Cloth Diapers: 4 months in

Before Flynn was born, I was super excited to cloth diaper. Then, immediately after he was born, I was very apprehensive about our decision to cloth diaper. But, like anything, it just took some time to develop a routine. 

[Does this make my butt look big?]

We exclusively used disposable diapers until all the meconium had passed and his circumcision healed. Flynn was swimming in his FuzziBunz one size diapers at 8 pounds, but after using them for a week, I was hooked. We did, and still do, put him in a disposable diaper at night because they are more absorbent. Unless he poops, we don't change him. It makes nights quieter if he's not rudely awoken by a diaper change before or after a feeding. Quieter nights = happier mommy & daddy.

[Flynn in a disposable from Goods Store in Amish country. They also sell cloth diapers!]

Even before transitioning to cloth diapers, we switched from disposable to cloth wipes. Best. Decision. Ever. We have specially designed cloth wipes, and also regular wash cloths from Target. The special cloth wipes are smaller and ideal for quick clean-ups, while the wash cloths come in handy for, uh, larger messes. They go right into the wash with the cloth diapers and nothing has stained or smells.

I don't want to bore you any longer, so let me just jump right into my list of pros and cons of cloth diapering. Keep in mind, I'm going off of my experience with one type of cloth diaper, FuzziBunz One Size Pocket Diapers. I have heard great things about other brands, including G Diapers & BumGenius, and there are many more out there! Amazon sells almost every brand and all the cloth diapering accessories you could ever need. Or you can find local shops and support them if you're into that kinda thing.

CONS:

- Up-front cost. You're going to be like, I'm spending HOW MUCH at one time on diapers? Ahhh! Sanity check: they are the only diapers you will ever need to buy.

- Extra laundry. If you don't have a washer & dryer in your house, you probably shouldn't cloth diaper. Just saying. You will be doing a few extra loads of laundry a week, depending on how many diapers are in your stash (we have 12, and would ideally like 15). And you will be doing extra rinse cycles to prevent detergent build-up if you have hard water like we do. However, there is so much extra laundry with a baby anyways... what are a few more loads?

- Not as absorbent as disposables. This is true. They're not. And it's because they don't contain chemicals that absorb which can be harmful to your baby. Cloth diapers rely only on natural fibers to absorb liquid. When Flynn recently starting peeing more, his diapers started leaking and now I double up on inserts. Hemp inserts and even old school cotton pre-folds are awesome. A little more stuffing and washing, that's all.

- Takes a while to get the right fit. It's not just "velcro & go." There are lots of snaps and adjustable elastic. However, this enables the diapers to fit your baby from birth through potty training. I adjusted the leg elastic two times so far on all the diapers (it's a little tedious) and the snaps are simple to adjust at each diaper change once you get the hang of it.

- Added bulk. "I like big butts and I cannot lie..." I find myself singing this to Flynn sometimes, because cloth diapers are bulkier than disposables. However, this turned out to be a "pro" for our skinny dude because now his pants stay up.

[4 1/2 months old!]

- Not convenient for traveling. Obviously, if you're going on a road trip to Disney or staying in a hotel without a laundry room, you may want to forego cloth diapers in favor of disposables for that week. No one ever said you can't switch back & forth.

PROS:

- Long-term savings. Once you've purchased your diapers & accessories (hanging diaper pail, travel wet bag, diaper sprayer, cloth wipes, extra inserts) there is good news. You don't ever have to buy diapers again! Sure, you may want to pick up an extra cloth diaper here & there if you find you're sick of doing laundry every other day. And keeping a pack if disposables on hand is probably a good idea for emergencies. But think about it... you will literally save thousands of dollars and that's just on your first baby. If you use the cloth diapers for subsequent children, the savings really adds up.

- Better for the environment. You're keeping thousands of disposable diapers out of landfills. Way to go, gang. Neat-o! And if you live in an area like ours that charges $3 per bag for trash pick-up, you're also saving money on the trash bill.

- Better for baby. I'm not saying you're a bad mom if you don't use cloth diapers, so don't start a mommy war with me. But listen, unless you're using "green" diapers, like Earth's Best or Seventh Generation, there ARE chemicals in there that may not be good for your babies skin. I mean, that's just science. And that leads to my next pro...

- No diaper rash! In 4+ months, Flynn has had zero diaper rash. We don't even own diaper rash cream. It's pretty amazing.

- Customizable absorption. Going on a long car trip? Putting your little one down for a nap? Throw an extra insert in there. Last time I checked, you can't double up with disposable diapers.

- Stylish colors & designs. Sorry, but I don't want cartoon characters on my kids' diapers. I think it looks tacky. I love FuzziBunz's fun colors and get all excited about matching them to his outfits. Nerd alert! Your baby also still looks stylish if he's going pants-less. Or outfit-less.

[He favors his hands over pacifiers. Can't say I mind!]

I love that cloth diapers are making a comeback. Who would have thought that having a baby would turn me into such a tree hugging hippie? Or maybe I just like having more money in my bank account. Either way, it's a win-win.

Wipe Out

Today was the day we switched over to using cloth wipes for Flynn, who is snuggled up against my chest in his moby wrap as I type! He loves this thing.

4 days old and at the dog park!

We've already blown through two boxes of disposable wipes since he was born. They were very convenient during the first two weeks because he was pooing and peeing so frequently, and that meconium... nasty stuff!  It would have ruined my cloth wipes. However, the disposables were so flimsy and thin, it took a few of them to get everything off Flynn's bum. Just seems like a waste of money to keep buying them week after week. $4 a box x 4 boxes = $16/month for wipes alone. Uh, no thanks. (Buying diapers is annoying me as well but Flynn isn't quite big enough for his FuzziBunz. Soon though!)

After I used the last wipe, I made my homemade wipes solution. My bottle of dish detergent was almost empty, so I rinsed it out to repurpose it for the solution. I used 3 cups of water, 3 tablespoons of Dr. Bronner's liquid castille soap (the baby kind in the light blue bottle) and 3 tablespoons of olive oil (to keep Flynn's skin soft). In the future, I might add a few drops of an essential oil like lavender (to make it smell nice) or a few drops of tea tree oil (an anti-fungal).

The oil floats to the top, so I just give the bottle a shake before I squirt it on a wipe.

I felt like something useful could be done with the empty plastic wipe boxes, so I hung onto them and turned to my old friend, Google. Well, Yahoo! actually, but it sounds cooler to say I "googled it." Sorry, Yahoo!

This blog came up and I loved the idea. Who doesn't have a whole bunch of plastic bags shoved in a drawer or closet? I bring reusable bags to the grocery store, but always end up forgetting them when I go to other stores.

I made one for the house (lining waste baskets) and one for the car (doggy poop bags, wet shoes, etc.) Now they are all contained instead of floating around and they pop out easily! I love simple organizing ideas and repurposing.

UPDATE: We removed the olive oil from our homemade wipes solution because it was making our cloth diapers repel pee pee. No bueno! So right now it's just water & Dr. Bronner's and it still works great.

Crazy for Cloth!

The slightest mention of wanting to use cloth diapers makes people look at me like I'm insane. Maybe they aren't aware of how far cloth diapers have come since the 1980's when my Mom used them on my precious bottom. No more plastic covers. No more diaper services. No more pins. No more folding stacks of pre-folds. You put them on your little one just like you would a disposable diaper.

[No more folding.]

Oh, how the times have changed!

I cannot contain my excitement over today's cloth diapers.

(Shout out to YoungHouseLove for convincing me!)

We've decided on the brand FuzziBunz and I love that the front page of their website has articles about cloth diapering misconceptions, the cost savings, how they're better for the planet, and so on. We wash and re-wear our clothes. We wash and we-use our dishes. And the philosophy is the same with cloth diapers.

My husband and I are not big environmentalists. We don't look down on people who choose disposable diapers. I really could care less how other people choose to contain their child's waste. It's your kid. It's your money.
I am just super psyched about this, and want to shout it from a mountain!

At first, cloth diapers sounded more expensive and more time consuming. But when you take a closer look, they are the exact opposite.

The Cost

There are about $400 of up-front costs (depending on how many diapers you buy). We are planning on acquiring a set of 12-15 cloth diapers + inserts, a sprayer that attaches to the toilet & a wet bag to store them before they go into the washing machine. That's all you need for the remainder of your child's diaper wearing days. And when the next baby comes along... you're all set. Nothing to buy. If you select a high quality cloth diaper up front, they last through multiple years and multiple children. How awesome is that?

Washing them will run you about $2/week. Line drying increases their lifetime, bleaches out stains if you lay them in the sun and saves money.

Hence our new washlines outside & in the basement!

[Look closely between those 2 trees.]

This handy chart on the FuzziBunz website breaks everything down and shows you how you can save $2,685 over the course of 3 years by opting for cloth. Um, yes, I'd like that very much. You also never have to run to the store for more diapers, which saves gas. If you use cloth wipes and make your own wipes solution in a spray bottle, that's more cost savings right there. You just throw the used wipes in the wash with the diapers.

The Time Factor

It seemingly takes more time to deal with cloth diapers. You can't just roll them up, poop & all, and toss them in the Diaper Genie. This is where the sprayer comes in. When your sweet little child emits something foul, you take the diaper to the toilet and either "shake" the contents in the toilet, or, spray it off with the sprayer, depending on the consistency. (Mmm, I hope you're eating lunch right now!) Then, you put the pee diaper or rinsed #2 diaper in the wet bag for later... or directly in the washing machine. Bam, done. You save time by not having to run to the store when you're out of diapers, wipes, etc. And since most mom's do laundry frequently, we don't think this will be overwhelming.

[YoungHouseLove's sprayer]

Other Benefits

Cloth diapers keep diaper rash away from your baby's bum b/c they are made of natural fibers & are breathable. Therefore, you don't need to constantly buy & apply diaper cream! Amazing! That stuff is PRICEY. Obviously, I'd keep a tube on hand just in case, but that is a major selling point in our minds.

We've HEARD that cloth-diapered babies potty train faster b/c while absorbant, cloth diapers don't wick the moisture away as well as disposables. So they feel uncomfortable a little more often, and they want out. We really hope this is true.

Cloth diapers are so gosh darn adorable! They come in awesome colors (not just white anymore). I'm talking every color of the rainbow, even patterns. So they're a little more cute when hanging out of an outfit. Love it!

You have the option of putting an extra insert in the diaper, for long car trips and for overnight. Some are absorbant microfiber and some are hemp. We're going to try out both. The inserts are of course... washable & reusable! Are you sensing a theme, here?

Less trash, which is great for us since we pay a trash fee of $2/bag to our township. The less trash we put out, the more money we save. And we like saving money.

FuzziBunz makes a "one-size" diaper, which is the one we are going with. That means, they are fully adjustable w/ various snaps from the time your baby is 7 pounds to the time she is 30 pounds. They grow with your baby & always have a snug fit so they don't leak.

So that's our plan and we're sticking to it.
We MAY have to use disposables at first, if our little one is drowning in the one-size diaper... and of course for the beach, those Little Swimmers diapers look extremely convenient.

Can't wait to see if all the cloth-diaper claims are true! I'll be sure to tell you about it.