Trades

The onesie in the last picture was a gift from Sarah. She ordered it for Grace but it was too small for her. She was able to get a few pictures of Grace in it during her self-photo session (a very good, affordable option if you are here in Korea), but it really didn't fit so she passed it onto Eva. It has a sort of retro Bambi print with burgundy piping. Very cute and unique and looks cool on Eva. I was able to return the favor today when I met Sarah in Insadong and gave her a dress that my mom sent for Eva. It is a summer dress in size 9 months. It is much too big for Eva and by the time it fits, the weather will have changed. It will be much better on Grace for the next few months. It is great to have mom friends to be able to make these kinds of trades with. It saves everyone money and lets things be used more efficiently.

Next week, I am going to let Jessica borrow my Mamma's Milk Pouch to try out. I received the pouch as a gift and used it all the time for the first few months when she was too small for my old-style Beco (without the built-in infant insert that the Butterfly II has) and Ergo. It was much easier than using the Beco and Ergo with the separate Ergo infant insert. I used the pouch instead. However, once she became big enough to use my Beco and Ergo, I prefer to use that style. I may experiment with the pouch doing hip carries later on, but I am not using it a lot right now. I am going to lend it to Jessica so she can try it out before buying her own or making her own (she is very crafty and talented that way). Also, she may decide that she just wants to use it for a few months, like I did, in which case she can just borrow it for that long. Different products work for different people. It is nice to be able to try things out before investing or just simply borrow a product for a few months instead of buying.

I may be buying a BOB jogging stroller from Mommy Cha on Sunday. It is just collecting dust at her house because her son (the Kimchi Kid) doesn't like the stroller. He is a Moby Wrap guy (so much so that Mommy Cha and Papa Cha have become Moby Wrap distributors here in Korea). Curt would like to start doing the 5K runs on Yongsan with Ian. He tried to do one with him in our Inglesina Zippy, but it really is not a jogging stroller so it didn't work well. The tires are flat, hopefully they will inflate and are in good shape. It would be nice to pick this up from them. I'm not sure how often Curt will really run with it so I don't want to invest in a new one, but at the same time, I want a good stroller. So, if it works out, it will be a good deal for both of us.

Also, Yongsan Playgroups is going to have a clothing swap in August. The Expat Parents Club has a very successful one in June, but I wasn't able to go. There is talk on the Expat Parent Club forum of doing another clothing swap as well. Especially when you have kids, swaps are great. Babies grow at such unpredictable rates and baby clothes are very inconsistent in sizing. Especially with clothing for the first year that you get as gifts, there is a lot that just doesn't fit at the right time or maybe it just isn't your taste. It could be perfect for someone else's kid instead of taking up space in your home.

I have started to gather some clothing for swaps and some items to sell as well. I hate selling things, but like Mommy Cha and the BOB stroller, sometimes it is good to admit that you don't use something and probably never will, and recoup at least some of your investment.