Cloth Diapering

Yep. I am that girl. I live in Seattle, own Danskos, eat granola, believe in baby-wearing (I just wish my baby did too), had a natural birth, advocate breastfeeding and yes, I cloth diaper. 

I am the stereotype. 

But seriously, I love cloth diapering. Stop rolling your eyes- it's not that hard! Out of all the things baby related that I had to adjust to cloth diapering was not a big adjustment (ie: inconvenience) for me. I will fully disclose that I most likely wouldn't have cloth diapered at first if it weren't for the invaluable help of my BFF,Ash who basically told me what to buy and how to do it without losing my mind. That being said, my Mom used cloth diapers with all three of us and they were the old school ones with metal pins and cloth that folded in, so I may have found my way to cloth diapers regardless. Now they're super snazzy and easy. seriously so easy. 

I know some of you are shaking your head going, "sister, there is no way".... but here's the deal: The "all-in-ones" (which I'll refer to as AIO's) make it literally seamless. For the "doesn't the poop gross you out?" argument the answer is No. It just doesn't. When they're little they barely poo. Although I will admit a formula poo is a totally different ball game than a watery breastmilk poo but even then they're so easy to clean. 

I was so sad in my baby class when they introduced cloth with the hard to fold original cloth diaper my mom had in the 80's when I was a kid and the snapeez. Seriously people? No first time Mom is going to cloth diaper after seeing that. They need to put my AIO's up there so parents know that it can be easy! 

I wanted to cloth diaper initially to stretch our pennies. Anything I can do to save money and stay home longer is better for everyone in the long run. Disposable diapers on average cost $0.28 and roughly in a year you'd spend $2862.72--I spent $440.95 for all newborn and regular size that will grow with Isla up to 35lbs. I will probably buy another 12-16 diapers so total I will end up spending $661.00 ONE TIME. This for me was more than enough reason to use cloth. I am also proud of how we're helping the environment and reducing waste. Feels good!

This is how I do cloth....I'll update you how it goes as Isla grows! 

These are Miss Isla's pretty little newborn diapers. I use Bum Genius AIO newborn diapers and have 20 which last me about 3 days. I will use the Bumgenius FreeTime diapers that will grow with Isla. They work from 8-35lbs although they're bulky at the smaller weights. I probably won't put her in them until we hit the 3 month mark.They are a little low in the front to accommodate the cord before it's fallen off and they work great. I have had some leaking issues recently since they go up to 12lbs and Isla is almost there but I ordered the inserts for $10 and they should get me another month or so until Isla can fill out the bigger AIO size. I will say that the first week or so we used disposable for the meconium poos. I was scared the meconium would ruin my diapers. Thankfully it was an easy transition into cloth. They say to do 5-7 washes initially to get them ready for baby but I did 1 wash and they were fine. I'll go into washing details below. 

I use the Diaper Champ from Target. It's basically just a garbage that keeps in the smell really well and that handle opens the little hole for you to put the diaper in. This is great for one handed changes- which is all the time pretty much. The other perk is that this can uses any bag so you don't need to buy the specific bag for the can- money waster!

I also use Osocozy flannel wipes in the Prince Lionheart Wipe Warmer. I know what you're thinking, wipe warmer, really S?!! I thought the same thing .... but if you're going to do flannel wipes it's the way to go. I just fold them in half and add a tall cup of water so they can soak and heat up real nicely. I have about 20 or 25 and they last me at least 3 days- sometimes more. I usually have a pack of disposable wipes by the wipe warmer also just in case a bigger job comes up but normally I use flannel and throw the disposable in the diaper bag when I need them.

Yep, full can- time to wash!

I literally take this garbage to the washer and throw the diapers and wipes in exactly like this. I do a rinse cycle (20 mins) then I put in the Rockin' Green Detergent (see below) and do a sanitary cycle (about 2 hours depending on the load) on my washer. I have done A LOT of loads and my washing machine doesn't stink at all. The sanitary cycle works wonders! I know people freak out about throwing diapers in the same washer that washes your clothes but it's not like you're washing them in the same load or there are turds floating around in there. The cycle does a really good job of not cross contaminating anything. There's really no difference in throwing a blanket or something your dog or cat peed on in the washer and a diaper. When Isla gets older I plan to use the Bumgenius Diaper Sprayer but for now I don't need it.

This stuff is great and they offer different types for the type of water you have (ie: Soft Rock= Soft water, Hard Rock= hard water and Classic rock= Normal)

If you follow GreenCupboards you would know they had their Rockin' Green 50% off last week- sale of the week! Ash & I stocked up!!! Such a good deal :) 

After washing I hang the diapers on a drying rack in my laundry room. You can also hang on a clothes line if you're blessed with sunshine! (not so much in Seattle this time of year). They take a bit to dry so I usually wash at night and hang them before bed. I do a 'air fluff' cycle on them before folding them and putting into Isla's dresser. In a pinch you can dry them but the velcro does get stuck together so they can be hard to get apart. 

Also a note that the regular size with the double insert can take quite a while to dry hanging or in the dryer so giving more time for those is smart. The regular size come in snaps or velcro. I went with velcro because the snaps can be confusing. That being said you do need to replace the velcro when it starts to wear down. 

Normally I don't dry my wipes- I just yank them from the wash, fold and put water on them damp in the wipe warmer. This time, they had to be photographed so they got dryed and folded :)

This is a regular size AIO Bumgenius Diaper. This one has snaps and goes from 8-35 lbs. I buy my diapers from Cottonbabies.com. The going price is normally $12.95 and you can get a bargain if you buy them in bulk. I bought the regular size pre-Isla and the newborn size after she was born. Delivery was fast and I was able to use them by the 2nd week. They do go on sale and I was able to get the pink newborn size below for $9.95 instead of $12.95. Every bit counts!

This is the little newborn size AIO bumgenius Diaper. This size goes up to 12lbs although you can add inserts to stretch them. The inserts are a little long for the newborn size but they work for a short time.

I hope this post helps someone out there and maybe even inspire someone to try out cloth diapering. More follow up posts to come!

xo- S