When Q was about 4 months old I decided to give cloth diapers a try. One of my dear friends was planning to cloth diaper her baby and I had been listening with intrigue.
Here is what I have learned about cloth diapering so far...
There are tons of types of diapers and you have to find the best ones for you.
At this point we are loving the Flip Diaper System.
Here are the covers...
Here is the insert...(we chose the organic cotton insert)
You fold it one way...
Then the other...
Then you take the cover and lay it out like this...
Then you slip the insert in and tuck it under the flaps...
TaDa...a cloth diaper with fancy snaps and everything!
Next find your squiggly, wiggly baby and put it on him...
Then attempt to take pictures of him in the cloth diaper while he crawls away...
Try again but this time he will crawl towards you...
And into your lap...
Okay, here is the deal. If your baby pees in their diaper all you have to do is take the insert out and throw it in a wet bag. Then you replace it with a fresh insert. But if the dreaded number two has occurred, you pull out the big guns.
Behold, the Diaper Sprayer...
This handy contraption keeps you from touching poo. You just hold onto the diaper and spray the poo off into the toilet and flush. Then you place the diaper (cover and all) in the wet bag. This time you replace with a whole new cover and diaper. Important note: do not install this diaper sprayer where your children use the potty. Put it in your master bathroom. Trust me on this one. Even the tiny one thinks it would be a fun toy...
Here is that awesome wet bag. It is an important tool in cloth diapering. Now that you have filled that bad boy up with yucky diapers it's time to wash. (For us that is every other day) So, here is what you do...you simply unzip the top of the bag and turn it inside out dumping everything into the washer (including the bag).
Next, you do a cold rinse with no detergent. Then you use detergent specifically made for cloth diapers. Then run the cycle that does a hot wash and cold rinse.
Then you hang the covers to dry and throw the inserts in the dryer to tumble dry.
I didn't mention the cloth wipes. They just make sense. This way you reuse your wipes over and over again. You might as well. You are already washing the diapers. (My favorite so far is the fuzzibunz brand).
So, tell the truth...you think I'm a total hippy now don't you?
Can i ask how many cloth diapers did you start out with each day when he was first born?
ReplyDeleteWell, I didn't start cloth diapering til he was 4 months old so I wouldn't be a good judge of that. I'm guessing you would want about 24 in order to wash every other day with a newborn. They poop so much when they first get here! :)
ReplyDeleteIt also depends on what system you use. If you use a cover that can be re-used you will only need so many covers but plenty of inserts. If you have an "all in one" diaper you will need more because the covers and the inserts are attached to each other.
I hope that makes sense! :)
Thank you so much for sharing and for your comment back. I read your blog everyday and I love when you post new things!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for that! It is fun to think that people actually read this stuff. Hee Hee!
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Farm Chick! These diapers are so easy even a Grammy can do it...all I can say is that sprayer is fantastic (if you point it in the right direction - that's all I'm sayin'). And, hippie chick or not, you are awesome!
ReplyDeleteIf we were to ever have another baby, we would "go cloth". I had no idea how far they had come!
ReplyDeleteThanks to you and Erin...I love our FuzziBunz!!! I'm so wishin' that I'd done cloth with the others and not just #7. You know that if I was queen of the world I'd have 5 more, right? *hee hee* I'm proud of you for also being such a "hippy" as Mr. Smith says that I am...you know: homeschoolin', soap-nut usin', butter/yogurt/granola/ketchup makin', whole foods buyin',cookin' & eatin', wanting to buy a cow and my own chickens guaranteed fruit loop! :)
ReplyDeleteOkay I've got to comment for all the ones sitting there thinking, "This lady is crazy!" but are too afraid to admit it. I absolutely think you're crazy, but I also totally admire you girls for doing it and sticking to it. You're amazing women!!
ReplyDeleteWe use the Flip System and bumGenius 4.0's and we just love them! Talk about easy cloth diapering.
ReplyDeleteI use these diapers too, although I'm not finding them quite as easy as I thought... And I simply can't figure out how to keep the inserts white... But I do like them.
ReplyDeleteAs for the hippie thing? Nope, any real hippie would never work that hard. lol. They are simply to high... Real hippies prefer to sit back, do nothing and bitch... So, thanks for not being a hippie!!
Sabrina, have you tried the Rockin' Green detergent? Other than that I would put them in the sun. That sure seems to work.
ReplyDeleteWow that sounds great. When my sister was a baby we did cloth diapers. They were folded and PINNED on the baby. Poor girl had several pokes from her big sister. AND I can assure you there was no cute bag or fancy sprayer. Poopie diapers were dipped in the toilet until the poop came off then you would ring the diaper out with your hands. GAG! So happy that they have improved so much that people will actually use them!
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