I
have a beautiful bouncing baby boy, who is now six months old. At one of
the baby showers we were given for him, a sweet woman gave me a beautiful
knitted blanket and a roll of what looked like mini-paper towels. I
didn't understand what they were, and I almost didn't say anything to the
woman.
She spoke up and told me that she wasn't sure if I was using cloth diapers or
not, but that these were a lifesaver for her. Cloth diapers? How
dare she assume that I was going to be using those things! Yes, I was a
tad emotional at the time. These diaper liners will come back into the
story later.
One of my friends invited me over to her home one evening, to hang out with her
and her infant daughter. She wanted to show me something that she was
using on her daughter—you guessed it—cloth diapers. I politely accepted
the invitation to simply observe her new way of life. To my surprise
however, my eyes were opened to a new way of thinking. When most people
think of cloth diapering, the first image that comes to their head is huge
safety pins and plastic underwear. It's almost a scary thought. You
would be amazed at how much this product, and the businesses that sell them,
have changed over the years. My friend showed me her "stash" of
diapers and how easy the process really is. She even let me borrow a few
of them, and I was instantly hooked. When I later ordered my diapers, I
was scrambling for those liners the sweet woman bought me so long ago. I
sure was eating my words/feelings/hormones!
The first major plus to cloth diapers is the cost. If you buy disposable
diapers, this can cost around $2,600.00 or more, for one child, according to
the website Diaper Decisions. I personally bought 24 brand new,
one-size cloth diapers for only $400.00! I didn't even buy the cheapest
ones out there! The average child will probably use 7,500 disposable
diapers until he/she is fully potty trained. So, you’re saving the
landfills of all of that extra trash coming from one little human being.
If you can believe it, some companies are making compostable cloth diaper shells!
Those 24 diapers I have will take my child from infancy all the way to potty
training. What is even better, is that I can use these same diapers on
our next one or two children. Another major plus for most moms, even some
dads, is how adorable these diapers are. They truly look very similar to
disposables, but with buttons or Velcro. There are so many colors and
designs, that you'll never get bored. It's really fun to know that even
if my child isn't wearing pants, he will still look adorable! Children
who wear cloth diapers also tend to potty train earlier than children who wear
disposables. This is due to the fact that children feel wet/dirty quicker
than they do wearing disposables. Cloth is also better for your child’s
skin. Think about all the chemicals they put into the material of
disposables. True, there are some natural diapers out there, but you’re
still going to eventually throw them in the trash.
Lastly, cleaning your baby’s diapers is super easy. If your child is
exclusively breastfed, you can throw the entire diaper and its contents into
the washer. If you use formula, there is just a little extra work that
needs to be done so that your washer doesn’t hold any unwanted substances of
those #2 diapers—hence the name of this story. Any washing machine will
work, but top loaders and HE (high efficiency) machines are going to get your
diapers the cleanest. As you can see by the picture, I dry all the
diapers “shells” on a cute octopus
hanging dryer I purchased from Ikea. It hangs directly next to my washing
machine. They easily dry overnight. All of the “pads” that the
diapers are stuffed with go directly in the dryer. Line drying outside is
always an option, and saves you money on energy. So easy!!!
I do understand that $400.00 is a large upfront cost to most new parents, but
there are many ways to save even more money. Your first option is to buy
used. There is a fantastic site where you can swap, buy, and/or sell
diapers called Diaper Swappers. Initially this may sound a little odd or
unsanitary, but I promise that this is not the case. There is a process
called "stripping a diaper" that rids you of that thought. Ebay
and Craigslist are great resources as well. The sellers are all usually
very helpful in giving advice and information on what they are selling, and
beyond. You can also register for cloth diapers on your baby
registry. Major baby stores do carry some brands. There are even
sites that allow you to try diapers for 30 days and return them if you are
unsatisfied, for a store credit (ex: Kelly’s Closet and Diaper Junction).
I hope that I have shined a positive light on cloth diapers. I really do
enjoy them, and I hope you will find that you do as well. DING! You’re now
free to go green, go cloth!
