cloth diapers... yes I'm serious

So I actually dreaded this post because it literally contains so much info it makes my brain hurt.  But I thought that I would share straight forward insight about cloth diapering in a Q&A format;)

so Here goes the poop... I mean the scoop. sorry. horrible joke.

1. Why cloth diapering.. it's the year 2016?  Are you stuck in the past?
No not at all.  I am sure parents have many different reasons for diapering with cloth...  here are my personal top reasons for the iconic choice:

• I am a firm believer that household daily chemicals effect us.  They build up in our bodies and over time reek havoc-- free radical producing foods and chemicals.  So at all cost, I like to  keep chemicals to a minimum.  This is my number one reason for cloth diapering for my family. I was always very uncomfortable with the chemical make up of traditional diapers.  However, if you are willing to spend a bit more $$ you now can purchase chemical free disposables for your babes. We do it for overnight purposes sometimes and on our diaper wash days.  However nothing replaces cloth. Or at least I believe that. But a momma's got to do what a momma's got to do-- if cloth doesn't work for you find what does!!
•  Secondly... it's good for the environment. Honestly landfills come at a cost to us and even to the quality of air we breathe.   I'm quoting small footprint family's blog below and you can check it out here for a good full read of the article... I guarantee you will be amazed at the information you find here. http://www.smallfootprintfamily.com/dangers-of-disposable-diapers I'm always amazed that most parents follow the American Academy of Pediactrics without fail when it comes to vaccines and outbreaks-- but very few know that they also request that diapers not be put in the traditional trash, as they  lead to disease and infection in the soil.  Sounds over the top I know... and yes I have thrown many many disposable diapers in the garbage can.  But you must at least think that it's interesting?  Its said that it takes 500 years at least for a diaper and it's organic matter to decompose in a landfill.  Just some interesting facts for thought.
• Lastly, we cloth diaper for finaical reasons... with both of my boys in disposable diapers for one week-- with wipes, it cost my family $75 per week.  Our complete set of cloth diapers were under $300.  I have used the set on both boys... and then I will resale them, as they will continue on... and it's not gross- they get disinfected after each use very properly-- as I will touch on that later. I think that the numbers speak for themselves here...

2. What cloth do you recommend?  

I think the anatomy of boys and girls are so different, and I also think that skin is different from baby to baby as well as each phase of infantcy to toddlerhood... so my approach changes as I go. but these 3 options seem to encapsulate well what we have seen works best for us...

• Green Mountain Diapers Organic "work horses" with flip reusable covers, Or wool shorties and longies'.  http://www.greenmountaindiapers.com/workhorse.html 

          I absolutely love these work horses for new born and little fragile bottoms.... They are soft organic and have snaps.  Not to mention, they are very very economical.  If you are not into folding refolds, it seems that workhorses are a must for you.  You simply snap the diaper on and throw on a cover over the top.  My favorite covers of choice are "flip" covers by bum genius.  

see here: http://www.cottonbabies.com/product_info.php?products_id=2220

Unless your baby poops-- and it gets on the cover---you just wipe out the liner and use it again again and again.  I always changed our flip covers if poop was present at all (it didn't even have to get on the cover) but for simple pee's I just wiped out and reused.  All together, We had 12 flip covers and about 22 workhorses.  These are perfect for the new babes with sensitive bottoms.  

My second favorite cover is a wool cover.  In the cloth diapering world we reference wool covers as bullet proof;) They do not leak AT all if fitted properly.  They are super cute and come in long pants for winter or colder nights... and shorts for year round... totally worth it and super adorable.  see here:  https://www.etsy.com/listing/244106750/grateful-buns-soaker-longies-3-layers?ref=featured_listings_row

or here are some other favorites for wool:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/153813343/upcycled-wool-longies-soaker-cover?ref=shop_home_active

• Because I have boys,  prefolds and work horses did not work forever on them... and it seemed whether I liked it or not I was headed for a pocket diaper with a fleece lining. I would say my boys can stay in work horses until about 5 months old or so and then we unanimously all together decided a pocket option was best for a little boy toddler.  Pockets although made of synthetic materials seem to wick moisture away from heavy wetters more affectively.  The main driving factor for us moving into a pocket diaper, is because  it is very uncomfortable for prefolds or even the organic work horses to press against babies precious parts;) We found our boys were very very unhappy and it actually was painful for them.  The pocket diaper was amazing because instead of being "built up" against the babies skin with layers of cloth the pocket diaper's layers sink down into the pocket keeping all pressure off of baby--- creating a much comfortable diaper for toddler boys. We recommend "Bum Genius 5.0" pockets. See here:http://www.bumgenius.com/style/bumgenius-original-5-0/

• Our last and final recommendation were introduced to me by my friend Katie.  She loves this particular organic pre fold style for the softness and ease.  She also seems to have no problem with using these on a growing boy baby as well.  She loves these because they don't leave marks on babies skin from elastic and most importantly are organic. No fleece and no micro fiber.  You can use the covers they provide or you may use a flip cover or a wool as described earlier.

3. How do I wash my dippers and with what?

• Here is the gross part... for breast fed babies poop is water soluble you don't have to dump or rinse before washing. for babies on solid foods poop must be rinsed and flushed before laundering... so there you have it. I recommend these flushable liners for dumping the dirty out... http://www.thanksmama.com/Bio_Soft_Liners_p/bms-333.htm?1=1&CartID=0                  or the bum genius sprayer is an excellent choice, see here:  http://www.bumgenius.com/style/diaper-sprayer/
• I recommend Charlie's Soap for diaper cleaning. And it's pretty simple, I just follow the directions on the site for cloth diaper washing.  You may choose to add a disinfectant such as Bleach, vinegar , or hydrogen peroxide in each cycle.  For moms avoiding any bleach whatsoever you can ditch it, and the hydrogen peroxide works incredibly well. I literally just use the same peroxide as I would use on cuts from the first aid department.  Or of course White cooking vinegar will do the trick as a food based option.  Here are the washing instructions we follow straight from Charlie's Soap's website (just print it out and stick above your washer!) :

          http://www.charliesoap.com/images/b2b/fab_sheets/diaper_washing.pdf

          "Stripping" is a must if you wash your cloth diapers and they smell like ammonia (pee), if you buy used diapers from someone... or lastly, if you have noticed that your diapers are not as absorbent as they were before...it's time to strip them.

happy diapering mama!!!!!