Cloth Diapers - A Personal View from Rochelle Lund

Picture this:  Your dear sweet baby has finally fallen asleep in his crib.  The only way you could get him to sleep was to strip him down to his diaper and a blanket.  A blissful hour goes by until you hear the muttered grumblings of a disgruntled child waking up from his nap.  I usually let him have a minute to wake up and adjust to his surroundings before I go get him and this day was no different.  Until, I went to go get him.  His adorable, pudgy little paws managed to rip off the Velcro fastenings of his disposable diaper.   And then he pooped.  A lot.  Everywhere.

I had been doing research on cloth diapers, but hadn’t yet mustered up the courage actually buy some.  This little incident helped me get my butt in gear.  One of my favorite things about cloth diapers is that most of them have snap fastening options, which I love.  Not only do they keep baby out of his own diaper, but they last forever. 

Unfortunately, whenever I mentioned cloth diapering to my in-laws, they gave me the “yeah, you will save money, but think of all the poop” look.  I know my mother-in-law had tried cloth diapers when my husband was a baby and she didn’t last very long.  I tried to explain that cloth diapers have come a long way since he was in diapers, but they had to see them to believe it.  She is still a little hesitant about them when she cares for the boys, but she is slowly warming up to them.

I think the biggest thing that discouraged me in the beginning is the cost.  Buying a full supply from one of the larger brands can put a serious dent in your pocketbook.  Thankfully there are tons of lesser known companies that make almost the same thing, except soooo much cheaper. Yay!  Another thing that did not occur to me at the time is that you don’t have to buy them all at once; and they don’t have to be all the same kind.  Oh, the possibilities! Once you find a kind that you and your baby love, you can go bananas; but you have the ability to shop around a little bit until you find out what works for you.  Cloth diapering is still not cheap when you look at the upfront cost, but in the long run it will save so much money!

We have been using cloth for about 6 months, and I absolutely love them.  I’m not saying that there aren’t times when I have a hundred other things to do, and the diapers just don’t get washed that day.  There are also times when I have errands to run and frankly disposables are just easier to take places.  These are some of the fabulous things about cloth diapering. It is not an all or nothing situation, yet you are still saving money (and helping the environment) in the long run.

 

I hope this helps more people decide to go with cloth diapers.  They are fun, affordable, and oh my word there is nothing cuter than a cloth diapered butt. Even if it doesn’t encourage people to make the switch to cloth, I hope you are able to learn from my experiences.  And always, always make sure your baby has more than just a diaper on when taking a nap.  :o)

By Rochelle Lund