cloth diapering

[SuzySunshine]

Alison, one more question how big was your little guy when he was born? Were the one-size to big at first?

[spotty_dog]

He was born at 7 lbs 3 oz, and the bumGenius fit weird and gappy until he was about 10 lbs.

[Michele]

We use the BG one-size pockets exclusively now and like them. Though I didn't get them til Daegan was bigger. I also don't know that they will make it all theway to 35 pounds, but we'll see.

[Vanquisher]

We use the BG one-size pockets exclusively now and like them. Though I didn't get them til Daegan was bigger. I also don't know that they will make it all theway to 35 pounds, but we'll see.

35 pounds?!! Just for reference, my DD is 3+, and is off the chart tall and about 90% for weight and is just a smidge over 30 pounds (maybe 33?). I think you have a while before you hit 35 lbs.

[Michele]

that's kinda what I mean Heidi....I can't imagine the diapers fitting someone who weighs 35 pounds! Especially since they seem to fit Daegan so well now at just under 20.... :huh:

Just reading through the posts is making me all excited, we just got one of those condenser dryer for the apartment so I can go ahead and get cloth diapers when the baby arrives (I'm going to hire a pack with loads of different sorts of cloth diapers to see which one suit the best)

Is it ok to put them in the dryer after washing? WE are not allowed to air dry cloths on the balcony in the apartment complex here, it hasn't stopped raining all summer anyway, and indoor drying might take up to 24 hours as with all the rain the air is very damp here at the moment.

[samssugarmomma]

Jane - I think it depends on the diaper and on your preferences. We don't dry ours (we have fuzzi bunz, bummis, prowraps, and wonderoos).
I have met people that put their fuzzi bunz in the dryer and they've had no problems...

Do you have one of those wooden drying racks? I dry mine on a wooden drying rack and it doesn't take long.

yes we have a wooden airer, well I'll give the trial pack a go and see what ones will work for us, I like the sound of the bumgenius and I remember thinking the fuzzibum were so cute when DS was a baby but didn't convert from disposables, maybe this time round

I just have to join in because reading all your posts is actually making me nostalgic for our diaper days! My youngest is 5 and she potty trained before she was 2, so it's been a while.

I used and loved the kissaluvs... and the bummi wraps worked well with them. I had wool wraps too. I did not mind laundering them at all - even though I had never been great at getting my own laundry done in a timely manner. I liked folding them and piling them up on the changing table. I felt so much better about putting something soft and cozy next to their baby skin rather than something that smelled strong of perfume or papery and hard.

It took me a little time to figure out my procedure with the poopy inserts - I got some big blue rubber gloves and used those while rinsing out the inserts in the toilet. Then just added the wet insert to the diaper laundry pail. I kept the blue rubber gloves in a one gallon bucket behind the toilet.

My best friends husband is a chef and refuses to rinse out the poopy diapers in the toilet - because his hands cook for so many people every day! I love him, but think that's sort of funny. She cooks for a lot of people every day too!

We didn't put the bummi wraps in the dryer - that sort of wore away their waterproof-ness quickly.

Now, my youngest is 5, and she is baby crazy - and baby doll crazy. She diapers her dolls in her old cloth diapers and wraps! It's lovely.

[samssugarmomma]

monadatter - Your DD sounds cute!

My DD just dotes on her baby dolls. It's funny because she dresses very boyishly (big brother influence I guess), but all she wants to do is take care of babies, and beg me to have babies. She rocks them, changes them, diapers them, lays down to cuddle with them and brings them everywhere. We just can't have too many. She's always having us pretend they are real and wants to fool strangers into thinking they are.
My MIL says she was the same way - and played with baby dolls til she was something like 16 - then became a pediatric nurse - married an ob - and had 8 babies of her own! I wonder if DD is headed that route? She says she's going to have 20 babies... and be a baby doctor. Today she told me these names for some of them: Miles, Milo and Rowan.
Oops, didn't mean to hijack the thread.
m

Re: cloth diapering

well, I'm back on this kick. Initially I was planning just to use the Seventh Generation ones that Nellie uses, but since they end up in a landfill, too, I went back to my original thoughts on cloth diapers. I called the (again) one and only service in the area (and it's not in Lawrence anymore, they've sold and the new owners are in Grandview, but say we're in their service area). http://www.expressdiapers.com/cost.html

While it might be more economical to wash my own, I know myself well enough to know that the ick factor and the upkeep will be my downfall. I figure I can use cloth during the day, and seventh generation at night.

I'm wondering though, will this really help our carbon footprint at all, considering the drop off / pick up factor of the whole thing?

[Michele]

Re: cloth diapering

That's one of the biggest debates I come across whenever cloth is mentioned. Did you look at the g diapers?

http://www.gdiapers.com/

It seems like a good option. I read about them after I had already gotten my stash and so I didn't look too deeply into them.

You flush the liner but keep the cover. I know they are on the pricey side though. My friend who used them said the velcro on the back wasn't that hard to do, but was really hard for her kid to un-do.....but she did say that sometimes the liner didn't dissolve quickly in the toilet and had to be broken down/swirled first before flushing.

Re: cloth diapering

Davita uses g-diapers. I kind of considered it - but honestly couldn't imagine flushing them. The people that built this house put THE cheapest toilets in them, and we already have a hard enough time with them backing up. I just feel like it's asking for trouble. Davita doesn't flush them either - and apparently they're supposed to biodegrade quickly - but I know she still does lots of laundry / rinsing, etc. - which is where I know I'll get overwhelmed.

I don't mean to sound like a priss (overwhelmed?? ), but I have a hard enough time keeping up with our laundry as is. If I've got a newborn AND an additional load or two that have to happen b/c of diapers - I'll give up and go to store-bought. I just know me.

Just trying to be realistic about it.

[spotty_dog]

Re: cloth diapering

When the Union of Concerned Scientists wrote their book, The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices, in 1999 they determined that cloth vs. disposable is a crapshoot. Pretty much an even trade-off from an environmental standpoint, depending on whether you value water conservation or land conservation. :huh: I personally think they neglected some factors that make the cloth edge ahead a little bit, but I'm not sure there's really any wrong choice there.

In the case of specifically the gas used to pick up and drop off diapers? I would have to wonder if it's any worse than the transportation needed to truck disposable diapers from the manufacturing plant (which is presumably across the country if not overseas.)

And yeah, I'm not sure that gDiapers look like a really great alternative. Too many horror stories of backlogged toilets and such to justify the expensive startup and ongoing costs. That's probably just me and my cute-cloth bias talking though.

Starbunz covers? Eh? Eh? Handknit wool? (It's breathable and you only have to wash it about every 3 months unless it gets poo on it!) (*elbow nudge* *eyebrow wiggle*) (Yes, that's my album but I'm not selling them anymore. :P)