Sunday, April 25, 2010

Diaper Diary part 1






If you would have told me that I would cloth diaper my baby and love it, I would have laughed in your face. My conception of cloth diapers was seriously dated. I had visions of safety pins and complicated wraps that would leave me elbow deep in baby poo. All skepticism aside I decided to do some research, to make the best decision for my Daughter. The facts that I uncovered were terrifying, do you even know the cornucopia of toxic chemicals disposable diapers contain? Or that Scientific studies show a link to asthma? If our founding Father's used disposable diapers they would still be sitting in our landfills, because they take a whopping 500 years to biodegrade. My main concern was how in the world would I keep up with the laundry?! The benefits of cloth out weighed my fears, so I jumped in.  


My Cloth Diaper Wash Cycle:


With a lot of 22 diapers I do my laundry every other day. For potty diapers you toss them right in the diaper pail. For poo diapers quickly rinse the poo off with a diaper sprayer into your toilet, and toss in the diaper pail. My diaper pail has minimal stink. A lid keeps all funk contained and a sachet of baking soda helps absorb any odor. When laundry day arrives I simply empty the diaper pail into my front loading HE washer and do as follows:



  • 1 cold rinse (no detergent)
  • 1 hot wash with 1/3 tablespoon powder
  • 1 extra cold rinse
  • Hang to dry
This process takes about 2 hours and does not back up my regular laundry. I must warn you cloth diapers are so adorable, you may become an addict. 




22 comments:

*Crystal* said...

I am seriously considering using cloth diapers with my baby girl. If I decide to go this route how many would you recommend me buying and don't you have to use liners as well?

liz said...

OK, so I have to admit I thought those were a bunch of colorful, cute tops when I first saw the photo! Ha, ha! Good for you for cloth diapering!

Mom vs. the boys said...

look how cute they are on the line! so colourful!

beingzaraandzidan said...

wow! Really?? I never really thot on those lines. Thanx for the 'food for thot'.
Btw, the pic is cute & funny *giggles*

jayayceeblog said...

That is a great, colorful picture. I used cloth diapers when my daughters were babies (30 years ago) and they were just plain white. Good for you!!!

The Mayor! said...

You nailed it when you said our idea of cloth tends to be outdated....they've come a long way baby! Your new button is up at http://crazytownmayor.com, I will write the "grab box" code soon, & send along all the codes for you to use! E-mail me crazytownmayor@live.ca so I have an e-mail to send it too! Hope you like it, turned out well! :-D

Natalie said...

I actually used G Diapers (biodegradable, flushable inserts used with a cloth diaper cover) with my toddler and loved them. I love the picture!

BK said...

Truly commendable effort and one giant step on your part toward conserving planet Earth. You have made using cloth diaper seemed such an easy experience. I hope that more can follow and hopefully one day I will follow too. And besides, your picture of cloth diapers is colorfully attractive.

Unknown said...

Awesome blog post!

I cloth diapered both of mine. My first-born was severely allergic to the absorbent gel in commercial disposable diapers, so with him I had no choice. When his baby brother came along, I already had the chinese prefolds and Bummis wraps, so it made sense. And yes, I got into to the "boutique" all-in-ones that various WAHM were making. I loved CuddleBuns, HoneyBoys, and hand-knitted wool soakers.

Moms used to look at me strangely and say I was a "martyr" and all that. But really, when you have kids laundry is a daily fact of life, so an extra load of diapers every other day is really no big deal. I wasn't trying to be some green-living pioneer or anything. As a mom, I just did what I knew was best for my children.

When my youngest (he's now almost 6) potty trained, I gave nearly all my cloth diapers and supplies to another mom whose baby was having a problem with rashes. I hope more and more moms at least consider cloth diapering as an option.

hushmama said...

such a cute photo! i found you through mbc and am following you now :)

www.hushmama.com

KatDale said...

you couldn't have said it better! i love cloth diapers and if you had asked me a year ago about them i would have said you were crazy!

Unknown said...

Crystal, The diapers I prefer are pockets. Which means there is an insert. They also make cloth diapers called all in ones, that do not have an insert. I would start with a starter kit, that allows you to try different types of diapers before dropping a bunch of money. I would suggest getting one size diapers.

Thanks Mayor, I really appreciate your kindness. I owe you a drinky poo!

My Buzz, I;m surprised at peoples reaction to my cloth diapers as well. I mean diaper changes aren't a picnic in general. It's not THAT different, ya know?

I'm so happy that so many of you cloth diaper or did. It truly is one of my favorite things!!

The McDonalds said...

I heart cloth! You are right, it is so awesome ;0)

Charlotte said...

Found you through LBS tea party and so happy that I did :) This is wonderful. One day when I have children, I will definitely do the same. I think it's great you're advocating for such a great cause. Keep up the good work (and I also love that photo!).

Deb K said...

Hi~
I am now following you from MBC!

You can find me here~

http://debshere.blogspot.com/

Deana said...

You are way better than me with the cloth diapers! You go girl!

Showing some love from MBC:) Could you show some back please?
momstheglue.blogspot.com

Deana said...

You go girl to do the cloth diaper thing! You're way better than me. I'll bet you save tons on money though.

I'm showing some love from MBC:) Could you return the favor please?

momstheglue.blogspot.com

christina said...

i did this and loved it... that was 25 years ago, but i still loved it.
and that off the line, fresh smell. wonderful!

Betsy said...

Hi One Love Mama,
I'm the Zen Mama! I'm glad I found your blog through Family Sanity Reviews.

We used cloth diapers, too. If you're a stay at home mom it's easy! Good job on all you're doing for the Earth!

Kristi {at} Live and Love...Out Loud said...

Okay, you'r seriously making me want to use cloth diapers! They are way too cute! Great photo, by the way.
Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting on my "OH NO HE DIDN'T!" post. If you're planning on posting something for Wordless Wednesday, I'd love for you to come back and link up! Hope to see you soon. Have a great day!

Kristi, Live and Love...Out Loud
@TweetingMama

Anonymous said...

I'm starting to CD next week! I'm excited! Thanks for the cleaning info :)

Lucy said...

One Love Mama. I love your blog. I am a bit of a crunchy mama and granola girl myself, cloth diapering and all. I was amazed to find how much I love cloth diapers and how much I don't mind the laundry. I have resisted becoming addicted and buying too many, but that's only because I'm trying to save money to compensate for buying expensive organic foods :)

I cannot wait to get to know you better. I think we can learn a lot from one another! Following your blog and hope you will check out mine as well...

http://lucilleinthesky.com

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