Cloth Diapers

Alrighty...so I promised I'd do a post on cloth diapers. I must first say that cloth diapers are not for everyone! I think a large part of it depends on your family and what works best for you and your child. Many nurseries and daycares/homecares won't accept children in cloth diapers. I'm not condemning people who use disposables. In fact, we currently still use them at night.

So...you're 1st question is probably: what would possess you to switch to cloth diapers?!?!? I can assure you that I am not trying to convince anyone to switch; nor am I telling you that you are harming your child by using them. But...here are my reasons (in no specific order):

1. disposables are expensive, even with coupons and buying in bulk: we've spent an estimated $300 over the past 6 months on disposables. If (big if), Addie's potty trained by 2, that is $1200 on just her diapers! (and I think my numbers are actually low because they are based on size 1 & 2 diapers...they increase in price as they get bigger. I've read on several sites the average is closer to $1600 in 2 years!);
2. traditional disposable diapers contain several chemicals: among others...chlorine (20lbs of it each year for one baby alone)...sit on that for a minute;
3. disposable diapers do not decompose...for a long, long, long time (disposables account for nearly half the trash discarded in a household with a baby);
4. cloth diapers are not the same as when we were growing up;
5. supposedly many children potty train sooner with cloth diapers;
   
6. we don't have to use cloth diapers 24/7; we can use them when it works for us!

You can read more about why some families choose cloth diapers here or here.

After reading more reviews on diapers than I care to admit, we have we tried:

• Kissaluvs fitted
• Bummis Bamboozle fitted
• Bummis Whisper Wrap
• Imse Vimse Organic Wrap
• "Prefolds" (the bane of my existence...i dont know how my mother did it!)
• BumGenius pocket diaper
• Thirsties Fab Fitted diaper
• Thirsties Diaper Cover
• Another Imse Vimse diaper cover and several more kissaluvs

A few answers to questions you might have...

• Have they leaked? Once...when I was running errands for too long...so it was my fault! :) Otherwise...no!
• How often do you have to change her? I typically try not to go more than 2 hours. Since there's really no "wicking" away with cloth diapers, it's best to change them more often.
  
• Which one is your favorite? I like the fitted diaper + wrap/cover concept. However, I did use the BumGenius pocket diaper for the first time...and loved it!
• Aren't you grossed out if you have to wash one out? Nope...not anymore, that is. Kitchen gloves work GREAT!
• Do I have a pail of water with dirty diapers in it sitting around? Nope...we "dry store" them. Letting them sit in water actually wears down the fabric and elastic faster.
• Aren't you harming the environment just as much by doing more loads of laundry? Nope...I read somewhere that it's the equivalent of flushing a toilet 5-6 more times a day (which is exactly what will happen when our child is potty trained!). And...we use 1/4 of the amount of detergent on diapers as we use on a regular load of laundry.
  
• Does Addie like them? I'm not sure...but she certainly doesn't seem to dislike them!
• Do you think you're going to "save the earth" by using cloth diapers? Nope, but no matter how small, it will make a difference.
• Would I recommend it to others? I would recommend at least trying it. That's how we got started!
  

chilling in her Kissaluv fitted diaper + Imse Vimse diaper cover

So there's my spill on cloth diapers! Have an awesome Thursday!