A Multi-Colored Bottom

I'm one of those moms.


Some of our cloth diaper supply.

Which moms?

Those cloth-diapering moms.

Before Lane was born, and I think even before I was pregnant with her, we (ok, I) had decided that we wanted to use cloth diapers. You may think I'm insane: my mother certainly did! But, let me assure you, cloth diapers have come a long way since we were babies! Gone are the days of having to change the baby every single time he/she pees. Gone are the days of pre-folding. Gone are the days of soaking diapers in a bleach solution.

Nowadays cloth diapering is easy. There's an outer shell which is waterproof, so it prevents leaks and mess from getting on baby's clothes. There's an inner layer which absorbs liquid. And there's a fleece lining that goes against baby's bottom and wicks away moisture. And they come in cool colors.

Yes, it's still messier than disposables. It's a little stinkier. And it's definitely more time-consuming. But it's a whole lot cheaper. And it's better for the environment. And we can use them with kiddos number two, and three, and four, and so-on.


Clean diapers, ready to be snapped and stuffed.

Lane has 27(!) cloth diapers (we registered for them on cottonbabies.com instead of lots of other stuff since we were moving overseas). That's enough to last her almost an entire week, or at least six days (or, if we have another baby close to Lane and they're both in diapers, it'll be enough for three days for both of them). We usually do put a disposable on her at night (lessens the likelihood of diaper rash) and when we know we're going to be out for more than a couple of hours.

When we put a diaper into the dirty-diaper bag, we hold our breath for the 20 seconds it takes to untie the bag, toss it in, and tie it back up (pee-yew!). Once a week I breathe through my mouth while stuffing the washing machine with the diapers and then spray some air freshener. I wash them once on cold with 1/4 the laundry soap of a regular load. Then I was them on a longer, hot, cycle, with 1/4 the laundry soap of a regular load. Next I hang them out to dry.


Diapers, diapers, everywhere!

After they're dry I toss them in the laundry basket and snap and stuff them as I have time: while watching a movie, keeping an eye on Lane, or catching up on my blog subscriptions. Rarely do I feel compelled to snap and stuff them immediately, although if we washed all of them I may do a few right away so that Lane can start wearing them again.


Easy as pie: Bumgenius one-size diapers which grow with your baby: velcro for girth and snaps for rise.

Shortly after we arrived in Istanbul on the 4th of July, we bought three packs of diapers (they were on sale: buy two, get one free). We used them exclusively the first two weeks since we were living with five other people, but since then, we only use them at night or when we'll be out for a long period of time. We still have half of the disposables left. We spent $20 on diapers five weeks ago and still have half of them left. I can hear Lane's savings account accumulating change that I didn't and won't spend on diapers.


Is that a blue diaper peeking out from under Lane's bib?

I love the feeling of being responsible and taking a few extra minutes to save loads of money and waste. I hate the five minutes of stinkiness I deal with every week and that some of Lane's outfits don't fit her correctly (this is getting better as her booty (and the rest of her) gets bigger!). How about you? Do you use cloth diapers or would you ever consider it? What do you like or not like about them?