>One of the things I am pretty committed to with this baby is cloth diapers. This has gotten a fairly unanimous response of: “You’re crazy!”
The cloth diapers of today are NOT your mothers diapers! Pins are unnecessary; the waterproof covers have Velcro, don’t leak, and are even cute! But most importantly, it is better for your family, your baby, and the environment.
The resources used to make disposable diapers are detrimental to our earth; we are cutting down trees for the paper, which is then bleached with potentially carcinogenic chemicals- these chemicals leave residues that will be touching your baby’s most sensitive areas! The inside of the diaper is filled with an absorbent gel which can raise the temp inside- which can be detrimental to the health of a boys genitalia if used in the long term! All these diapers are disposed of … in landfills. They can take years to breakdown, and a single child, from birth to potty training will contribute TWO TONS of this waste alone! In a household with a child in diapers, disposables account for 50% of the household waste, and disposables account for roughly 4% of waste in general. That’s a lot of unnecessary waste.
Cloth diapers can save you money (between $1500-$2000 per child!), they’re reusable (a big PLUS for multi-kid families), and kids who are cloth diapered tend to potty train earlier! Why? Without all that super-absorbent gel they can actually feel the discomfort of a wet diaper – and I can’t think of a better motivation to get out of the diapers and onto the potty chair!
This little video says it much better than I can.
For more cloth diapering info, check out the following links!
~ The Real Diaper Association – Informing the public about the benefits of cloth diapering.
~ Bummie’s Simple Washing Method – Tips on washing. This is probably the hardest part of cloth diapering, but you know what? So worth it!
~ Baby Belle Bottoms – Excellent cloth diaper retailer in Ventura Co. (one of the only ones in my local area). They offer free workshops! (We totally registered here!)
>I'm so happy for you. Ofcourse, you know to ask me for the reviews on all the many cloth diapers we have tried right? Tell me what you end up going with either way. http://www.diaperjunction.com
>I want to do cloth diapers with our next one. Have you heard of g-diapers? (I think that's what they're called.) Check out lima bean home on my blog list – I think she has a link to their site.
>Tiff: We're doing a cloth diaper workshop (free!) that's hosted by the baby belle bottoms folks, it introduces several of the brands, how to use, etc. As of right now I'm most interested in the Bummies organic cotton pre-folded inserts with Thirsties covers, but not committed to anything. I think I'll have to touch them up close and put them on a baby before I can satisfy all my curiosity!Jenn: I *have* heard of the G diapers, so much better than the standard disposable! We'll probably use those when we are out on a long day trip or something (eg: Disneyland!) Are you planning a next one??
>Well, nothing is actually "in the oven" now – but yeah, we're definitely ready for another one!
[You know, now that we've made all of our really big mistakes on raising Ethan! he he he!!]