Cloth Diapering, Round II (this time, with a newborn)

This post is dedicated to my SIL, Jenna, who is expecting her first baby (a boy!) in February.

I just finished reading a very timely blog post over at The Cloth Diaper Whisperer about attempting to exclusively cloth diaper from the newborn days on forward.  I didn't start cloth diapering Mia till she was closer to 4 months, so by that point in time, she was big enough to fit into Fuzzibunz pocket diapers in the smalls (I believe she was around 13 lbs).  I also started using bumGenius 3.0 one size pocket diapers in the smallest settings for Mia at that time as well, which is what her stash eventually completed transitioned into.

However, with young Gabriel, I wanted to start cloth diapering sooner than I did with Mia. I had a feeling he wouldn't fit into Mia's one size diapers initially as she has stretched out the elastic (which--good news--can be replaced!), so I registered for some newborn diapers on Kelly's Closet and decided I wanted to try lil' Joeys, XS bumGenius AIOs, XS Fuzzibunz, and some GroVia AIOs in the Newborn size.  I also received some prefold covers (Thirsties and Bummis), along with some prefold inserts (like Bummis prefolds).  Plus, a friend loaned me some Kissaluvs and some prefolds -- not sure what brand they are, but they are pretty absorbent!

My take on the diapers initially:

Loved the lil' Joeys.  They fit Gabe really well right away and contained most leaks.  Since he's just over 12 lbs now, though, they are not fitting as well anymore and may need to be retired :-\  I will be sad to see them go as they are quite absorbent and have special lining inside to contain leaks. I started off with 2 of these and eventually added 2 more, thus 4 total.

I was actually happy to be reunited with the Fuzzibunz.  Something about their designs are so simple and user-friendly, but they are not as absorbent for longer stretches, so I would not recommend them overnight if your baby sleeps long periods of time or for super soakers.  Also, they are for up to 12 lbs as well, so Gabe will soon be retiring out of those.  I only had 3 FB.

I could essentially say the same about the XS/NB size of the bumGenius.  I had 4 of these total.

The other brand that was new to me, aside from the Lil' Joeys, were the Grovia Newborn AIO diapers.  I bought them because they were on sale and the reviews were pretty good, but I have to say they weren't my favorite diapers. I just had too many leaks with them because they weren't tight enough around Gabe's leg to prevent from leaking onto his clothes.  It's a bummer because the prints were super cute!  I might try to resell these with the hopes they fit onto a different baby a bit better.  He's probably worn them 5x or less, for all 3 of them.


I also tried Thirsties covers with Bummis organic cotton liners, but when Gabe was under 10lbs, I just couldn't get them to fit right. I'll admit I was a total NEWB when it came to prefolds and covers--the system that has been around the longest--but after having used pocket and AIO diapers for so long I was messing it up and causing leaks, plus the covers were just too bulky.

Thirsties Duo Wrap cover

Bummis Diaper Cover

However, he is really starting to fit into his Thirsties & Bummis covers, and with the small stash of prefolds, we might be able to start making it work!  I'm still experimenting with how I fold the prefolds in the diapers, but I'm getting more and more excited about this, because I believe having prefolds & covers as an option will help me as I transition him into bigger-sized diapers (or when Mia is more proficient at potty-training and no longer requires her bumGenius 3.0 one-size diapers!).

I also won 2 Swaddlebees diapers in size small last summer on a Fluff Friday giveaway on the Cloth Diaper Whisperer blog (see, dreams DO come true), and he is starting to fit into those. I think as long as I figure out the right snap setting, we'll be free of leaks.
I need to really rotate these two because they'll probably only fit Gabe for 4 more lbs, and as quickly as he's growing, that could mean only another month and a half!


To boil it all down, I've been pleased with using most of the brands, except as much as I wanted to like GroVia, they just didn't work for us.  My only regrets looking back are not using all the diapers sooner. Since I didn't have a "complete" stash by my standards (somewhere between 16-20), some days I was hesitant to use any of them because I wasn't sure I could wash them all every single day, but I should've just done what I could, because now he's growing out of the bumGenius XS, Fuzzibunz XS, and the lil' Joeys (11 diapers total).  So, I've been using a combination of disposables (Huggies Pure & Natural, mostly) and cloth throughout these past several weeks.  I didn't really even use cloth on Gabe for probably the first two weeks, and I think that's pretty normal.

Gabe in a Thirsties cover (upper left) and Bummis cover (bottom)

I couldn't change the fact that the prefolds and covers didn't work for us at first, but now that they are I'm feeling like I'll be getting my money's worth out of those.

And as long as I replace the elastic on the bumGenius OS diapers that I have been using for Mia the past 2.5 years, I'll really be getting my money's worth from those! I already have 20 elastic replacement  kits, ready to go, as soon as I figure out just how to use that new sewing machine I got for Christmas!

The Takeaways:
There are dozens of cloth diaper brands out there now, and as as I've been following Kelly Wels, DiaperShops.com and TheClothDiaperWhisperer.com for the past couple of years now (either on Twitter, Facebook, or through my blog), I constantly see other brands I'd be interested in trying.  The best pieces of advice I can give right now for newbies/first-timers are to try a few brands and see what you like. You can always re-sell what you end up not using; people actually do like to buy used cloth diapers because it saves them money!  If you have a boutique or cloth diaper retailer locally, check them out as well, because seeing the diapers hands-on makes a big difference.

I'd also recommend, if you do want to cloth diaper exclusively, to get some sized-diapers to help you get going in the beginning, like the lil' Joeys or the XS Fuzzibunz, BumGenius or even Happy Heinys.  Those brands all tend to get good reviews.  Then, when your baby is a bit bigger, he/she can probably easily fit into the one-size diapers that adjust with snaps or velcro as your baby gets bigger.  Or, you could splurge a bit more and get diapers in every single size (small, medium and large) and your baby will probably be in each set of diapers a shorter amount of time, meaning they take less abuse and are in better condition for the next baby!


This blog sums it up well: How do I get started with cloth diapering? by Diapershops.com


It can be quite an investment to get going when it comes to cloth, but it so much more satisfying to cloth diaper a baby and not spend at least $20 a week or more on disposables.  You can see the data to compare the costs here.  I love that chart!

Phew! That was a lot of information, I know! Hopefully it is as helpful to someone else as it is for me to summarize.

And, if you're so inclined to start shopping, let me put in a shameless plug for MYSELF as I'm an affiliate of Kelly's Closet.

This link below will take you to the site, and for each sale, I get a 5% commission.  Hey, whatever floats your boat!


Photo Credit: KellysCloset.com

Where to begin.

February's over, we're already 3 days into March and I only blogged 4 times in the last month.  For a while there I thought my blog was dying.  (That lasted for about 12 minutes.)

I have a ton of blog post ideas, but am not sure where to start.  It could begin with our trip to the Great White last week; Mia's being on the verge of becoming a 2 year old, and what all that entails; how my mind's been hashing out so much how-to-do-this nutritionally that sometimes I'm afraid it may explode from overexposure; or how I'm suddenly re-motivated to continue decorating/painting/reorganizing our house and if I had the free time allotted to do so I would begin immediately.

Mia & Uncle Nate in MN

In the meantime, I'll let a cat out of a bag (you are REALLY interested now, aren't you??).  I've been writing another blog for a while about my findings in nourishing nutrition over the last half a year at:
Nourishing Newbie.  Pretty much no one reads it, which is cool, but now I feel calm enough to share it with others.  I have thoughts about other things to share on there but I'll probably do it slowly over time.  I have realized myself it takes quite a while to let new things regarding food and its preparation to sink in.

And secondly, I've also been an "affiliate" of Kelly's Closet for a few months too!  I love shopping on their website for all things cloth-diaper related, and since I talk about cloth diapers so much, I decided to add an affiliate link on my page: http://www.kellyscloset.com/?AffId=414.  That way, if you shop there through my link, I get a tiny commission.  Hey, you or your beloved get cloth diapers, their store gets business, and I make like 5 cents.  ALL AROUND WIN!  Every little bit counts!!

With that, I'm now turning in for the night. A tad late for my liking, but true to my Night Owl self...after 11pm.  'Nighty Night!

Goodnight Moon.

PS: And once again I steal music from Kelle Hampton's blog.  Am only constantly inspired by her!

A Mixed Bag

Take the good with the bad, right?

Mia's made some major progress in the sleep department the last week or so, since the appointment with the pediatrician.  Not sure exactly what happened, but it seems after enough trials of the Ferber method Mia started to realize beds were made for sleeping in, and not for standing up and crying in.  For naps and bedtimes, she's been falling asleep within 15 minutes of being put down, with perhaps a few exceptions.  She always gives Greg a bit of a harder time at bedtime since their routine was pretty solid, but for naps with me, she'll roll around or talk to herself for a few minutes before totally knocking out. 
This is major progress and exactly what I've been looking for.

Sunday afternoon though was a bit amusing.  She was so tired and whiny after having an awful morning at church, but she just wouldn't lay down.  She was sitting on her knees crying, then falling asleep sitting up, and then jerking herself awake when she'd start to lean forward, thus starting the crying - sleeping - leaning - awake cycle over and over again!  Finally, I went back in and let her pass out while in my lap and laid her back down.  Silly silly girl!

The other pro with this is that she's been sleeping through the night again - yay!  I haven't had to get up with her in the middle of the night for a whole week, I guess.  It is so nice to have a solid stretch of sleep again!  Not to say I don't expect it to be thrown off ever again -- because I know it will -- so I will just enjoy it while it lasts.

The "con" right now is that Mia is just not herself.  She's been super fussy, whiny and hard to handle.  Not the "friendly little spirit" I've proclaimed her to be in months past.  Methinks she's just cutting more than one tooth right now and it just hurts!  There've been times when she's felt mildly feverish, which is reminiscent of some of her first teething experiences.  Now I feel as if I'm really starting to understand what teething can mean.  So far, for Mia, teething can mean:

• raised body temperature, feet, hands, head warm to the touch
• clinginess (especially wanting me -- this is new!)
• tempter tantrums 
• diaper rashes
• actually getting sick (congestion, runny nose)
• awful diapers

Basically, just being an unhappy camper.  Sometimes, these symptoms confuse me, especially if a newer food has been introduced.  Is she having a reaction?  Is the rash because she's allergic?  But, when it goes on for days, I feel it usually tells me that this is a teething thing, not a food allergy/sensitivity.  I guess I will always be hyper aware of that, though.



And changing the subject, we had an awesome cloth diaper demo this past Saturday.  I can't believe I haven't posted more about it, as I thought I'd be detailing everything!, but there really hasn't been that much time.  We were able to video it for all those long-distance peeps wanting to get the 411 on cloth diapers, but since we borrowed our friends' camera and don't know the ins & outs of uploading the vid to the computer, it might be a while before it's up, edited, and ready for viewing.  I learned a ton though, and I've already been doing this for a year!  The biggest thing it reinforced is that I feel I'm making a great decision for our family - financially, healthfully and environmentally.  And it encouraged me to try some other brands the next time around, whene'er that is.  Do I sometimes feel silly that I am "so into" this?  Yes ... but I think it's just evidence that sometimes you just gotta work with the state you're in.  Young childhood is where I'm at, so I'm gonna make it work for us!  Find your groove and let the other stuff be.  That's what I'm telling myself!

The End!

Ponytails & The In Between

Behold, the first ponytail:

Ponytail shot

Mia's cute blonde hair has grown in quite a bit in the back, and after a nap or a car ride it's like Raggedy Ann Version 2.0, so lately we've been trying to pull it back into a little ponytail.  It doesn't always stay in long, but long enough to work out the tangly kinks!

Glamour Shot

Action Shot

We were invited to a family friend's house last night for a Fall Festival.  As fall arrives a bit late in Tampa, the timing was perfect because we were able to play outside in the late afternoon, eat as the sun set, and then roast smores later in the night over a fire pit.  All the kiddies had a great time...but Mia was not down with the group shot later on.

Group Shot / Night of Terror

Where's Elmo??

For now, we're just in the "in between".  Mommo was here this past week and came at a perfect time as Mia got sick Tuesday night and Wednesday and it was super helpful to have the day shift relief.
I tried something new this time when it came to Mia's cold.  As soon as Mia was showing signs of sickness in the middle of the night, I began administering 1 tablet of Aconite an hour throughout the rest of the day (up to 12/day).  By the end of the day Wednesday she was feeling better, and slept through the night and Thursday was like normal again! Aconite is a homeopathic tablet (super small) that you dissolve underneath the tongue.  I will be trying this myself if I start to feel sick soon.  I couldn't believe the turnaround, but from what I understand, as soon as you begin experiencing symptoms, you can start taking Aconite and it will work faster.  
Aside from that, Mia had a super fun time with Mommo bouncing balls, going on walks, taking care of her babies, and playing with her new purse.  As Mommo's reward, Mia can now say her name, "Mommo"!

Next up: The Cloth Diaper Demo & Thanksgiving prep.  In a quick turn of events, I'm hosting this year at our house.  I'm excited but want to be realistic about the expectations.  It is fun to have another event / project to work towards and it'll keep us busy!

Child Labor

Mia does the laundry from Megan Ciampa on Vimeo.


I promise this wasn't coerced.  She's a natural.

Favorite pastimes that could keep Mia busy for hours...

...include going through the bottom of our bookshelves and pulling out every book, piece of paper, or card and sprawling it on the floor.  It never fails.




Somedays I walk around the house to see a pile here, a pile there, a pile...there??  She loves going through our stuff.  I guess in a way she is helping me become better organized, because I get to go through all the junk again and realize, "I don't need this!"  *TRASH*






We got a major order of fluffy mail the other day.  For those who don't know, fluffy mail is cloth diaper speak for "cloth diapers in the mail."  A major purchase I completed a couple weeks ago made its way to our home and now Mia will be mostly outfitted in bumGenius! To say I've been looking forward to this is a mild understatement.  It's hard to explain some of the joy that comes from using cloth, but 'tis true.




The Miss & I are traveling next week, solo.  I'm half-looking forward to it, half-panicked.  I've never had to handle Mia 24/7 by myself.  We will be with family almost the whole time, no matter where we are, but it's still a tad different than having the "dada" with you.  "What's the worst that could happen?"  I don't like asking myself that question sometimes, because I don't want to imagine the worst that could happen, but whatever doesn't kill us will only make us stronger, right?  Thankfully the airplane rides are short.

Can you spot lil' Mia in the middle of a big playdate?

World Cup starts TODAY.  If Greg has anything to do with it, Mia will be a future soccer player; maybe a midfielder (she'll have her defensive skills from her daddy, and her running skills from her momma).  (For Jackson: "skills & abilities")  We are watching the US/England game tomorrow with a few blokes.  I do have to say, aside from American football, I'm getting better at watching sports on TV, especially baseball. I can name almost the entire Rays lineup, and I even know who is left-handed.  I'll attribute this sports knowledge-absorption to my parents.  That & knowing the oldies music.  Some things get passed down even without your trying!!




I have a pipsqueak waiting for me to play with her, so time to moveON.  Until next time...

happily "slow" around here

It's hard to believe the month of May is already winding down.  The weather is heating up in FL and with it come the summer rains.  Everybody's trying to enjoy the outdoors before it becomes unbearably hot!


As an answer to the last post, Mia is taking the coconut milk tonic well.  She tried a bit of the kefir and didn't care for it too much; perhaps it's not sweet enough.  The coconut milk tonic is a mixture of pure coconut milk, filtered water, and a bit of flavoring provided by some Grade B Maple Syrup and a little Vanilla.  It tastes pretty good but must be mixed really well.  We are trying the coconut milk because it's high in healthy fats and even has some antiviral & antifungal qualities.  Pretty amazing stuff you can get from nature.  I feel like I'm trying out for a Kashi commercial but I can assure you I am not recompensed for any such advertisements on my blog!  We may try whole milk or kefir with Mia eventually in the future, but as (NOT) fun as it is to watch your child throw up, I'm okay with holding off for a while again.


Mia had a little visitor the other day; our friends Amanda & Caitlyn (heretofore referred to in this post) called upon us for a little playdate & some lunchin'.  Always a good time.


Mia's had several teeth bust through lately.  It seems like just the other day she had 4, but now she has 6 that can be clearly seen.  Perhaps this explains some of her restless nights of late, otherwise, we're all having a blast. :-P


And for those still reading--if anyone is interested in splitting a 24pak of 3.0 one size bumGenius diapers with me (at about $15.25/diaper this is a really good deal!), please let me know.  The promo ends May 31. I already have a few takers who will split the pack, but I need just a few more commitments to make it happen--even if you just want to buy 1 or 2!  Otherwise, I will try selling the rest over the summer or at the next Jumping Jeans Consignment Sale!  E-mail me or leave a comment below if you are interested!

amazing cloth diaper deals!

If you haven't checked it out, Kelly's Closet & BumGenius are doing some amazing promotions on BumGenius All-in-One (AIO) diapers. If you order $10 of products in Flip, Econobum, or BumGenius, you get a free BG AIO!  You have to enter the code BGMAGAIO at checkout after adding your $10 worth of those products to your cart. This offer is good until May 31.


AND, I just found out that you can take advantage of this promotion twice!  You can place a 2nd order with the same guidelines ($10 worth of said products) using the code BGMAG2. This coupon can expire at anytime.


I'd been holding off on my orders until I had a few more dolla bills in my pocket, but I just took advantage of the deals tonight!  I'll be receiving the BumGenius odor remover, an extra traveling wet bag for dirty cloth diapers, 1 Flip diaper & insert, plus 2 new BG AIOs, courtesy of these coupons!  I've never tried the Flip system or an all-in-one diaper but I've loved BumGenius one-sized diapers so I'm sure I'll love these too (as they are the same company)!


I just had to share! (Plus post one more picture for whom all these diaper products are for - Lil' Mia!) 




PS: Don't forget to scroll down to check out my previous post on living it easy with our pool/beachy weekend!

mia's wish list

Allow me to be awfully tacky for a few minutes and post a list of things Mia might like or could use upon the occasion of her first birthday.  This is only by request and not because I truly aim to be so ego-centric!  I promise I will reward you with new pictures of the munchkin.  And believe it or not, she really needs new clothes. But mostly? All your lovin'.

• pajamas 12-18m, or 18-24m
• clothes 12-18m, or 18-24m
• summery clothes (tops, shorts, carpris, skirts) 12-18m
• shoes (size 3 or 4) - she is in the cruiser/walker shoes at the moment
• toys 
• Baby Signing Time DVD set
• books
• Each Little Dewdrop CD
• Sing Praises CD
• One Voice Kids CD
• quiet toys or books to play with in church
• BumGenius one-size cloth diapers
• anything California Baby
• anything eco-friendly or green; we're trendy like that ;)

And please, be a dear and R.S.V.P. por favor! ;)


And now, your reward:

  

helping with the cloth diaper laundry*:

I'm done!

*It appears Mia had a "case of the Mondays" during the laundry sorting because she was a bit grumpy. Here's hoping a morning nap will cure that.

This is not an April Fool's Joke!

Remember that smokin' hot blog entry I wrote about cloth diapers?  The Cloth Diaper Whisperer is doing a major giveaway today on 9 one-size diapers.  Insane in the membrane.  So far I've tweeted 3 times to give myself at least 3 entries, and I've commented 3-4 times on the blog.  Now I'm just trying to remember 9 friends whom I've told about cloth diapers to and WHEN.  I feel like I do that all the time!

Anyway, the reason this giveaway is so rad is that the diapers they are giving away are great and some of my favorite (i.e., BumGenius!).  Here's the stash:

• 3-bumGenius One Size 3.0 diapers
• 1-Flip One Size Stay Dry System
• 1-Flip One Size Organic System
• 1-FuzziBunz One Size Diaper
• 1-Gro Baby One Size Shell Set
• 1-Econobum One Size Diaper
• 1-Rump-a-rooz One Size Diaper

I have to confess, I haven't tried Gro Baby, Econobum or Rump-a-rooz, but one of the things that is great about cloth diapers is that if one doesn't work for you, it may for someone else, and you can easily swap, sell or trade your diapers online or "in the real world," if you're still into that sort of thing ;)

Also, I think one-size diapers are great because they grow with your baby.  Initially, we started with Fuzzibunz small-size diapers, but Mia's growing out of them now and so we need more diapers to replace those and the mediums do not fit her just right yet.  So, with one-size, you just adjust the snaps or velcro and they still fit snug and tight and no need to replace!

You should check it out.

PS: Mia is napping without a fight this morning.  *Sigh*  What a relief...we'll just see how the afternoon goes now.

All About Cloth Diapering

This is the second installment in our series of "how we do things" around here. I first spoke about "Exclusive Pumping" a few weeks ago, and today I tackle the hefty subject of cloth diapering.

First of all, let me spell out a few truths about me & cloth diapering:

1. Cloth diapering is not a life or death thing. While I'm a huge fan of cloth diapering, I'm not so adamant that you must cloth diaper that I will judge you if we don't. I'll let you in on a little secret: Even though we cloth diaper almost 100% of the time, we still use disposables every now and then (gasp!!), and I'll later explain why. [Cloth diapering may hereafter be referred to as "CD".]
2. I'd still consider myself a student of CD. I'm not a know-it-all expert, nor do I want to pose as one, because there are still things I'm figuring out myself and as I post this, I know others will have suggestions or lessons learned they might want to share. But as I have learned, when you start something new, you usually learn a LOT all at once, and you can kind of become a semi-expert in no time. Or at least learn the lingo, concepts, practices, etc., pretty quickly--enough to get by.
3. Cloth diapering is just cute. (Note lil' 5 month old Mia in her apple green Fuzzibunz below!) Plain and simple. People may think CD is gross ("ewww, what do you do with all that poo??!") but, you do the same thing with the poo that you'd do with disposables--or at least, what you're supposed to do: toss it!

   From The Ciampa Channel

So, as succinctly as only I know how ;) here's my spiel on the world of cloth diapers:

There are a lot of reasons to cloth diaper. You can google "why cloth diapers" and you'll find loads of results. I think Diaper Safari summed it nicely. If you're looking for a cost-effective, eco-friendly, healthy & safe alternative to disposables, cloth is the way to go. It's cost-effective because in the long run, you spend less to purchase a good set of cloth diapers, wash and maintain them, than you do by purchasing packages of disposables regularly. It's eco-friendly because it cuts down on the waste sent to landfills, which can take hundreds of years to decompose, and the energy spent washing the diapers still has less of an impact on your carbon footprint than disposables. It's healthy & safe because cloth diapers do not contain the same chemicals in many popular disposable diaper brands. Doesn't it seem like there's a new health scare everyday about dangerous environmental toxins? Using cloth diapers is one way you can rest assured you are reducing your little one's chemical exposure. (That was a big reason for us. I may not be able to protect Mia from every dangerous or synthetic chemical but I can do one small part!)

Now that you know some of the reasons many cloth diaper, how do you do it?

Well first of all, it's helpful to know there are a few different ways to cloth diaper. Aside from the fact that some parents CD full-time or just part-time (e.g., perhaps a child is in childcare and the center only uses disposable, but the parents use CD at night), there are also a few different kinds of cloth diapers:

• prefolds & covers - a 2 piece diaper system
• pocket diapers - a 2 piece diaper system
• all-in-ones (AIOs) - a 1 piece diaper system (as the name implies!)

Prefolds & Covers are the most inexpensive route.

Prefolds are most likely what your mom or grandmother used for CD.
You just add a little cover to your baby's bum, and you're done! The cover prevents leaks.

(from Kelly's Closet Kushie's Washable Prefolds)

(From Kelly's Closet Thirsties Duo Wrap Cover)

Pocket diapers are some of the most popular cloth diaper systems, and the kind I'm most familiar with. We use brands like Fuzzibunz, BumGenius, and some Smartipants, and I have friends who use Happy Heinys as well.

(From Kelly's Closet Fuzzi Bunz Pocket Diaper)

Pocket diapers have an outer waterproof cover with a pocket where you insert an absorbent fluffy material, the "insert," that soaks up all the leaks. Some brands make various sizes to fit your baby as he/she grows, and some have one-size diapers with adjustable snaps so you can, as the name suggests, adjust the size of the diaper to your growing baby.

I have got to hand it to BumGenius; they are currently our favorite pocket diaper and the only one we use overnight!

All-in-Ones are the easiest to use as there is only one piece and no pocket, prefold, or cover to mess with. They can be a bit more expensive route and sometimes take longer to dry, but there's no searching for the missing insert or wondering which piece goes with what.

(From Kelly's Closet BumGenius Organic All-in-One)

How many cloth diapers do I need?
How many diapers you need is somewhat of a personal choice and can depend on the kind (prefolds, pockets or AIOs). Some mommas want the minimum amount possible to save on money, which will require more washing. This would probably be in the range of 12-18 diapers, where you wash every 1 to 1.5 days. If you can afford it, I'd recommend anywhere from 20-30, so that you can wash every 2-3 days. Taking longer than 3 days to wash can result in stinky smelly buildup, which no one wants to deal with!

How do I cloth diaper when I'm out for the day?

Just pack as many cloth diapers as you think you'll need, and make sure you get a travel wet bag. I received a free wetbag when I made a purchase at an online diaper store, and I love it! I just put the soiled diapers in the wet bag, and when I get home and am ready to wash all my diapers, I unzip the bag, toss it in the wash with all the other diapers, and voila! they're good to go. I don't have to worry about any smells or leaks into my diaper bag.

How do I take care of them?
This is the question with which I'm still experimenting. There are many ways mommas take care of their cloth diapers. Some change their baby, toss the stinkies in the toilet (or use a diaper sprayer for the waste that is hard to just toss off), and toss the diaper into a pail with a liner, or a bag specifically for cloth diapers (which is what we currently use). When it's time to wash, you take the bag, invert into your washer so you don't have to touch all the soiled diapers, and then follow these general suggestions:

• cold rinse
• hot wash using about 1/2 recommended amount of detergent
• cold rinse
• tumble dry low or hang to dry

Hanging or laying your diapers outside is also a free & natural disinfectant and bleacher. The sun's rays often will lift ugly stains from your diapers, thus naturally bleaching them!

What detergents?
You want to avoid baby detergents or free & clear detergents as they can cause buildup on your diapers, which will result in their working less effectively (think: leaks, smells, gross!).

These are the generally recommended detergents:
Allens Naturally; Tide (the regular kind); Arm & Hammer Sensitive Skin; Charlie's Soap; Country Save; Planet Ultra; Oxy Prime; Sun Free; Rockin' Green Cloth Diaper Detergent.
Many of my friends just use Tide and find it totally fine.

If you do find your diapers are smelly or have build-up, there are a lot of troubleshooting options as listed on Jack's Magic Beanstalk, but "stripping" your diapers by washing them a few times in the hottest water cycle, or adding a squirt of Dawn dish detergent, or adding a few drops of Tea Tree Oil or Grapeseed Extract can often help. Consult your diaper's manufacturer if you have specific questions; sometimes there are "no-nos" on how to care for your diapers and you do not want to void the warranty if you can help it!

When can I start?

Anytime! We did not start cloth diapering Mia until she was a little over 3 months, as I was still researching it and wanted to make the right investment, but, if you have the diapers that fit your baby, many start soon after birth (within the first month). Even if you did not CD with your first child, you can still save money and CD additional children. I had a friend who started CD her 1.5 year old just at night and uses disposables at daycare. So, "one-size [does] not fit all" in this department--it's totally up to you!

Now...where to buy!!?

So many options for that as well!
You can search locally first, to see if there's a shop or an individual who sells cloth diapers. In Tampa, there is DNADiapers, run by Angela.
Online, there are lots of stores. I and my friends have used and/or like:

• Kelly's Closet (my personal fav) - they have lots of deals, coupon codes, promotions, and a very helpful blog for a CD newbie (The Cloth Diaper Whisperer)
• Diaperco.com
• Diapers.com
• DiaperSwappers.com (you can buy, sell or trade your diapers with other mommas)

or just go straight to the manufacturer's website!

And oh yeah, when we do not use cloth diapers:

You can, and many people are brave enough to, but we have not used cloth diapers when we travel, especially by plane. It's more to pack and keep up with (and wash) while you are away and sometimes we cannot deal with the extra hassle. There are some great disposable diaper brands that have safer ingredients, like Seventh Generation or Earth's Best. Huggies also has a Pure & Natural line, which is often the easiest brand to find at most retailers (compared to Earth's Best or Seventh Generation). We still use the regular brands from time to time as they are great at preventing leaks and you can almost always find them at the store, but if you're looking for something more in line with your cloth diapering mindset, I'd recommend the brands I just listed.

Extras:
Great, concise information & troubleshooting for common problems :
Jack's Magic Beanstalk

My friend Sarah Moran's article for the Minneapolis Star Tribune on Cloth Diapers!

So, do you use cloth diapers? Why or why not? Do you have questions that I did not answer? Or, what are some tricks you've learned along the way that make it a lot easier? Or how do you use them differently? I'd love to hear your responses so please share!

a sneak peak

While Greg surmises his thoughts about our trip I thought I'd give you all a little teaser about something else...

In my corner of the world, I occasionally receive questions about certain atypical things that I do as a person or a mom, mostly related to mothering. It usually starts off along the lines of a well-meaning question, "What prompted you to choose ___?"

Since I have been asked about a few things in particular of late, I've decided to dedicate a few posts to these topics that may be helpful whether the reader is a parent or not -- who knows, you may be sitting in my shoes one day and think, "Man, I'm really glad Megan posted about _____ that one time." I'd like my shoes back though when you are done with them. Anyway, if you're really not interested in the topic, feel free to skip right over it. I'm sure there will be tons of other entries as we go along filled with pictures of Mia the Bambina growing up all big 'n stuff.

Posts you can anticipate in hopefully the near future:
About Cloth Diapering
About Natural Childbirth
About Feeding - EP style

Makes me sound of kooky, doesn't it? Well before you think I'm totally crazy let me just tell you flat-out that I don't try to be one or the other when it comes to parenting. I'd like to think I'm "eclectic". There are lots of way to do things and I do not submit that my ways are better OR that there is only one way to do diapering, childbirth, or feeding, what have you. Rather, these are situations we as a family have come to where we've made a choice often times based on a preexisting condition or preference, and we chose what seemed best or made the most sense for us at the time, and I always try to leave the door open if a change needs to be made. I will discuss some of these specifics when I write about each subject. But stay tuned...it could get interesting!

Things I love

I've probably started posts like these dozens of times and never finished them, because I'm not sure what direction they'll ultimately end up taking, but I'm in one of those moods where I feel like gushing. So with no further adieu, the most up to date random compilation of things I currently love:

Cloth Diapers. Call me a weirdy, but I love them. We use pocket diapers like Fuzzibunz, Bum Genius and Smartipants. Do the names alone just not appeal to you? They're really quite simple to use, not as gross as people may think, and a 'snap' to take care of. We don't use diaper pins or anything that might pinch or stick Mia. The diapers stay together with snaps or velcro tabs and are colorful and give her booty nice padding.

Here, Mia is modeling a yellow Fuzzibunz circa Halloween 2009.

Little barrettes and bows in Mia's hair. I've found a bowmaker online from whom I've bought several custom made bows. Mia's sporting enough hair now that they'll stay put and it's fun to accessorize her outfits.

Here she is sporting her skulls & crossbones bow, looking very rough and tough. She wore this last Sunday when the Vikings beat...whoever they were playing. It's light purple to boot.

Colors. I love the colors of purple, green, yellow and orange on her. She has plenty of pink, and I do like that as well, but I find the other colors more interesting. A lovely shade of turquoise or teal are quite charming on her skin tone.

This flows into my love of babylegs and cute hats as well. Here, Mia is showing off a combination of both!



And furthermore, I love the website Baby Steals. They have so many amazing deals on there! That is where I've gotten Mia's baby legs, that cute little purple hat, teething bling (cute jewelry your baby can safely chew on!) and a few other things. Basically, I realized I have a short window of time that I can let my creativity be expressed through Mia's style. It probably won't be all that long when she puts her foot down and says, "NO! I don't want to wear that!" or, "I don't like that color!" but for now...Mia is dressing how I'd like to dress if I were a delicious little 8 month old.