Author: Gina @ Oaxacaborn

Gina Munsey is a Mexico-born, Eastern Europe-raised missionary kid who ended up being a Californian by way of Florida outside of Nashville, Tennessee. She lives her days full of coffee and adventures while her 12-year-old learns Mandarin Chinese and Greek, her 3-year-old uses all the markers, and her artist-husband creates worlds from pixels and light. A blogger since the turn of the century (ouch!) she's an editor, co-op teacher, and writer who has only completed four chapters of her languishing manuscript. You can find Gina right here at oaxacaborn.com, or in the middle of [home]school surrounded by stacks and stacks of books.
Life in Photos

Aveline’s Introduction to Solid Food at 5 Months (with Video)

Gina @ Oaxacaborn

So, if you saw my Facebook or Twitter over the weekend, then you’ve already gotten your fill (no pun intended) of Aveline’s foray into food. I just might have gone a wee bit overboard with the photos, the status updates, and the steady stream of emails to our respective families in California and the Midwest.

Introducing baby to solids -- photo of baby Aveline ready to take her first bite of avocado at five months old

But I couldn’t help myself! I was excited.

Now I know some books say to delay solids as long as possible to prevent food allergies. But there are other studies which argue that earlier introduction of solids might actually minimize the chance of food allergies.  And the British Medical Journal recently challenged the recommendation to breastfeed exclusively for six months. Their analysis on the topic has become a heated source of debate among those who make their living creating these guidelines.

In light of my own food allergies, I’ve been reading and fretting over these studies, trying to make a decision whether or not to let Aveline have food. All this reading suddenly seemed pretty silly when my mom simply said, “I think you’re over-thinking this. Just do what makes sense.”

Aveline’s been so hungry lately — grabbing for the food on our plates, nursing hourly during the day and every 3.5 hours at night. And so this weekend, we decided it was time. Josiah got a nice ripe avocado at the farmers’ market (we chose avocado instead of rice because of the high fat content) and Aveline had her first taste of food.

And you know what? She LOVED it.

Life in Photos

30 Day June Photo Challenge – Day 13 – Reminds You of Childhood

Gina @ Oaxacaborn

Yupi soda beverage sticker label from Slovenia, the former Yugoslavia

When I was a little girl, I saved colorful labels and stuck them into the front and back covers of my bible. This is a label from Jupi, a beverage from the former Yugoslavia. (On a related note, my brother and I used to say Jupi! rather than yippee! when we were excited. We only got to drink Jupi on very special occasions, such as our birthdays.)

Poetry & Words, Travel/Moving

A Little Girl with One Foot in Europe and One Foot in America

Gina @ Oaxacaborn

Walking with my mom and brother in Eastern Europe in the 1980s
(Image taken by my dad of my mom, brother, and me in Europe in the ’80s)

Lately, the stories woven into the pages of The Late Homecomer and China Homecoming have been pulling at my heart. Pulling, reminding me what it was like to be a little girl with one foot in Europe and one foot in America. I think about that girl, sometimes. I think about how the familiar European landscape was the home she knew with her heart, and how the American home was only constructed in her mind, pieced together through the handwritten notes from aunts and grandmas.

Sometimes I think it’s even odder now, to look back at that girl. As far away as she was, sometimes I feel even further away. The girl then knew something of both cultures, at least.  The girl now feels like America is too much, sometimes, taking what had been her voice and drowning it in English. Then, her small voice could speak Slovene. Now, English has swallowed what that girl once knew.

She prattled on in that tongue as she squatted down on the edge of the concrete stoop, her chubby hands scraping words with a twig into the dusty gravel. She walked home down Taborska Cesta in the dusk, feet aching from climbing trails and standing up on busses, fingers of one hand safely in daddy’s hand and fingers of the other hand wrapped tightly around wilted wild chamomile flowers.

And now, the Slovene tongue has faded. All that remains is little snippets. “Kajti tako je Bog ljubil svet.”  “Dober dan.”  And the constant call of parents to their children, “Pet sem!” 

But there is nothing more.

I live in America now.

In my heart, I feel what it is to be European, to turn on the radio and hear the perfectly enunciated English of  the BBC. I can taste what it is to have horseradish spread on my thick slices of bread and cold boiled potatoes mixed in with my salad. I know the way fresh-pressed apple juice chills me as it slides down my throat, and if I lick my lips I can still taste the zest of mustard sauce over warm wilted dandelion greens. I close my eyes and I hear the magpies, the calming coo coo coo of the dove.

I know what it is to cough the dust of coal and what it is to see yellow rain. I know the scent of wisteria, and can see the ants marching up the twisted vine. I see the long loaves of bread sticking up out of the grocery bags as people walk home from the market in the early morning dew. I hear the creaking groans of wooden racks, piled high with drying straw. I know what it is to see hoar frost dancing on barren branches. I can no longer sing the lyrics of the language, but I will always hear the accordian’s echo off Šmarna Gora.

And when I close my eyes, I am that little girl. I am there.

And someday, I will be again.

Life in Photos, Poetry & Words

30 Day June Photo Challenge – Day 8 – Sunset

Gina @ Oaxacaborn

30 Day June Photo Challenge - Day 8 - Sunset - Florida palm trees and sun flare

I missed yesterday’s photo (high angle shot). I lovingly blame a growth-spurting Aveline, who went on a sleep strike and ate hourly for fifteen hours. So you can imagine I’m quite glad to see tonight’s photo, a setting sun. It means bedtime is right around the corner. For how napless my bebe is, she lays her little head down obediently every single night and falls right asleep.

And every single night, I marvel at how incredibly blessed I am and how rich our life is. Like right now, for instance. Aveline is sitting on my lap, holding on to a wash cloth in one hand and beating on the desk with her other hand. She says, “Ahhh. Hahhh. Ahhh. Gahh. Eeeehaa.” while looking over at Josiah, who is sitting next to me clicking away at his computer. I think she’s singing along with Cary Brothers, who is softly crooning, “There is something about you baby so right / I wouldn’t be here without you baby tonight / If ever our love was concealed / No one can say that we didn’t feel a million things / And a perfect dream of life.”

Josiah gets up, walks into the kitchen and switches the light on. I hear the clink of dishes as he unloads the dishwasher. Aveline drops the washcloth to the floor and sticks her tiny foot up on the desk between my hands, still babbling away in her precious little voice.

“You’re the secret I keep, I just wanna be the one, I just wanna sing this song with you.”

[Click photo to view a larger version.]

Cloth Diapers, How To

Part 2 | Frequently Asked Questions about Cloth Diapers | Best Practices for Laundering and Care

Gina @ Oaxacaborn

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT CLOTH DIAPERS - oaxacaborn blog series

Last time, I talked about various types of cloth diapers. This installment, we’re looking at —

Best Practices for Laundering and Care

What Detergent do You Use?

You can’t just use any old laundry soap for washing cloth diapers. You need one free of fabric softeners, fragrances, dyes, optical whiteners, and enzymes. Washing in the wrong detergent will result in fabric which repels instead of absorbs liquid, leaving you with leaky diapers. It will also allow ammonia to build up in the fabric’s fibers, causing an awful smell and leading to diaper rash. Basically, improper laundering is the root cause for most of the problems that give cloth diapering a bad rap. The right detergent, on the other hand, will transform cloth diapers from yucky to honestly enjoyable.

So how do you know which detergent to choose? Thankfully, there’s a fantastic cloth diaper detergent chart over at Diaper Jungle. This convenient resource ranks dozens of detergents on a scale of 1 to 4, letting you know which ones to avoid at all costs and which ones are ideal for diaper laundering. (Tide? Don’t even think about!)

Personally, I use Rockin’ Green*, a wonderful powdered detergent naturally scented with essential oils. Rockin’ Green comes in different formulations, depending on whether you have hard or soft water. I first tried Rockin’ Green by using a small sample, and I’ve never looked back.

Another note about detergents. It seems counterintuitive, but less is actually more. A lot of times a lingering smell is actually caused by using too much soap. If you’re switching to using a cloth-diaper safe detergent after using a less-than-ideal one, you’ll probably encounter stink as well. This FAQ has a lot of pointers on stripping/soaking to eliminate build-up.

How do You Wash Cloth Diapers?

The basic procedure for laundering cloth diapers is three-fold: an initial rinse in as much water as your washer will hold, a soapy wash in hot water, and a final rinse.  (If your baby hasn’t started solids yet, you just put the diapers in the wash as-is.)

How this plays out in reality really depends on your individual water type and what kind of washer you have. Through trial and error, I’ve discovered that for my washing machine, the initial and final rinses need to be actual full wash cycles san soap, not just quick rinse cycles. Because I have hard water, I often soak the diapers in the soapy hot water — for an hour or so, or even overnight — as well.

Another note about the initial rinse: use warm water. Most guidelines tell you to use cold water, which I was doing faithfully until I realized that most of the diapers had gotten stained. Since I live in an second-story apartment with no balcony (and thus no yard), hanging the diapers in the sun wasn’t an option for stain removal. I contacted Rockin’ Green and asked them for advice. They told me to try an initial warm rinse instead of cold, and wouldn’t you know it? No more stains.

Still want to read more? I recommend this PDF from Rockin’ Green, which explains five different variables impacting the laundering process.

Do You Use a Diaper Pail?

No. In lieu of a pail, I use a water-proof laundry bag called a wet bag. Made of laminated polyester (PUL), the beauty of a wet bag is that no separate cleaning process is needed! On laundry day, you just toss it right in the washer along with the cloth diapers.

I keep a large bag near the changing table, and a smaller one in my diaper bag for use when we’re out and about. Most wetbags have either a zipper or drawstring closure. Obviously, a zipper closure is preferable for use away from home.

How Often do You do Laundry?

I wash cloth diapers every other day. My stash is big enough that I could probably get away with waiting a longer period of time between loads, but this schedule works out perfectly for me.

Also on Frequently Asked Questions about Cloth Diapers,

A Review of Pocket Diapers and Diaper Covers

Cloth Diapering on a Budget / Reasons to Buy Used Cloth Diapers

Have a question you’d like to see addressed in this series? Leave me a comment!

*I was not asked to include this link or to mention Rockin’ Green, and I was not compensated or rewarded in any way for doing so. They are not a blog sponsor; but I’ve included them because they’re a really company that I love!