Cloth Diapering

We've been doing it now for almost 3 months, and we LOVE it!! I mean, is that a cute little bummy or what? That's the thing, they are so cute and come in so many different colors/patterns, they're almost as easy as disposables, AND we aren't contributing to the MILLIONS of disposable diapers piling up in landfills each day.

These aren't your Mom's cloth diapers, though. There are so many different types out there, prefolds, pockets, all-in-ones. We tried a few different types and decided pocket diapers were the ones for us. A pocket diaper consists of a piece of cloth sewn to a waterproof outer layer. An opening at the front or back is left which creates the pocket. You then insert a liner(s) into the pocket to create the absorbent part of the diaper. These are really nice for anyone who isn't familiar with cloth diapering, as you can stuff the diapers ahead of time and all anyone has to do is pull out a new diaper and fasten it, just like a disposable.

The brand of pocket diapers we've chosen, Charlie Banana, is referred to as a "hybrid." That's because they come with washable inserts, but you also have the option to purchase biodegradable liners. That means when you're out and about, you don't have to worry about toting the whole soiled diaper around, you just flush the absorbent middle. How cool is that?

The other really great thing about cloth diapering is that, in the long run, it'll save us $$. We are using a one-size diaper, which means it should fit him until he's 40 pounds. It has lots of different snap combos to make it smaller or bigger and the elastic in the legs is adjustable too.

Of course there are still occasions when we use disposables. He still wears a disposable to bed each night. Otherwise, I'd have to change his diaper at least twice during the night and we're working on trying to get this kid to sleep through the night, so that just seems silly to wake him up to change him! And of course if we travel, like we did this last weekend, and we don't have access to a washer, cloth just isn't practical.