Worried what others will think?

Let me preface this with, I am no 'crunchy' mama. I am not a hippy, I am not a tree hugger, and most certainly not a typical cloth diaper, baby wearing mama. When I had my son I was a full-time Sales Manager for Macy's Retailers. Just after his 1st birthday I was able to quit my job and stay home with my son while my husband began working since had graduated college. I love fashion, I love make-up and hair, I love 5 inch pumps and skinny jeans, (I also love my yoga pants and baggy t-shirts) but someone who would recycle and reuse diapers was certainly not on my list before having my son. That being said, I did worry about what others would think. I even worried for months after my son was born what people would say when I was out and about and changing him in more public venues, and as he got more mobile people caught little glimpses of his fluffy bum peeking out from the top his pants.

So you want to cloth diaper but now you worry about what your friends will think, what your family will think, will your spouse even be interested? Well thats totally ok and totally normal. I was overwhelmed at first and all my sisters said to me, there is no way you will stick with it. I give 2 weeks. Well little did they know that I never back down from a challenge and so it was on! haha

I worried that my mother in law wouldn't support us in this, (I never had my mom to worry about because she cloth diapered all 6 of her kidos) but I was wrong and she proved to be super supportive. Friends was a mixed bunch, but I didn't care cause honestly how often does your friend change your baby's diaper, uh like NEVER!

I did worry about daycare, but guess what mamas? It is becoming more and more popular for cloth diapering to appear and most places will do diapers so long as it is easy for them, so really if you stuff em and prep em and have it ready to go it is no different then sposies, they just go into a wet bag and come home with you ;)

What am I saying is who cares, do what you want, its your home and your kids and you ultimately have to live with it. Cloth diaper full-time, part-time, any-time. Do what works for you and don't let it become a chore or something you hate. I know I don't.

Cloth Wipes?!?!? Uh...

Wait, hold on you want to use cloth wipes too? Or maybe you are wondering what the heck that is. Well if you decided to go cloth diapers then cloth wipes will be a super easy transition for you as well. The great part about cloth wipes is you can use pretty much anything you have to get started. Got some old t-shirts of dads? Those will work! How about some extra flannel print fabrics from your latest sewing adventure? That will do it too!

I on the other hand really didn't know what I wanted to what I was doing when I started so I bought mine. I originally was going to use disposable wipes, then two days into my cloth experience realized how silly it was and difficult to keep them separate and a waste of money so I bought some online.

I purchased some inexpensive flannel ones and some terry cloth ones for a little more cleaning action.

The wipes themselves are not big, really not bigger then a sposie wipe. I bought 30 flannel wipes and 10 terry cloth wipes. When diapering a newborn, believe me YOU WILL NEED THEM!

 Here are my wipes and my hand on top to show the size, the terry cloth are folded in half because that how they all fit on changing station.

 Here is my wipes case that is in my diaper bag. I just used a graco case (came with a bag I don't use) and fold my wipes in half and put them in. In the beginning I put dry wipes in there and carried a small bottle of wipe solution with me and wet them but soon realized it wasn't worth it. Now i wet down a handful of wipes in my solution before i head for the day and pop them in my case. I keep some dry ones in my bag to dry off my son's bottom if it happens to be a messy one that leaves him a little 'fresh' after clean up. I do keep sposies in my car and house just in case I forget or run out.

I love my cloth wipes and they make it super easy to clean up and keep my little guy fresh and happy and its hardly anything extra to add to the wash I already do. So really its no big deal.

What do you think? Interested in giving them a try?

Getting your diaper system set up!

Well everyone is different and everyone looks for different things when thinking about starting with cloth, switching to cloth, and so forth. I am here to tell you, that if you plan and spend a little time figuring out what you like, it will be a piece of cake once your system is in place.

What I recommend...
-Diapers of course! They may be covers with flats and prefolds, they may pockets, AIO's (all in ones), and such. You will decide what you like, my recommendation is don't buy all into one kind unless you know you like it, try out a few different kinds and sell what you don't like and keep what you and build your stash from there. Remember that if you don't have to buy it all at once, you can cloth diaper part time until you decide what you like.
-Wet bags/Diaper pail liners. These things are a MUST! You might only be able to afford one, or two of these bad boys but they are SO worth it. A wet bag is water proof, and zips closed to keep everything contained so it works great the diaper bag and for the baby room. Pail liners are just that, a liner that goes inside a trash can to hold diapers until wash day.
-A Diaper Sprayer, they can be purchased or made (so I have read) but either way its a GREAT investment, not only for cleaning diapers, but for cleaning nasty vomit, or other great things like that, you can just spray it off into the toilet and then throw it in the wash.
-Laundry Detergent, you may think you have some already right? Well you should make sure it is safe for your diapers. Different diapers can only handle certain types of soap. Either way your soap should be free of additives, bleach, chlorine, enzymes,s fragrances, softeners, and dyes. All these things can cause your diapers to repel (not absorb), leak, smell, or break down. Make sure you read what your diaper requires.
- I think a place to hang dry is important, it could be a laundry stand that you can move around or a clothes line outside. Either way its great, great, great for diapers to dry in the sun, its a natural bleach that removes stains and helps to clean them. Its so great for them!
- Cloth wipes (if you choose this route) They can be made yourself using flannel, terry cloth, or some other fabric types, or purchase them yourself. The great thing about cloth wipes (aside from no chemicals on your baby's tush) is that you are all ready washing diapers, why not add wipes too. If you decide to use wipes for the newborn stage I would recommend having about 30-45 on hand to make it through two days. (give yourself 2 wipes per change at the early stages)
-Cloth wipe solution, which is easy to make yourself using water and little bit of baby's soap.
-A cloth diaper safe rash cream, (just in case). Better to have on hand then wait until its needed and not know what to do.
-A positive attitude! Remember that while you may be new to this, there are going to be learning experiences as will all things we try, if the diaper didn't fit great and you had an explosion, it happens to everyone, and if you forgot to add the insert, no harm done. It's all about figuring out a routine for you and your family.

Everyone is different but set yourself up in a way that works for you, and remember that your needs and baby's needs will change over time as baby grows.

The (glorious) Diaper Sprayer!

Why a diaper sprayer you may ask? Well if you don't have one, it is just plain harder to get the job done ;) I invested in my diaper sprayer from the get go and and am SO glad I did. I bought a Bum Genius one that is super easy to instal. Just hook it up to the current lines connected to your toilet and tada, MAGIC. Okay maybe not magic but the times I have traveled and didn't have my precious diaper sprayer I was seriously missing it. So what is it for you may ask, well it helps to get the lovely presents you little one leaves for you in their cute diapers off of them and into your toilet where is can be flushed. 

Where moms used to have to swirl, dip, shake and flush and hang on tight to get the majority of the poo off, you simply hold over toilet and spray it into the bowl and then flush! Easy Peasy.

Here is my diaper sprayer set up.

Planet Wise wet bag on the left to put dirty diapers in and sprayer on the right.

 I just wrap it over the bowl on the outer edge and hold onto a clean part of the diaper and then using my sprayer I angle it down and slightly into the water to 'push' the poo off the diaper and into the bowl. I will do this until its free of any solids and ready to be dropped into my diaper bag.

 See here, just drop that dirty baby into your bag, zip it closed and wash your hands and you are free to move on until wash day.

You don't have to buy a ready to go sprayer, I have 'heard' you can DIY from places like Home Depot and Lowes, but I have not done this and couldn't tell you how but from friends and heard it was pretty simple. Either way I know it was worth the investment because not only is it great for diapers, it is great for spraying food, throw up and dirty off of clothes. I have used it many times for things other then diapers ;)

New clothes line!

A few days ago my husband finally put up a clothes line in the back yard. I have been asking for this for about 3 months now and was SO excited to use it! Of course my diapers were the first things to go on it. Little did I know that two problems would arise...
1. It wasn't enough clothes line (haha) I need more space. (something I claim a lot in my house)
2. I had to rewash some of my diapers because the ones hanging on the line under the tree had little bird poopies all over them, not cool :(

But I learned, and will be more careful, but am SO excited to have my clothes line up because now my diapers are SO clean from the sun bleaching them out! Just love them!

so many diapers in such a short time...

Today was one of those days that I am grateful I washed diapers last night. This morning after my lil man slept 10 hours (woo hoo) I quickly got him out of his night time diaper  feeding him, and into a day time diaper which right now consists of a cover and a flat folded up inside. I had barely put the diaper on him when I heard it... that tell tale sound of poo filling that diaper.

Okay, no problem I thought, I  will just wait 5 minutes to make sure he is done. So I did, and I changed him into another diaper and sprayed off the the dirty diaper and we went back to play time. 10 minutes into 'play time' I heard that sound again! Yikes, so we waited again to make sure that this would be the end of it.... then onto diaper number 3. As we lay on the floor enjoying our toys and, 15 minutes later I heard that sound AGAIN!

I thought, 'HOLY COW KID!' is this even possible, you haven't done this since the first two weeks you were here! So on we went to the changing table yet again, for diaper number 4 and hope that it would stick.

Lo and behold, he was finished and ready to take his morning nap! Well as I thought about it, I was yet again glad I went the cloth route because I would just be throwing away more money from a day like today. There will be more to come and I know it won't be the last time I use 4 diapers in 30 minutes, but you know what? Who cares, a few extra diapers in the pail for wash day, no biggie!

Whats not to love?

Okay so here are a couple pictures of what we have been using the last 3 months in my house!

Below is my 'diaper change station' On the top you will see my terry cloth wipes, my flannel wipes, and my spare prefolds that I use as 'protection' covers while changing him to make sure I don't accidentally get peed on, silly boys. Below you will see two drawers. The top one holds all my diapers for day time use. So for whatever we are currently using lives here, as of today its thirties covers with 'small' prefolds and flats. I usually fold everything and fill the covers to make it easier for the hubby, plus I love the look of organization ;) To the right of the storage you will see my water container that we keep fresh water in, a spray bottle with my diaper solution, and jar of CJ's BUTTer (this stuff is AMAZING!) and a bottle of hand sanitizer. 

 Next I have is a picture of the diapers I have used since we started at just 3 days old. From left to right...

First a Rumparooz Lil Joeys in Platinum, this is a AIO so it was great for when we were out and about because it works just the same way a sposie does but you wash it!
Next is the Bummis Super Brite Cover in blue with a Green Mountain Prefold Newborn size.
Then the Rumparooz Cover in Newborn size in the robots print ( I LOVED the prints) with the same prefold in it.
Lastly is a Thirsties Duo Wrap in Meadow color, size 1. You can see it is adjustable rise so it fits from birth to about 18 lbs. We are currently in these but have just about grown out of them.

Here is the same set up but I also let you see the prefolds and flat that I use. The diapers are laying on Birdseye Cotton Flat folded in half and below it are the Green Mountain Prefolds.

You may notice that most my items have links to the same website. It is because I LOVE Kelly's Closet, they are one of the few retailers with a great return policy, friendly people, and a rewards system that lets you earn money on EVERY purchase!!! So great!

More to come on what it takes to cloth diaper full-time :)