The dirt on green... my 2 cents regarding cloth diapering 05/17/2010

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WHO AM I KIDDING... you are gonna get a lot more than my 2 cents today and many other days.  We are a cloth diapering household (except for those few times when I've procrastinated laundry and the times when we're traveling and I just can't be bothered with packing all the CD supplies). 

This post is part of the Real Diaper Facts carnival hosted by Real Diaper Events, the official blog of the Real Diaper Association. Participants were asked to write about diaper lies and real diaper facts. See the list at the bottom of this post to read the rest of the carnival entries.

I wasn't planning on entering the Cloth Diaper discussion just yet on this blog, but I'm excited about the Real Diaper Event... so here I go!  I'm going to repost something from my personal blog and update it.  You'll get my opinions on my cloth diapering at 3 months and now at 10 months.

Ah mom... when am I going to finally be too old for these diaper only photos?

Original post in GREY, new in GREEN

Though I have made many decisions about raising my baby based on what's healthiest for her and the planet, I never had to actually weigh the pros and cons of most of the decisions I've made. I wanted to be natural, minimal, frugal, and a bit old fashioned.

Cloth diapering... I admit, I do it because I think it's cool (Still do!). I'm proud of her huge butt. However, there are times when I have used disposables and though they really do a great job of keeping the moisture from her skin, they often leave big salt crystal-like chunks on her (yup, that happened this weekend when Zel and I went on a mini-road trip and I used disposables.  The chunks happened... and I was using the store brand of the leading organic grocery store chain!  PLUS, her diaper rash (she has very sensitive skin) got quite a bit worse after wearing disposables for 2 days!). That can't be good. Also, because CDs don't wick moisture away, she will be motivated to toilet train!

Here's some info for anyone considering CDing. This is what I've learned in these 3 months (and 10 months):

Which diaper to choose? This is overwhelming! I did a lot of internet research and there's so many different kinds that it's impossible to know what you'll prefer (if I can earn any income from this blog, I plan to purchase an assortment of CDs and "rent" them out for families to try before commiting to one kind/type)! I bought an assortment before she was born and have opinions, but really like having an assortment. I think Zel does too.

I have:

*4 Gro Baby Diapers ($24.95 each- 1 shell and 1 insert) and 4 GroBaby insert packs ($16.95 for a set of 2 organic cotton liners). I LOVE these! The insert snaps into the shell. So, I can usually get about 3 (now that "things" are more solid, I use the shells for over a week until they begin to smell like urine.  Bottle that Chanel #5!) uses out of the shell before washing. They adjust so I have been using them on her since birth and will continue to use them until she is toilet trained. I have two that close with velcro and two that close with snaps. The velcro are extremely easy to put on- in fact if I was going to leave Hazel with someone who's afraid of CDs, they would be able to use these! However, the velcro is so sticky that it sticks to the shell even when I'm being careful. So, those shells look more worn (at 10 months, these shells look really bad.  Supposedly they have attempted to fix this problem, but when I wash them, the velcro sticks to everything BUT the laundry tabs!). This is a really new brand and I would LOVE to have more!  Also, Zel has a fun new game of pulling at her diapers when they are not covered by pants.  So the velcro closures are now my arch nemesis.  The snaps are a teeny bit more work, but WAY WORTH IT and still look brand new!

*6 small prefolds (can't find receipt... probably about $12). Originally I was dead-set against prefolds because there are so many new fangled diapers out there. Once AGAIN my mother was right (TWO posts in a row... the woman needs to be muzzled!). She really wanted prefolds and I thought she was just old fashioned and stuck in her ways. However, I love them! I converted when a friend gave me 30+ of regular- sized prefolds. I bought some shells to use with them (they were free, frugality trumps stubbornness) however, the regular size was too big for my preemie so I reluctantly (Gma was adamant about this one!) bought (er...graciously received) a few smaller ones. They are SO easy! You just fold them length-wise in thirds, lay them in the shells, and velcro on.  We're now into the regular-sized prefolds and this is what we use 95% of the time.  I LOVE them!  Soon I will write a post about the different ways I fold them.  For now, I'll just say that I usually fold them 3 or 4 times, lay them in a Thirsties Duo Wrap, and velcro on.  EASY PEESY!  The prefolds will last FOREVER (be sure to pass them on when you're done with your baby making!).

*9 Thirsties Shells ($11.25 each- 4 duo wraps sized 6-18lbs, 1 xsmall 6-12lbs, 4 duo wraps sized 18-40). LOVE THESE! The leg openings have gussets that really protect from leaks. As mentioned above, you just lay an insert in the shell and they velcro on- not any harder than disposables!

*4 BumGenius 3.0 ($17.95 each). I had originally planned to use only these as a good friend uses them and loves them. They are adjustable so they will also fit the baby from womb to toilet. HOWEVER, due to Hazel's itty-bitty nature, they leaked around the leg openings until recently. The best feature of these is that they feel the driest after being wet! The micro fleece is next to her skin and the absorbent pad is in a pocket. The drawbacks are that you need to wash the shell and pad after every use and I'm not a huge fan of fleece next to her skin (isn't it really just plastic?). This week is the first that I've begun using these regularly and I try to use them for night time because that's when she wears her diapers the longest (dryness trumps organic cotton).  These no longer 'cause leaks and they are a nice change from the prefold every now and again.  As I mentioned, Zel suffers with sensitive skin and since you can't use diaper rash cream with these diapers, I no longer use them overnight.  I also feel that they are more expensive and more laundry intensive than my prefold/ Thirsties combo.

*1 FuzziBunz size small ($17.95).  This is nice, but since you only get one use out of it before a wash, it's not my favorite.  Also, it doesn't "grow" with the baby.  So, not for the FRUGALISTAS out there.  It's pretty much the same as the BumGenius except that it doesn't "grow" and it closes with snaps... which I've learned to prefer!

I still wash my diapers every 2 days (HA!  I have so many prefolds that I have to FORCE myself to do wash the dipes twice a week... once it gets to the point where my husband passes out when he opens the lid to the garbage can/diaper pail during a diaper change).

Total spent on diapers: $457 (and almost half of them were gifts)!   The average babe uses 6,000 disposables that's about $2000! I WIN!

(I bought most of my diapers at Mother Nature's a wonderful shop and online boutique based out of Portland, OR: http://www.mothernaturesbabystore.com/)

I also just discovered a Pittsburgh based store that offers FREE SHIPPING in the USA!  http://www.happybabycompany.com/

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Comments

Emily (Lutz) Hayka

Mon, 17 May 2010 6:03:45 pm

The owners of Happy Baby Co. are awesome!! I went to her free cloth diapering orientation. The store is like cloth diaper heaven! :)

Fuzzi Bunz now has a One Size pocket diaper that adjusts to the babies size, too! That was their favorite that they recommended, and has turned out to be mine! I like the Gro-Baby b/c you can get more than one use out of it (normally), but the liner seems to bunch up a little and it seems as though it would be uncomfy?

Anyway, "like" the Happy Baby Co. on Facebook because they'll post coupon codes, etc. :)

Em

 

Cynthia

Tue, 18 May 2010 9:42:42 am

Nice blog! I'll have to save this one for the day when the next munchkin comes around...

 

Cassie

Sat, 22 May 2010 4:29:24 pm

Love your advice. I went with Gro baby and the Bummis prefolds. I hope they work! I'm SO over disposables. This site is great!

 

Jackie @ 3 Little Ones

Mon, 28 Jun 2010 8:20:48 pm

I love my cloth diapers too!!! I was hooked on prefolds for awhile and now I'm kinda into pockets instead. Now that I've potty trained my older daughter, having only 1 in diapers I feel like I have such an assortment - haha! I'm like you - I now have to force myself to clean the dipes when the stink gets too bad.

 

lindsay

Tue, 29 Jun 2010 11:21:54 am

your testament to cloth diapering actually inspired me to try it:) I started with the hybrids and then went full out! Our stash has mostly BG 3.0's but I've added some FuzziBunz and Kissaluvs Fitteds (with Thristy Duo One Size covers).

 

Alayna Swacha

Tue, 29 Jun 2010 11:25:20 am

awwww LOVE the picture! I miss those little diapers covers :)

 

Tara

Wed, 30 Jun 2010 10:36:00 am

prefolds layed inside a cover are so easy and quick... plus cuts down on laundry, which is a bonus! and yes, gussets are a lifesaver!! I also agree that snaps are worth it! Baby can't undo and they don't end up ugly like velcro.

 

Justine

Fri, 02 Jul 2010 9:49:57 pm

Have you tried Flips? I picked up a few from my local store, not expecting much because I'm not a fan of BG pockets. Turns out, I love them! They are the first diaper I reach for. The organic insert is much trimmer and softer than my indian cotton prefolds. I still use prefolds when we need to go coverless or I run out of the organic inserts, but I'm slowly building my organic insert stash.

Now I'm looking at Thirsties Duo Diapers as a stay-dry night option as well as being daddy-friendly. I love snaps, but my dear husband is a velcro guy at heart.

Have you tried California Baby Diaper Cream for rashes? I've heard it's safe for cloth diapers.

 

Bao

Tue, 06 Jul 2010 6:24:12 pm

Hahaha!! I love your posts! I'm hoping to CD my daughter in September when she makes her debut.

 

Ashley R

Thu, 08 Jul 2010 9:22:36 pm

That is the cutest diaper your baby has on! Working on my stash...can't wait to be a cloth diapering mama!!!

 

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