Cloth Diapers

Showing off his new cloth diaper.
I have been experimenting with cloth diapers for about two weeks now. I think I'm finally ready to write about my experience thus far. I started this two weeks ago knowing nothing and have learned so much about the ins and outs of CD (cloth diapering)... as well as lots of new terminology. I still have a lot to learn, but I'm feeling more confident about the whole thing.

I decided to start cloth diapering simply because I was curious :). Everyone I talk to who has tried it LOVES it, so I thought I'd give it a whirl. I wouldn't say I LOVE it at this point, but I don't LOVE 'sposies (disposable diapers) either. I don't think I will ever LOVE anything dealing with excrement. So far, I'm not opposed to CD and it's only a little more work than 'sposies, so for now I'm committed to it (after all, I've already put money into it... might as well use what I have). Of course there are other reasons to CD... the environment, cost, avoid diaper rash, avoid chemicals, and they're cute. Those are nice repercussions to my curiosity :)

I started by doing a little research (probably too little) and then going to the cloth diaper store (Terra Tots, for you locals) and buying a small set to get started. I went with prefolds (A flat diaper used with a cover... similar to what our parents used to use) because it was the cheapest way to get started. After getting home, washing them and trying them for a few days I HATED them. Every time Samuel was leaking out. So, I did more research (Baby Center Community Cloth Diapering Group offered a lot of assistance), asked some friends about CD (Thanks Sara) and went back to the store. So, I figured out how to make my prefolds better (for those interested... more washing to prep them, using a different fold and a "snappi", changing more frequently (every 1.5 - 2 hours) and using a doubler) and also went ahead and bought a couple of pocket diapers to try.

Pocket diapers are very similar to 'sposies except you wash them and use them again instead of throwing them away. They are easy to put on and more absorbent (than prefolds... nothing is as absorbent as 'sposies). So, far I like them (as much as you can like a diaper). I've tried three brands so far. I think my favorite is the Fuzzi Bunz One Size (in case you are interested in buying Sam a present :)). I've also tried Bum Genius and Happy Heines (the names crack me up) and have no complaints with those yet. The only reason I like my FB better is because they have snaps instead of Velcro, which seems like it would last better for future children as well as Sam as a toddler.

BOTTOM LINE: Cloth diapering is not that bad. I would recommend using pocket diapers if you are considering CD. I have to wash them every couple of days, but it's not that bad because there is very little folding involved (that's my least favorite part of laundry). Cleaning the dirty diapers is gross, but so is changing them... so, that's not really any different from 'sposies. And, it will save us money in the long run (we will break even with the cost of 'sposies in 6 months and everything after that is saved money).

I have a lot more information and opinions on all this if you want to know. I figured I wouldn't bore my readers with all the information I have acquired, but let me know if you are interested.