I have failed at this twice. Can you all help me talk through my sinking points?

[DeChRi]

With DD1 I wanted to cloth diaper. I was 20, we didn't have a washing machine, I was in school, and it just got away from me fast. DH was very not on board. With DD2 I was 29, DH2 was game for whatever I wanted to do, but I failed again. I was working full time, DD2 had a nanny here, then was at daycare, i was so strung out that I just couldnt handle it. I quit my job when DD2 was 22 months, started trying to cloth diaper her then, but she was on her way out of daipers in general so I punted it. I am now expecting DD3 this May and would really like to give it a shot.

I FULLY admit that I never had the info and prep to "do it right". I think I kind of set myself up for failure. I am hoping I can get some encouragement. I have a few "sticking points" but am hoping some of them are lack of education are my part.

-I will be changing more diapers, right? Because cloth does not lock the moisture away? Do I need to change with every pee? And isn't that a TON with newborns??
-With DD2 I had cloth diapers leak alllll the time. Did I have them on poorly or are cloth more likely to leak than sposies?
-When you go out and about and change a diaper, where do you stick the dirty one? (this may be a dumb question, lol)
-So baby poops....what is the protocal? I remember my mom cloth diapering kiddos when I was little and there was washing in toilet and horribly smelly diaper pails and such. How do you manage the actual process?

I am really bad with laundry keep up. I am really bad with remembering to dring in diaper bags from the car. I just picture wet cloth diapers sitting in a forgotten diaper bag.

Honestly, I am not sure I can handle it. Sposies seem soooo much easier. DH and I are pretty sickened by the amount of waste we create with diapers though. I am home this time and besides the fact that my 2yo is the most high needs human I have been around, I think life is at a point I can swing it.

But I have failed twice. Anyone had practical advice on the technicals of how to manage it?

[ExuberantDaffodil]

-I will be changing more diapers, right? Because cloth does not lock the moisture away? Do I need to change with every pee? And isn't that a TON with newborns??
I change with almost every pee, if I catch it. I don't like her sitting in pee, cloth or disposable. And yes, we do a lot of diaper changes around here. That said, some times of cloth do wick moisture away from the baby so that the dry feeling lasts longer.

-With DD2 I had cloth diapers leak alllll the time. Did I have them on poorly or are cloth more likely to leak than sposies?
It all depends on the type, fit and care. A properly fitting diaper, cloth or disposable, shouldn't leak. I rarely have leaks, and I attribute that to having found diapers and covers that work well for us. ANd I try to take good care of them. I've had a few leaks here or there in cloth, but I've had lots of blow-out poop leaks in disposables.

-When you go out and about and change a diaper, where do you stick the dirty one? (this may be a dumb question, lol)
Some people have wet bags. I personally re-use plastic grocery bags that I stuff down in the diaper bag. I always bring my diaper bag back in the house and when I go to refill it with diapers, I put the dirty ones in the diaper pail. That way I don't leave them in the car or something.

-So baby poops....what is the protocal? I remember my mom cloth diapering kiddos when I was little and there was washing in toilet and horribly smelly diaper pails and such. How do you manage the actual process?
EBF poop -- I just dump the diaper in the pail. I don't rinse or spray or dunk. Everything comes off and dissolves and gets clean in the wash on a cold rinse, hot wash, cold rinse. Solid food poo, I used fleece liners and shook poop out over the toilet and flushed. I plan on doing that again when my new one starts solids, and I might even branch out and get a diaper sprayer.

[Juliacat]

It's better to change with every pee regardless of what kind of diaper you're using--it's better for the baby's skin. That said, no, you don't need to do it in order to prevent leaking. Just make sure you have an absorbent enough diaper (this will depend on your baby's wetting habits) and a really good cover (Mother-ease, Proraps, Dappi nylon pull-on are a few examples).

When out, you can stick the used diapers in a wet bag (Bummis makes good ones) or use a plastic grocery sack.

When baby poops, I spray distilled water on her bottom, wipe it with a washcloth, and toss everything into the pail. When she starts solids and her poop starts getting gross, I will spray it off into the toilet using my handy-dandy minishower. This is a lot less gross than dunking, scraping, etc. I've never had a problem with diaper pail odor--I actually think this would be worse with disposables since you would have to be constantly taking them out, and disposables stink even when they're clean, so....

I think diaper laundry is fun. I look forward to it.

[DeChRi]

Thanks for the advice mamas. I am probably one of the least anal mamas you will meet about changing after every pee, for no better reason than both my kids have had insanely durable skin. 2 kids through diapers and honestly, never a single diaper rash. So I take that a bit for granted.

Thanks so much for all of the wisdom. Taking notes!

[thefreckledmama]

You can do it!!!

Our youngest, also a third child, was the first we cloth diapered. I wanted to start when our second was a toddler, but didn't feel like it was worth it with her being so close to potty training.

I started out doing what you're doing,...asking around, finding out what I could to get off to a successful start. In my mind, it was better to start out as affordable as possible, so if we did decide to scrap CDing, we weren't out a huge investment.

I began with 2 dozen infant prefolds, a bunch of pins, 5 prowraps, and 24 wipes. Better would have been 30 prefolds, and 40 or so wipes (at least-I've learned you really can't have too many wipes). One we realized we were going to stick with it, we started incorporating some fitteds, and eventually some pockets and all-in-ones; as well as wool covers.

Yes, you will need to change the baby more often than with sposies-but like Juliacat said, they should be anyway, regardless of the type of diaper being worn. True newborns pee often, but it's also a very small amount, so I found we were able to get away with letting them go for a while, without leaving them wet and uncomfortable. The absorbency of the diaper(s) you choose will also have a lot to do with how often to change.

I honestly have never had a leak in a properly prepped (therefore fully absorbent) diaper, and as for poop explosions...well, I had many more in sposies than I ever did in cloth. A good cover is also your back up for a potentially leaky diaper.

When we started CDing, I had one of those nifty free diaper bags from the hospital. Mine was a "breastfeeding" bag (from a formula company), and it had a waterproof, insulated pocket for keeping breastmilk in. I put the wet and dirty diapers there, because I could wipe/wash it out once we got home, and I didn't need to buy anything special. When that bag started falling apart, I bought a wetbag. I really liked it, but misplaced it a while back, and now use plastic shopping bags if we go out.

Breastfed poo is the easiest to deal with in cloth, you don't have to do anything. It was a little of a bummer when she started solids, and I actually had to start thinking about what I was going to do with the poo, which pretty much amounted to shaking out what I could, and if a lot was left behind, dunking and wringing it out. You don't need it for a while, but you should invest with a diaper sprayer/minishower, I wish I had one, and definitely see the value in having one.

I've been known to forget about a diaper for a day or two in the car (or until it starts smelling), and have had no long term damage or issues from it-sunning them gets rid of all sorts of stains.

For a diaper pail, we use a pop up lid trashcan from Walmart. When I throw the diapers in to be washed, I spray it with cleaner (I use GreenWorks for everything around the house), and then rinse it out with hot water. I've never bothered with a pail liner, and haven't really ever felt the need.

I know it sounds like a hassle, but it's really, really not. It's just a matter of finding your "groove". I wash an average of 2x a week, so it's not really a big deal, and it is a lot of fun to play around with all the different diapering options out there.

[mambera]

I will be changing more diapers, right? Because cloth does not lock the moisture away? Do I need to change with every pee?

Depends on your diaper. I understand prefolds need to be changed with every pee (I've never tried them). There are many alternative diapers out there with better absorbency though. My diapers have a dry-touch top layer that does 'lock the moisture away' so DD always feels dry.

I do not change with every pee bc she pees every 10-20 minutes (I know this bc we do a lot of diaper-free time around here). I just change every 2 h for wet-only, or immediately for poopy.

With DD2 I had cloth diapers leak alllll the time. Did I have them on poorly or are cloth more likely to leak than sposies?

I think cloth hold poop in better but sposies hold pee in better. That said, we had tons of leaks in the beginning before our diapers were fully prepped. Now we rarely have leaks.

When you go out and about and change a diaper, where do you stick the dirty one?

In a travel-size zippered wetbag.

So baby poops....what is the protocal? I remember my mom cloth diapering kiddos when I was little and there was washing in toilet and horribly smelly diaper pails and such. How do you manage the actual process?

EBF poo I just dumped the dirty insert directly in the washer. Cold prerinse takes care of it.
Solid poo usually shakes off easily into the toilet. If stuck I'll use my squirt bottle from the hospital to encourage it off. Dry pail, no soaking. No stink problems.

I am really bad with laundry keep up. I am really bad with remembering to dring in diaper bags from the car. I just picture wet cloth diapers sitting in a forgotten diaper bag.
Dunno what to say about this!! Yeah, bad idea to leave dirty diapers in the car!

Honestly, I am not sure I can handle it. Sposies seem soooo much easier.
Bizarrely, I have actually found cloth easier. Mainly bc I do not have to go to the store for diapers all the time, and I don't have to deal with taking out smelly bags of trash. Leaving the house with a baby is such a Project - it is so much easier to just throw in a load of laundry when diapers run low.