We are pregnant! I am nine weeks today! I'm sure everyone that reads this knows, but it's been quite some time since I've blogged and thought I would include that bit of information.
Since finding out we were going to have another baby, I decided that I would do a bit of research into cloth diapering. In the past the hubs and I have been pretty anti- cloth diapering. I don't consider us to be a typical family that would be into cloth diapering. When I think of cloth diapering families I think of people who have at home births or natural births. Not that there is anything wrong with at-home or naturalbirths. In fact I have a number of friends who have made the decision to go natural. We had Elise in a hospital and I had an epidural. We plan to have this baby in the hospital and although I would like to go longer without an epidural, I am not oppose to having one.
Previously, he told me he wouldn't change any diapers if I chose to use cloth. I've done quite a bit of research since my original comment about thinking to cloth diaper. I decided to approach Eric with my findings and ask him to consider giving them a try. I knew it would be a hard sell, but went for it anyway. At first he was completely against it. I was frustrated because I had done all this research and felt that he shot it down without even giving it a chance or thought. I told him how his reaction made me feel and he finally listened. Once We headed to a local cloth diapering store. Once we talked with the lady, Eric was pretty certain that we would be doing cloth. We bought a couple of diapers to try and went from there.
Eric has been on board since! I was surprised how quickly he changed his mind and got on board. Once he found out that it wasn't as hard and gross as he thought it would be, he was game.
Yesterday, I went to another cloth diaper store and bought 2 more diapers to try. Thought I'd share what my experience has been so far.
The first 2 diapers we bought we Rocky Mountain Diapers. The reasons we bought these were: we liked that they were not only made in the USA, but in Colorado as well. They are pocket diapers that a One Size diaper. They have an internal adjustment system so there aren't a bunch of snaps on the frint to adjust. The PROS: They are cute, made in Colorado/USA and aren't super bulky on my 23 lbs 2 year old. My print diaper is great! The CONS: These are NOT for overnight use! They leaked everywhere, I even had to wash Elise's pillow! The solid diaper leaks everytime I put it on Elise. EVERYTIME! The internal adjustment systems seems to make for a not so tight fit around the legs. I obviously have mixed feelings about these diapers considering I've had one that works well during the day and one that leaks everytime. I contacted the store and they said that I should try rubbing Tide on the inside because sometimes there's a residue on it that needs to be washed off. We'll see if this makes a difference. I got these diapers at Cloth Diaper Market. They are a local store, but they sell their diapers online. You can visit their site here. These are $18.95 in the store but $19.95 on the website.
Yesterday we bought 2 Thirsties Duo Diapers. The reasons I bought these were: They have bright colors and cute prints! They are made in the USA, they are a top selling diaper at the store we went to, they have double leg gussets (which means extra leak protection around the legs), They have an opening in the front and back of the diaper and the inserts are suppose to agitate out in the wash. Which means, you don't have to touch pee or poo pulling out the insert. The final reason we bought them was: the inserts combine fast absorbing power of microfiber terry together with the stable absorbency of hemp. We've only used one once today so I'll have to do more updating after a few more times of wearing and washing. What I know so far: it didn't leak after wearing for over 2 hours. It didn't really even seem wet, but she pooed so we had to change it. I didn't know she pooed until I opened her diaper. Didn't smell anything like I do with disposables. We plan to try the second diaper overnight tonight. I got these diapers from Baby Cotton Bottoms they are a local store as well, but they have a website, you can visit their site here. This one keeps track of how many diapers you buy and once you purchase 12, every diaper after that you get $1 off! I don't know if it works online, but if you can tell them I refered you then I get $5 off my next purchase. These are $18 for the solid diapers and $19 for the prints.
I bought Rockin' Green laundry detergent. It's made for cloth diapers. It's the only brand I tried. It's a natural detergent, and has fun scents as well as an unscented option. My favorite is Motley Clean. There are other detergents that are cheaper, but so far I really like Rockin' Green. I have read good reviews.
Eric is ready to commit to cloth diapering fulltime after only a week! What turned him on was the savings from disposables. You can save $1500 to $2000 for 1 child and $4000 with 2 children if you use the same diapers. We're not filling landfills with diapers that take 500 years to decompose.
Cloth diapers are so much better these days than in the past. I always imagined it being gross and difficult, but there are options that are very similar to disposables. There are SO many options it can get a little confusing. I would recommend visiting a store if you have that option. Baby Cotton Bottoms has a lot of good information on their site. Here a 2 sites that have really helped me as well: http://allaboutclothdiapers.com/new-to-cloth-diapers/cloth-diaper-systems/ and http://www.paddedtushstats.com/
I'm still new to this, but if you have any questions, feel free to ask. I'll let you know if I know the answer, if not I'll find out for you.
