Cloth Diapering 9 Months Later

A lot of people ask me how cloth diapering is going. Honestly, I think many of them are secretly hoping I will say, "It's terrible, I'd quit but we invested so much money I just can't justify it." Not because they're mean or wish us ill-will, but because, I mean, come on! It's cloth diapering! Who could like that? To say that we still like it is an understatement.

Both Brad and I are so glad that we made the decision to cloth diaper. We use pocket diapers exclusively, which means we change the whole diaper at every diaper change, just like with a disposable. I have a garbage can with a flip top lid sitting next to both of our diaper changing stations (one upstairs and one downstairs)which has a pail liner in it. When we change his diaper we just shake the little insert out of the diaper and put the whole thing--insert and diaper into the garbage can. Then, every 2-3 days we wash diapers. The washing is not that difficult. The only downside is that I have an old washing machine and it's in my basement. That means I can't just set it to do an extra rinse after the wash. That means I have to run downstairs for each new cycle. But it's really not that big of a deal. First, I put the diapers on a rinse cycle to get all of the pee out of the diapers. Then, I do a complete wash to clean them. Then, they get an extra rinse at the end to make sure that the detergent is rinsed out of the diapers. On sunny days, I like to line dry my diapers (the sun also has awesome bleaching powers so my diapers stay white!), but when it's not sunny I just throw them in the dryer. Then, I just have to stuff one insert into each diaper and *voila* diaper laundry is done! It might seem like a lot of work, but it's honestly not.

One thing I love about the cloth diapers is how soft they are. Recently I forgot our diaper bag at home and Micah pooped. I had to go to the store and buy disposable diapers. They felt so papery and irritating! Nothing like his cloth diapers. Also, we've never had poop explode out of the cloth diapers! I feel like his regular laundry actually cut down once we started using cloth because he wasn't going through two or three outfits a day because of the poop explosions! Another thing is Micah has never had diaper rash. That's because there's no irritating chemicals in his cloth diapers.

Of course, I have to admit, one of my favorite parts is the awesome colors! I love the bright colors and how fluffy and soft his little bum is! So, in answer to your question, the cloth diapering is going great. We are so happy that we made the decision and we will definitely be cloth diapering any future children. Of course, if you have any questions about it (other cloth diaper systems, the cost, etc.) I would gladly answer them.

*I seriously need to start taking more pictures of him in his cloth diapers!