fluffy bottom {what's next}

prefolds. so now what? what did we need? how do i care for them? what did i get myself into?
well, i finally got hubby to go to the local store with me and he finally got to see it all broken down too. the sales lady took us step by step on how the diaper system works and how to care for them. i have to say it, cloth diapering is not hard. it is not gross. it is actually very easy. just has a learning curve like with anything else. after hubby got the information and saw it first hand, i think he realized this as well. it was not going to be hard. plus i had agreed from day one that i would take care of the cleaning/washing of the diapers. he would never have to do more than changing our little man, unless he wants to help. we ended up leaving zoolikins with one of their starter packages. it contained three dozen unbleached prefolds, six size one thirsties duo diaper covers and a few snappis. with this set up i am able to do wash every two to three days. we also got two size one thirsties duo pocket diapers to try out. figure those can be easy daddy diapers. plus some rockin green laundry detergent & a wet bag.  basically everything we needed to get started.

i have to prep cloth diapers? this was the scariest phase for me. i was so nervous i was going to mess it up. it was harmless and easy. i was freaking for no reason at all. yes, you have to do a little prep work on your diapers before being able to use them. prepping them helps to maximize their absorbency. there are two ways to prep your diapers, i did a little of both.
option one : boiling
i used this for all my prefolds. it may take a little time to do. i broke up the task over a couple days. using a large pot, bring water to a boil. place 4-6 diapers in pot (depends on how big your pot is). let boil for 30 minutes. remove diapers and place in washer machine. add a diaper friendly detergent and run on a hot wash cycle. i ran my load when i had at least a dozen diapers in it. once washed, run them in the dryer till dry. i run on high heat on the very dry setting. once done, i pulled one diaper to test out. lay diaper flat & pour 1/2 cup water on diaper. all the water should absorb in the diaper, the water should not sit on top at all. if you are not happy, run though the wash and dry cycle again.

unbleached prefold prior to prepping on left, prefold after prepping on right.

boiling the prefolds.

option two : repeat washing
i did this with my pocket & AIO diapers. place in washer machine. put in diaper friendly detergent. run on a hot cycle. i line dry my pockets & AIOs (as well as my diaper covers) to help make them last. but if you opt to put in the dryer, run on a low heat setting. once diapers are dry, repeat the cycle 3-4 more times (do not need to add detergent after the first cycle). again you can test your diapers by pouring 1/2 cup water in them.

diaper friendly detergent? yes, i use a different detergent. i have read up carefully on this and i chose my detergent based on my research and advice from fellow cloth diapering moms. this website was extremely helpful. http://www.diaperjungle.com/detergent-chart.html i decided to use rockin green after many saying it was great with our arizona hard water. when running a load i use a little over a tablespoon, not much is needed.

what is a wet bag? it is a cloth bag with a waterproof liner that you can use to put the dirty diapers in. it is especially helpful for when you have to rinse the diaper prior to throwing in the washer. (we will get to that in part three.) i currently use my large wet bag downstairs in the house. i hang it on the pack-n-play so i have a place for the dirty diapers when i change little man there.

i actually have three wet bags total. the large one, above, plus two others. a small and a medium. i keep the small in my diaper bag. it hold two dirty diapers. the medium i bring in my diaper bag if i know it will be a long outing, it hold about six diapers. 

next time... getting onto actually using the diapers! please feel free to ask questions in if you have any.

fluffy bottom {the basics}

back when we first learned i was pregnant i had gotten the idea stuck in my head to cloth diaper. i am not 100% sure why i was stuck on this, but i was. so i started to look into cloth diapering options.

as a child i remember having a billion old cloth diapers in our home that we used as rags. my mom explained that she cloth diapered me. over the years i slowly got more of the stories. my mom decided to cloth diaper me thanks to horrible diaper rash i was having from disposables, thanks to an allergy. yes i have a very sensitive rear end, still do. my mom told me that originally she used a diaper service, but after a little time she decided to do it herself. figured why pay someone to wash them when she could easily do it herself. i heard stories of the plastic pants that she put over the cloth, how horrible they were. some days she would let me run around in just the cloth so my bottom could breath. i have heard horror stories about the pins, thankfully my mom never stuck me. lastly, apparently i was potty trained before i was even close to being two years old! which my mom thinks is because i hated being wet, cloth does not let you feel dry all.

well as i did my research the idea became a better and better option to me. the biggest reason, the money we would save over the two years you typically diaper a child. secondly, i was fearful our child would have my sensitive skin and cloth seemed to be a better route for that. i really was not sure what i was getting into, but i quickly realized the days of diapering like my mom did with me are over. cloth diapering has come a long way in the 25+ years. no more plastic pants and no more scary diaper pins. we are now in the days of cute diaper covers and a neat little invention called the "snappi." as well as aio diapers, pocket diapers, hybrids & prefolds. all of which were very foreign to me. well now adays there are several methods to cloth diapering. i ended up meeting a friend one afternoon at the local cloth diaper store, zoolikins, to find out more and see the diapers in person.

aio diapers: are the easiest and most simple form of cloth diapering. they are all-in-one. so put on just like a disposable, then just put in the wash as is. easy.

pocket diapers: are similar to the AIO, only they have an absorbant insert that you remove. makes it so you can change how absorbant the diaper is. and in turn makes for faster drying since you are taking out the insert when cleaning.

hybrids: have a reusable cover, but a disposable absorbant insert, usually flushable. there are now serval brands that are fairly common. flip diapers & g diapers are two examples. these also take a reusable insert, if you so choose. {i do not own any of these, check out the links above for more info}

prefolds & diaper covers: this is the closest method to what my mother did with me. it is a two step diaper. the first is the flat prefold diaper that you fold around childs bottom and use a snappi to hold in place. next you place a diaper cover on top.

 

well after all my information gathering to go the route of the prefold and covers. why? because it is the cheapest method of cloth diapering and for me the main reason for cloth diapering was the cost savings. so far i am a month in and i am loving it! i have not looked back to the world of disposables and doubt that i will.


plus little man does not seem to mind that he sports the fluffy bottom look!