Alternatives to Diapering Your Baby

Diapers are one of the first things you get when your expecting a new baby. In the USA disposable diapers are most commonly used. There is a large amount of people that decide to jump on the cloth diaper train, and it’s becoming more popular. In some countries like China they use cloth diapers more commonly. Then you have countries like Vietnam that practice Elimination Communication (EC) quite regularly. Babies are diaper free and the parent looks for cues of needing to relieve them-selves. When those times come they are held over a toilet so they can “do their business”.

Why I Chose to Cloth Diaper

I had always known I wanted to cloth diaper my children, for years before we had our first baby. My mother had used cloth diapers on me so it wasn’t a foreign topic. There isn’t just one reason why I chose to cloth diaper my baby, there are actually several. I had done a lot of research on the pros and cons and the different methods out there.

The Cost of Diapers

This was a BIG one for me and my husband. The cost of buying disposables versus cloth diapers is ridiculous. On average per child you could spend over $2,000 from birth until they are potty-trained. With cloth diapers you buy them once. Typically you could spend about $500 on a good size stash of diapers. It is a larger cost upfront but that is a one time deal. Now if you end up deciding you no longer want or need to cloth diaper you can sell those diapers and get a good amount of your money back. Win Win!

Eco-Friendly

I like the option of using natural fibers against my babies skin. I wouldn’t like wearing plastic underwear all the time, so why make my child. Not to mention that these plastic fibers can irritate a babies sensitive skin constantly rubbing against them. Also if a cloth diaper ends up getting so damaged that you are unable to use it, you can recycle/compost most of it. Sometimes even all of the diaper if it is made of natural fibers.

No Chemicals

There are chemicals used in disposables to make them extremely absorbent. These chemicals are also used to wick away any moisture away from babies skin. The reason it is needed is having that all that liquid in the diaper with a plastic cover can cause a rash because there is no air flow. Not to mention that the chemicals themselves against the skin can cause irritation.

Reusable

The idea of buying something just to throw it away bothers me. I’m basically just throwing my money in the trashcan. I love the idea that I can buy diapers once and be able to use them for years. With proper care, cloth diapers can last years. I may only have one child at the moment but my husband and I plan to have more, so I will then be able to use these diapers on my next child and so on.

No Blowouts

Yep I said it, No Blowouts! Before I had my baby, there were many other moms in cloth diaper groups that have stated that they did not have this issue. I wanted to believe that it is a true possibility, to not need to deal with poop flying all the way up my child’s back.

My Concerns About Getting Cloth Diapers

For years I knew the brand that I wanted to get. Then came the time to get diapers and I had second thoughts.

I wanted to make sure that I was getting the right diapers. That they would fit my baby well and I wouldn’t have issues with how they are put together/used. I was also concerned about getting them to clean well.

Then, I wasn’t sure if I would be going back to work after having our baby. If I did end up going back to work someone would need to change her diaper other then me of course. So for whoever would be changing her diaper I wanted to make sure that it was straight forward and simple.

I also wanted to make sure that it was something that my husband would feel comfortable using. I worried that if it was too complex he may not want to use cloth diapers on her or at least when he was changing diapers. For example: Use a certain insert with this cover or if you use this one, double up with this for night time”. As well as: “Make sure you wrap it tight enough around here and no gaps but not too tight”.

So I did a lot of research on that brand again and asked people in my cloth diaper groups and only found good reviews and I even talked to the woman that created them.

So I got the diapers because you can’t know if you’ll like them until you try them.

Using Disposable Diapers

When she was born I had yet to figured out if I wanted to use them for the first couple weeks or not. I was hesitant because of the meconium that is deposited in the first week or so. It tends to stain and I hadn’t decided if I wanted to use disposables or clean them the best I could.

We had been gifted a package of disposable diapers and we ended up just using those for the first couple weeks. I didn’t like using them but it made things easy at the time. Considering I was stuck in bed for a couple weeks with limited trips up and down the stairs. It was also easier at this point because I would then have had to show my husband the cleaning routine of the new diapers. Not that he was not perfectly capable but it would have been one more thing he needed to do and I wanted to keep it simple for him.

Six Months into Cloth Diapering

Now after 6 months and many very messy diapers I have never had a blowout. Everything stays contained in the diaper making it an easier clean up and staining on the inserts is minimal. I’ve been using diapers that are referred to as All-In-Two. They have a removable cover with body formed inserts that snap into place on the shell. Some inserts are made with hemp and the others are made with bamboo-cotton blend.

Though a downside to these diapers is they take a long time to dry. It wasn’t an option to put them on the clothesline since it was fall/winter, they would take forever to dry. I ended up putting them in the dryer and it shrunk them a bit since they are a natural fiber. At this point they probably won’t fit her once she is a year old. I will then need to use a different diaper method when that time comes.

Now I’m sure your thinking, hang dry them in the house! Well, at the time I didn’t have many inserts and shells. I was trying to be minimal about how many I had and save on cost. There wasn’t enough to create a good size load to wash and leave some extra for me to use. Then hang drying them would take 6 + hours in the house typically, because they were so thick.

Alternatives to Diapering Our Baby

So I’ve recently started using flats and covers since these are more customizable. I will be able to use these when she is older and may be too big for what she currently has. Once again, I’m only doing this because I accidentally shrunk the diapers I currently have because I dried them in the dryer on high heat. Oops… lesson learned.

I also want to mention that a couple weeks after she was born we started using the method of Elimination Communication (EC). We wanted to give her the option of doing her Number 1 and 2’s somewhere other then her diaper. I had done a lot of research on it and learned how it is she was telling us she needed to go potty.

So far it has been great! There are many days where we catch all #2’s in the potty and only wet diapers. Other times it’s the opposite but she’s growing daily so I can’t expect her to be in a regular routine so young.

What I Wish I Knew – Alternatives to Diapering Your Baby

I wish I had known that I would be staying home with our baby for the foreseeable future. I think I would have gone with just flats and covers instead of the diapers that I got. There are two reasons, firstly, because it takes a very long time for the inserts to dry. Secondly, because they shrink so easily, to about half the size they’re suppose to be (my fault, I know).

This does not mean that I do not like this brand or style of diapers. They are fantastic and the quality is great. Not to mention that the prints on the shells are adorable! Though had I known the above reasons, I believe I would have chosen a flats over thick inserts.

More on Alternatives to Diapering your Baby

Stay tuned for a follow up. I plan to go over in a bit more detail about the different types of diapers, Elimination Communication and washing methods.

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