the big switcharoo

I am a Very Stubborn Lady.  Often sinfully so.  Sometimes I get something in my head and don't want to be proven wrong, so I simply shut my eyes and ears to all the evidence pointing in the other direction.  This is exactly what happened when I started hearing people rave about CLOTH DIAPERS.

The long and short of it was, I didn't want to inconvenience myself.  I really enjoyed wrapping up my son's bodily waste into a nice and neat package, and just tossing it into the trash, never to be seen (or smelled) again.

But the fact of the matter is, cloth diapers are a huge money saver.  Especially if you can make them last for multiple children.

Another fact: Nathan and I are not wealthy. 

The final few persuading factors: my neighbor Sam, my sister-in-law Liz, and this blog post by my psuedo-friends, John and Sherry.

Don't get me wrong.  I think disposable diapers are Perfectly Fine.  But I think for this time in our lives, cloth diapers are the right answer for us.

After much advice-asking, I bit the bullet and bought 12 bumGenius 4.0 diapers (with snaps) from Cotton Babies.

I'm pretty happy with the colors: Butternut, Grasshopper, and Twilight.  Grasshopper is my least favorite; it is kind of lime-ish.  (Yes, I totally copied off John & Sherry, although Cotton Babies didn't carry Clementine.)

I also copied John and Sherry by buying the exact same diaper/wipe pails from World Market, only in red instead of the tin-looking ones.

So I washed up the diapers on Friday and started Silas in cloth on Saturday morning.  We had a few leaks out the leg holes the first day, and realized we needed to tighten the waist.  Other than that, it's gone quite smoothly (much to my amazement).

Here is my little model, showing off that baby physique in his new Twilight bumGenius.

So for those of you who are interested, here is a brief run-down on my cloth diapering experience thus far.  I am still learning, so maybe I'll have to do an update post later!

Why did I choose bumGenius 4.0 with snaps?

Even though these are probably the most expensive option ($203 for 12 diapers), they got rave reviews from everyone I talked to.  They are easy to clean and use, and the snaps will never wear out, unlike velcro.  They are adjustable, fitting babies from 8-35 pounds.

How many did I buy?

I started with 12, which means I need to wash them every other day.  I'm still debating on whether to buy a second set of 12 for baby #2.

How do they work?

bumGenius diapers come with a polyester shell (the colored part) and 2 inserts for each diaper- a newborn insert and a one-size insert that has snaps so you can adjust the length.  You simply slip the inserts inside the cover to use them.  I use both the newborn and the one-size inserts for overnight, and so far the one-size insert has worked fine by itself for daytime. 

There are lots of ways to store the dirty diapers.  I chose to keep using disposable wipes for now (some ppl use cloth wipes too), so I have two pails- one for wipes and one for diapers.  The lids help contain the smell.  I use regular plastic bags for inside.  You can throw pee diapers directly into the pail (so easy).  When you get a poo diaper you have to shake the solid poo into the toilet before putting the diaper into the pail (my least favorite part).  If your baby isn't on solids yet you can just throw the whole diaper, poo and all, into the pail.  Some people have nifty diaper sprayers that hook up to the toilet.  I haven't gotten one yet; they're $50.  Still considering my options...

How do I wash them?

Lots of different ideas for this, too.  I take the inserts out as I'm putting everything into the washer.  So far, I've washed as recommended on the package (one cold cycle w/ detergent, then one hot cycle w/ detergent, plus an extra cold rinse), except I just use regular cheapo detergent instead of the expensive kind.  Then I put the inserts in the dryer and hang up the diaper covers to dry on a makeshift clothesline in my laundry room.  (It's a nice time to Lysol/freshen up that smelly diaper pail, too!  Let it air out until you change the next diaper!)

Are they bulky?

Not too bad for Silas, probably more so for a newborn.  I actually like it that they're a little more padded; it helps keep his pants up!  He's a skinny little thing.

If any of you are cloth diaper-ers, I'd love to hear your thoughts/comments/advice!  And for anyone who is considering cloth, please feel free to ask questions!  I know I have a few readers who could answer them better than I could. :)

I'm especially interested to hear if anyone has done two kids in cloth diapers.  What added work is involved?  How many diapers do you have?