Want to give me a cloth diapering pep talk? :)

[MakingHome]

Hello ladies, 

I'm a newbie here, just found out I'm pregnant with our 6th baby.  :)

I have a nice stash of cloth dipes-- kissaluvs, pocket dipes, hemp inserts, Chinese prefolds, Imse Vimse covers (which I loved!!!) and more.

I used them with dd, from when she was 10 mos old until she potty trained around 2.  Then I used them with ds(#4) until he was about a year old.  I tried them with ds #5 and couldn't even make it past about 6 diapers.  I don't know why but just the sheer exhaustion, I guess.  So much to do... homeschooling, regular cleaning/meals/laundry/etc., spending time with the kiddos, nursing the new baby, etc., trying to get sleep, that I just didn't even want to "go there".  It just seemed like more work & I remember being icked out that time around by the actual dealing with the poop.

So, just a few weeks ago, I put together a list of all my dipes and started poking around diaperswappers.com thinking that maybe I'd sell them... but then we turned out pregnant.  :)  LOL

So now I'm second guessing myself.  Would you want to give me your best "why cloth diaper", or "why I should give it another whirl with baby #6" pep-talk?  :)  I'd love you for it.  I definitely want to think through everything WELL before I decide to sell, and then end up regretting it.  I did love it with dd and even with ds #4, feeling like I was giving him a great start, plus he just looked so doggone cute with those puffy bottoms.  :)

OK, TIA for any pep talks!!! :)

[Adaline'sMama]

C'mon, you already have all the stuff, and you've come this far.....plus, you are already doing a ridiculous amount of laundry- whats a couple more loads?



That's about it all Ive got. 6 kids is a lot. I'm not going to lie, Id probably use disposables if I could afford to.

[MakingHome]

Originally Posted by Adaline'sMama 

C'mon, you already have all the stuff, and you've come this far.....plus, you are already doing a ridiculous amount of laundry- whats a couple more loads?
That's about it all Ive got. 6 kids is a lot. I'm not going to lie, Id probably use disposables if I could afford to.

LOL, thanks for the honest pep talk.  You made me smile.  :)

[fruitfulmomma]

We are about to have our 6th too... I didn't cd the first two and it was really expensive to always be buying diapers. I was bored last night and did some calculations and if I had/did use disposables on all of my children, for only two years each, it would have cost us $11,000 just for the diapers!!!

If you have the money for disposables, you could get a jar and instead of buying them, put the money away for something else you want.

[skycheattraffic]

First, bf poop is water soluble so you don't have to deal with it so much for the first six months :-) then your LO will be more aware of being wet in cloth so PT will be easier. Diaper laundry could be one thing to delegate to DH so he can help more with the new addition. Um .... save up the money you'd spend on sposies and take your brood on vacation :-).


I have one LO so six is a different story altogether but I wish I started CD at birth instead of twelve months. I love the feeling of fresh, fluffy, clean diaps straight out of the dryer. It's a special time with my DD: I stuff my pockets, fold my flats and fitteds and 15ish month old DD puts them in a basket one by one :-). I'm a newbie to CD but I love, love, LOVE them. One of my favourite pastimes is trolling for new diaps. It's beating out looking at houses lol.

Ok so not so much pep talk as I'm hoping my excitement might rub off on you ;-). If you pair CD with some part time EC, you'd be surprised just how little poop you'd have to deal with ;-)

[MakingHome]

Originally Posted by skycheattraffic 

First, bf poop is water soluble so you don't have to deal with it so much for the first six months :-) 

Yeah, but what does that mean in practice?  Do you just throw yours in the washer or what?  Cause we always ri

 Diaper laundry could be one thing to delegate to DH so he can help more with the new addition. 

Yeah, he used to do that, so I'm sure he'd be willing to give it another go if I'm up for it.  Last time it was me and my bionic nose and just honestly not. wanting. to. mess. with. it. It was all me. He would've kept going, but I was just DONE.

I have one LO so six is a different story altogether but I wish I started CD at birth instead of twelve months. I love the feeling of fresh, fluffy, clean diaps straight out of the dryer. It's a special time with my DD: I stuff my pockets, fold my flats and fitteds and 15ish month old DD puts them in a basket one by one :-). I'm a newbie to CD but I love, love, LOVE them. One of my favourite pastimes is trolling for new diaps. It's beating out looking at houses lol.
Ok so not so much pep talk as I'm hoping my excitement might rub off on you ;-). If you pair CD with some part time EC, you'd be surprised just how little poop you'd have to deal with ;-)

This part was good- it did remind me of how much I love the process of CDing.  I love the folding, putting away, seeing it on their little bottoms, etc.  It's just the actually smelling the urine smell while you wait for enough to make a washing machine load that icks me out.  But the process is totally great; thanks for reminding me of that.

[nicolecatalan]

Maybe some guilt will help.

I just read this the other day... 

Disposable diapers take 550 years to decompose!!! 

How many diapers have you thrown away with your 5 kids? 

Do mother earth a favor and cloth diaper your baby :)

or if you really cant do that extra laundry load try those compostable diapers:

http://www.amazon.com/Broody-Chick-Natural-Compostable-Diapers/dp/B003GS0AWQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1340424264&sr=8-1&keywords=compostable+diapers

Gro-Via and G-diapers have a system that has flushable and cloth liners so you can do both:

http://www.amazon.com/gDiapers-Biodegradable-Diapers-Refills-Small/dp/B0019ID6G2/ref=pd_sbs_hpc_6

http://www.amazon.com/GroVia-BioSoaker-50-Count/dp/B003WSBNSU/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1340425065&sr=8-6&keywords=gro+via

Or maybe there is a Compostable diaper service?

http://www.earth-baby.com/home.php

[skycheattraffic]

Hi MakingHome. I'm writing on my phone so quoting isn't working. I'll try to refer to parts of your reply instead.

1: EBF poop: from what I've read on this and other forums, yes, the poop can go right in the washer. I don't have much experience with it since I started so late but maybe other moms could confirm.

2: the smell: I actually find that DD smells way worse in sposies! She still nurses lots and drinks a TON of water but when she is in a sposie (I have a few left from our last box) I can definitely pick up an ammonia smell once I open up the diap. With cloth, I don't smell it nearly as much, especially if using wool covers. Once cloth diaps sit for a day or more, then I definitely smell them though. We have a large wetbag in a tall garbage bin and after a day I start closing the drawstring. That works well. I have a small stash (about 26 diaps) so at the very least I do a load once every other day - no time to really stink up the joint. A good system of dealing with the diaps right away should help your bionic nose. I also recall reading about using some natural but effective ways to combat the stink of a growing load. I just close the drawstring ;-). I recall being really sensitive to odours but luckily for me it was over very soon after giving birth. Honestly, the diapers are NOTHING compared to the gas this LO let's rip. she LOVES her broccoli.... Like I could ever discourage that lol.

You could also wait a few weeks until things settle down before going cloth. Maybe it was the craziness of finding a routine with a new addition while taking care of your older kids that made CD more daunting in the past. And you can always have a few sposies on hand for when needed for your sanity and use cloth most or some of the time. Good luck! :-)

[MakingHome]

Originally Posted by nicolecatalan 

Maybe some guilt will help.

I just read this the other day... 

Disposable diapers take 550 years to decompose!!! 

How many diapers have you thrown away with your 5 kids? 

Do mother earth a favor and cloth diaper your baby :)

or if you really cant do that extra laundry load try those compostable diapers:

http://www.amazon.com/Broody-Chick-Natural-Compostable-Diapers/dp/B003GS0AWQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1340424264&sr=8-1&keywords=compostable+diapers

Gro-Via and G-diapers have a system that has flushable and cloth liners so you can do both:

http://www.amazon.com/gDiapers-Biodegradable-Diapers-Refills-Small/dp/B0019ID6G2/ref=pd_sbs_hpc_6

http://www.amazon.com/GroVia-BioSoaker-50-Count/dp/B003WSBNSU/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1340425065&sr=8-6&keywords=gro+via

Or maybe there is a Compostable diaper service?

http://www.earth-baby.com/home.php

LOL, thanks for the attempted guilt trip.  Health reasons for the baby & cost savings are more the reasons why I would be motivated, but I'm always glad for the chance to be a good steward of God's earth.

Edited by MakingHome - 6/23/12 at 6:33am

[MakingHome]

Originally Posted by skycheattraffic 

Hi MakingHome. I'm writing on my phone so quoting isn't working. I'll try to refer to parts of your reply instead.
1: EBF poop: from what I've read on this and other forums, yes, the poop can go right in the washer. I don't have much experience with it since I started so late but maybe other moms could confirm.

This is interesting; I'd definitely like to hear more about this... particularly, does it contribute to staining, because right now almost all of our CDs are still stain-free from sunbleaching and careful, quick washing.  We do use a big waterproof bag to hold them for the 36 hours or so until a load "makes", but because I let dh deal with it, I'd just pile up the poopy diapers in a spot in the bathroom or something, waiting for him to clean them out, and that pile just smelled so gross.  That's probably another problem.  Now that we live in the US, maybe I can see about getting a smaller waterproof bag to hold those dipes until he can get to them.  

...

You could also wait a few weeks until things settle down before going cloth. Maybe it was the craziness of finding a routine with a new addition while taking care of your older kids that made CD more daunting in the past. And you can always have a few sposies on hand for when needed for your sanity and use cloth most or some of the time. Good luck! :-)

This is a good suggestion, and you may have pinpointed the problem.  I think it was too much- at the time, we lived overseas, and we were hosting my parents for a week and doing all the normal stuff with a newborn, so it likely WAS the craziness.  Thanks for helping me think through this.  I think I'll consider doing this- give myself freedom to go ahead and ease into it, deciding when to start, rather than starting and feeling frustrated about it.

[chel]

I worked it out that big sis was paid a quarter for each diaper change. Not sure with your oldest being boys if they are as baby crazy as all the preteen girls hanging out at my house.
I like how it helped with the bonding, especially since I have such an age gap, even if I did have to pay.

I used prefold to make laundry as uncomplicated as possible. Could your stash be too "difficult"? Was is just too time consuming, or did you have problems.

I also agree with no rinsing of nb diapers before solids are started. Though my youngest had diapers that smelled like pretzels. we'd be at the mall and pass the pretzel place and oldest dd and I would turn to eachother and say " baby must have pooped" do a quick butt check and laugh as we would soon pass the pretzel place.

[MakingHome]

Originally Posted by chel 

I worked it out that big sis was paid a quarter for each diaper change. Not sure with your oldest being boys if they are as baby crazy as all the preteen girls hanging out at my house.
I like how it helped with the bonding, especially since I have such an age gap, even if I did have to pay.
I used prefold to make laundry as uncomplicated as possible. Could your stash be too "difficult"? Was is just too time consuming, or did you have problems.
I also agree with no rinsing of nb diapers before solids are started. Though my youngest had diapers that smelled like pretzels. we'd be at the mall and pass the pretzel place and oldest dd and I would turn to eachother and say " baby must have pooped" do a quick butt check and laugh as we would soon pass the pretzel place.

Ds9-almost-10 will change a wet diaper occasionally now, but definitely has nothing to do with poopy ones, LOL.  They are all very helpful and I am sure dd6 with as baby-crazy as she is would be delighted to be my go-to-baby-diaper-organizer (as in, keeping them folded and stacked nicely).  

I don't think I had any problems with the actual stash-- I liked the prefolds & especially love my kissaluvs- so easy & cute.  I prob do need to invest in some more of the good-quality covers, but aside from that, I don't think there were any issues with difficulty.

[Choose2Reuse]

You should give 'em a try because:

--It's way more trouble to stick 6 kids in a car and drive to the store (oh lord, I can't even imagine!) than to stick a load in the washer.

--Poo is icky no matter what.

--Sposies have that weird chemically smell.  My DH says it reminds him of meconium.  Nuff said!

--Those cloth diaper bottoms are so dang cute.  Plus, I swear it helps the baby balance when sitting up to have that huge bottom base!

--Less guilt!

Possibly you could get one of those snazzy spray things that attach to your toilet so you can spray off the poop?  Then you don't even have to swish the diapers in the toilet!  (Forget what they're called, but Green Mountain Diapers sells them, and I want one. :) )
 

[katt]

CD'd from the start here, and yes, we just tossed the 'pre-solids' poo diapers in the wash.  All was good.  There may have been one or two with staining, but some sunny days took care of that.

DH had a 'wet-bag' system for the first few days when he did laundry exclusively (he let me rest and recover) he had a larger sterilite or tupperware tub with some water in it for the diapers and then they went into the wash.  As soon as I took over laundry, I just dumped the wet-bag of dirties into the washer.

Why would you want to put those super cute kissaluvs in time out?  why?

We have a diaper sprayer.  DH never put it up.  Maybe this time around he will.  But, i've heard great things!

Baring that, we bought a spatula for the bathroom and used that to scrape the poop off the best we could and then just tossed it in the wash.  The worst thing was grape and blueberry skins.

I know lots of people who choose to used 'sposies in the beginning.  Nothing wrong with that.  

[MakingHome]

Originally Posted by katt 

Why would you want to put those super cute kissaluvs in time out?  why?

:)  This made me laugh.  They really are super cute. :)

Originally Posted by katt 
we bought a spatula for the bathroom and used that to scrape the poop off the best we could and then just tossed it in the wash.  

This is a great, simple idea-- thanks!

[AdinaL]

I'm coming up on #2 and had that same moment of....oh, wow, this seems like a lot of work this time around. LOL

But, I'm doing it. 

Here's why:

#1. Already have everything I need to go from newborn to potty training. (no $$ spent)

#2. I really did prefer them to sposies, smell and feeling and trash.

#3. It isn't as hard as my brain (or other folks) make it out to be.  We didn't soak or anything until we started solids, and even after that we just sprayed the wipe off and tossed it in the pail.  

#4. IN the grand scheme of things, one more load of hot laundry/day isn't that much, and in the beginning I am using cloth pads until I stop bleeding so I wash those pretty frequently as well.

I will say that some things that might make it easier: a sprayer hooked to your toilet.  This made things infinitely much easier.  I hated soaking in a wet pail - just too gross.  But spraying the dipes off and tossing them in the pail cuts down on odors and makes washing easier.

Make sure you have a good pail.  Good size, closes well, easy to maneuver.  What that is for you will be different than everyone else I have found.  A good liner (well two actually) will help you always feel like you are ready to go. Pull the liner out with the dipes, take to wash, put in new liner and all set....:)

Think about simplifying what you have if it feels like too much. Some people really get overwhelmed with refolds and covers.  Some people find pockets too fussy.  Me, I love the Kissaluvs and soakers for the beginning, but move to fuzzibunz after that.  So, if you need to do a bit of revamping, do that!  If you love the dipes you are more likely to use them. :)

[Choose2Reuse]

Forgot to add a reason:  cloth pads are soooooooo much more comfortable than disposable ones that I feel guilty if I make my DD wear sposies instead of cloth diapers!  (I used sposies till the meconium went away, though.  There are limits!)
 

[MakingHome]

Originally Posted by Choose2Reuse 

Forgot to add a reason:  cloth pads are soooooooo much more comfortable than disposable ones that I feel guilty if I make my DD wear sposies instead of cloth diapers!  (I used sposies till the meconium went away, though.  There are limits!)
 

Ouch!  Now THAT is a good point.  Cloth pads ARE way way way way way more comfy than disposables.  That makes such good sense & is a good kick in the pants.  Thank you.

[Gooseberry]

We used cloth from birth with both of our girls. (Well, a day or so in after the hospital supply ran out and the meconium was gone.)  Our procedure is simple.  EBF poops go straight in the pail.  Solids poop gets sprayed with our toilet attachment-thingy (a good investment that we just recently acquired).  We wash on cold.  One time.  (I don't know what stripping is that I see some people talking about with diapers.)  Some of ours are a little stained.  I don't really care.  Who sees that part?  I care much more about stains on their shirts.  Our diaper pail is just a plastic garbage can with a pop-up lid, which we line with a mesh laundry bag.  We have two of those, so the dirty one goes into the wash load and the pail gets re-lined.  I too HATE the smell of disposable diapers.  This does not mean that our diaper pail doesn't smell, it does, but I think it's a personal preference thing. (Any dog owners out there "prefer" to pick up warm poop in a plastic bag over cold poop?  It's poop, shouldn't all experiences  be equally gross?)  There are some really nasty chemicals in disposable diapers and pads.  I wasn't paying much attention to my cycle one month and needed to buy pads on vacation.  I could smell some awful chemical smell in the pads from more than a foot away.  And disposables are REALLY awful for the environment.  I'd suggest buying a digital copy of the Mothering article by Jennifer Margulis, "The Diaper Dilemma".  It's a wonderful article (she's a wonderful journalist).  Good luck!

[MakingHome]

OK I decided this morning to bust out my stash to practice on ds-almost-2 for a while before the baby comes.  He leaked straight through that Bum Genius in no time flat.  Ugh!  So there I was changing his whole outfit in the parking lot of Ross, after seeing pee dribble down the shopping cart into a puddle on the floor- that's how wet he was folks- it had been less than an hour since I put it on him... through the stuffed diaper, through the shorts, up onto his shirt, and down the shopping cart.  Yikes.

I never did like those Bum Geniuses.  Let me give the Kissaluvs with a hemp liner a whirl this afternoon & see how they fare.

Anyway, at least you ladies have motivated me enough to do this much.  Thanks for the pep talks! :) :) :)