son write for the blog and to also let you know why Christmas Eve is extra special at our house :

"My name is Hanz and I am 8 years old and I was born February 25th, 2000. My Mom (Kelly Wels) works in the basement of our old house selling cloth diapers.

I help her fold and put together by brother Riley's diapers and wipes at our house.

My Mom started her job 8 years ago. I'm guessing she started her job because she loves babies. I have a sister Olivia, and a brother Riley."

My son Hanz is a great help to me. On Monday of this week I had to go into the shop for a bit and he helped me with lots of little things. What a special boy he his!

11 years ago I gave birth to my first child Olivia on Christmas Eve. What a wonderful Christmas gift she was. I had her at 2:32 pm. I didn't want to stay in the hospital for Christmas so I left with Olivia at 6:30pm!

This year Riley is having his first Christmas.
Today my family is coming over in the morning to celebrate Olivia's birthday. We are usually joined by my in-laws but my father in law was sick earlier this year and they were unable to make it this year.
In the afternoon, my very best friend Jenn of almost 30 years is coming over with her Mom and Grandpa. Grandpa is an avid musician and has his own band. We hope he brings his harmonica!
Christmas time is extra special for so many reasons.
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Christmas Eve At Our House

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In the hustle and bustle of my busy life I had an unbelievable day yesterday. It wasn't planned on my end. (Oh how I love to plan!) I do know that my higher power designed for my day yesterday to be exactly what it was- perfect!

I usually have a crazy day with my 3 great kids, running a business, taking care of a household, a shop, etc. Yesterday it snowed. The simple, purest, whitest, fluffiest snow. The kids didn't have school and I thought long and hard about trying to go down our back road to the shop that had not been plowed and said, " Ya know, I just need to spend the entire day with the kids and just enjoy the Christmas season."

I never take a week-day to "play" with the kids. We made Christmas cards, wrapped Christmas gifts, watched a movie, laughed, and just had a wonderful time.

I admit I did get on the computer tonight to do some emails and them remembered I needed to post to the blog. I wasn't sure what to write when it hit me-keep it simple.

Sometimes the most simplest of things in life is right before us. I love my kids so much and am grateful for this day. It was truly special.

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Enjoying the simple blessings of the season

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First of all I want to thank you, the readers of the blog, for making this blog a success. I have so much fun reading your posts. I also want to thank Anelys, the blog's moderator and designer, who has really put so much effort and love into the blog. I so appreciate all she does.

I would also like to thank all of our customers for all your support during the past 8 years. I love what I do and I couldn't do it without you.

To my staff-

Karley who is my assistant- She is amazing young woman and at the age of 23 shows so much dedication and puts 200% into her work.

Jill who is the receiving dept- She is a wonderful lady who has been with me for almost 6 years. I enjoy working with her and seeing her baby Wilder, who was born 3 weeks before Riley.

Janet who is my bookkeeper- What can I say? You make my paperwork world so easy. Janet has been with us since January of this year.

Stacey who is my web-developer- Stacey has been with me for almost 3 years and she keeps all the sites looking great and operating smoothly. I couldn't run the business without her.

To the many other companies and contractors who do work for me, thank you so much for all you do!
On a personal note I am so grateful to be blessed with 3 beautiful children: Olivia (10), Hanz (8), and Riley (6 months). This year for Thanksgiving we were invited over to a friends house. Hurray, I didn't have to cook! (I am super thankful for that!!) My husband Scott, did make Pumpkin Soup and Crab Cakes for appetizers (I still didn't have to cook!).

We had all the traditional fixings: turkey, potatoes, sweet potatoes, wild rice, cranberry sauce. What was extra special is that our friends used to own a Bed & Breakfast so the cooking was gourmet. Yum, yum.

I especially enjoyed the day as it was my 35th birthday (btw- is 35 considered "middle age"? LOL!). So not only was I surrounded with family and friends for Thanksgiving, it was also my birthday too. Instead of cake though- we had pie.

During this holiday season I feel blessed in so many ways! I am truly grateful.
I wish you and your family and very joyous holiday season.
Blessings to you all,
Kelly- The Cloth Diaper Whisperer
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Giving Thanks! A Glimpse Into The Whisperer's Thanksgiving Day.

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You might have asked just who is this "Cloth Diaper Whisperer"? My name is Kelly Wels and I am the owner of Diaper Shops and run 4 online cloth diaper speciality stores.

I grew up in Maine most of my life since I was 6. My parents had a camp in Maine and moved from New York in the early 80's. I come from a very hard working family. My Dad owned his own landscaping business and from a very young age I had great work ethics. I graduated from a small high school in Bethel, ME as a member of the National Honor Society, ski team, and cross-country running team.

I attended colleges in both Maine and Florida and after changing majors a couple of times decided to get my degree in horticulture. I am licensed by the state as a Maine Certified Nursery-person and my official title in the non-cloth diapering world is Kelly Wels, MCN. I worked as a manager a nursery (plant nursery not a child nursery!) for several years and then worked as a sales representative for a bulb company based out of Holland.

After I had my first child, Olivia, in 1997 I decided that I wanted to stay at home with her. After my second child, Hanz, was born in 2000 I felt the need to contribute to the family income. In 2000, the idea of Kelly's Closet was born, and I launched the site on April 1st, 2001. I didn't even sell cloth diapers. I started selling boutique style baby clothing and it was a major flop!

After a few months with no sales I almost threw in the towel. When a couple of Moms emailed me asking if I could get cloth diapers as one of the clothing brands I carried also made cloth diapers, I honestly thought, "This is a joke- no one uses cloth diapers anymore." I did decide to order a few and within days they sold....and as they say-"The rest is history."

I now have 3 beautiful kids (Olivia, Hanz, & Riley) and a wonderful husband Scott and live in a 1794 farm-house at the top of hill in a small New England town called Waterford. It is a summer village and many people come here to vacation. In the winter the population dwindles to under 1500 as the snow keeps people away (see the picture of my house to the left last November before it "really" snowed). Last year I had snow that went over the top of my kitchen window!

What do I like to do in my spare time? I like to scrap book, love stamping cards, and gardening. I have to make a point of getting off the computer as I tend to over-work a lot! My goal this year is to spend more quality time with my kids. I am involved with our church and am starting to help out with our church's food pantry and a program called Waterford Santa. This program helps needy families in Waterford with gifts for children at Christmas.

Our family loves to have fun and we never act our age! Halloween this year was no exception. This year we all dressed like Candy! (see picture right) Olivia was Candy Corn, Hanz was Junior Mints, Riley was a Tootsie Roll, Scott was a Sugar Daddy, and I was a Reese's PB Cup! We went to the kids school Halloween party and had a blast!
I wouldn't change my life for anything. I have a wonderful family I love and adore, a home in a beautiful town, and a prospering business to the thanks of my customers.

I thank God everyday for the many blessings in my life!
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Who is the Cloth Diaper Whisperer? A personal look.

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Cloth diapering is a family affair at our household. In some form or fashion everyone has a "job" when it comes to diapers. I have two older children- Olivia (10) and Hanz (8). Olivia is so helpful in more ways than one. She loves to entertain Riley (4 months), helps me give him a bath, gets his clothes, and the best part- changes his diaper! She doesn't even complain if he did a "you know what!"

Olivia has a calm spirit and a very good energy about her. I told her she would be a wonderful pediatrician and she is considering it. She is a 5th grader and loves to dance. She takes jazz and tap lessons. She also enjoys taking horse-back riding lessons. She keeps asking me- "Mommy, when are you going to have another baby?" What a sweetie!

My son Hanz is the official diaper folder, snapper, etc! He knows the name of every brand diaper without looking at the tag. He keeps telling me he loves the Blueberry One Size Minky Diaper by saying, "Mommy, I just love that tie dyed diaper." (It's not really tie dyed but looks that way.) As you can see from the picture he is snapping a Fuzzi Bunz.

Hanz is a smart little boy. He loves to read and hardly ever watches tv. He skipped 2nd grade and is now in 4th grade at age 8. He tells me, "Mommy, someday I am going to be an inventor."

We have a points reward system here at the house. I just love giving reward points! Each task is worth a point. At the end of the week they redeem their points and can put it in their savings and/or spend as they wish. It is a great program and gets everyone involved in the daily routine. Hanz gets 2 points everytime he snaps a batch of diapers and I give Olivia a certain amount of points for helping me do extra things around the house.
I am so blessed to have three wonderful children and I am especially grateful to Olivia and Hanz for helping me out each and everyday!
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Mommy's Little Helpers

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Yes, how embarrassing and I can't believe I am admitting it. I forgot to change my son's diaper. I am usually right on top of changing but Friday morning....life happened.

It was a crazy morning and we all slept late. My older kids, Olivia (10) and Hanz (8) needed to be at school at 8:30 and it was 7:55.

Have you ever tried to get yourself, a 4 month old, 10 year old, and 8 year old out the door in 30 minutes or less? Luckily I just fed Riley and turned around to look at the alarm clock to see 7:55 am. I literally freaked. I quickly changed the baby and headed downstairs to get the older kids up. My 10 year is grouchy in the morning and I popped in her room and the dreaded words of,"Olivia we need to leave in 20 minutes."

Fortunately the diaper bag was already packed and I had the kids lunches made,backpacks ready, by 8:20am. My husband was coming with me this morning as he had to have a test done at the hospital and I was taking him over.

We managed to get the kids to school by 8:30 am. I was feeling pretty good about the morning especially with the major crunch time.

We got to the hospital at 9:05am. I lifted the back door of my Jeep to get the diaper bag and .....can you guess? It WASN'T THERE! My daughter was supposed to take it to the Jeep for me but in the rush she forgot it. Oh my goodness. A 4 month old and no diapers, no wipes, NOTHING. I said to myself "Stupid,stupid,stupid....I have 40,000 diapers sitting at my shop, a full diaper bag at home, and now I have nothing. Poor Riley. Well, diaper don't fail me now."

It seemed liked forever waiting in the waiting room. Riley nursed and you know what usually happens after that...a big BM (bowel movement). This time there was nothing. Phew! My husband finished his test and was famished (he had to fast) and said, "Let's go out to breakfast."

I had to say yes as it was almost 15 hours since he last ate. I still heard no sounds from below the waist line (LOL) and no leaks. Next, hubby wanted to stop at the hardware store to get something.

After all this we got home around 12:45. Hubby was so sweet and said,"Why don't I watch the baby for awhile and you can get caught up on emails." It was 2:00pm before I realized that I hadn't changed Riley in over 6 hours. I went into the other room and felt so terrible. I swooped Riley up and changed him. No leaks at all and his bum wasn't even red. (Hubby felt bad too that he forgot to change him.)

So, yes life happens and we forget to change our baby's diaper. Even The Cloth Diaper Whisperer does too. (shhhhh!)

By the way, Riley was wearing a BumGenius Organic One Size All-in-One Diaper!

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The day I forgot to change Riley's diaper!

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