Sunday, May 17, 2009

Big Decision

Jason and I have made a big decision about our next baby. We are going to use cloth diapers this time around instead of disposables. Every time I throw out a huge bag of Dylan's gross, stinky diapers, I feel guilty for how much waste just my ONE kid is producing! It feels like I'm filling up a landfill all by myself.... But I always thought, well there's no way I could handle cloth, so I just kept using disposables. Then our friends Daniel and Amanda decided to use cloth with their new baby Elliana. I was impressed, but still thought there was no way I could do it. Then I saw how different cloth diapers are now from when we were babies. There are so many options that I really think anyone could find a cloth diapering system that would work for them. The thing I was most concerned about was dealing with the stinky diapers once solid foods are added to the diet....but then I found out that there are flushable liners you can buy to put inside the diapers once things get messy. So really, there's not much more contact with the "poopies" than with a disposable. And actually, I like this better. Because this way the smelly poop is flushed away immediately, instead of sitting in the diaper pail until it's full, getting stinkier and stinkier. So now, we just have to decide which kind of diaper to invest in. The cost upfront is significant, but in the long run it will save money, and it is so much better for the environment. For anyone who is familiar with cloth diapers, we are thinking about using GroBaby or BumGenius one size pocket diapers. But I'm still doing research, and haven't made a final decision yet. Anyone who is interested in looking into cloth for yourselves, or just want to see what I'm talking about- here are some great websites: www.kellyscloset.com and their blog www.theclothdiaperwhisperer.com