I've been interested in cloth diapering for a few years now. But there are very few people in Mississippi who cloth diaper, so I hadn't seen it in action before. In Malawi, our friends the Robbins cloth diapers Elijah, so we were able to see how you really do it. And it is not that intimidating! We've also met several families in Vermont who clothe diaper.
We've decided to go ahead with cloth diapering for Jack. There are several reasons behind our decision:
1) the Environment -
Bech and I both believe that Christians should be actively concerned about the condition of the Earth. Not to the point of freaking out about global warming (God is going to come again and redeem this earth!), but to the point of caring about our individual effect on the earth. One way we can do this is by limiting the amount of waste and trash we create. And disposable diapers create a LOT of waste! Abut 27.4 billion disposable diapers are used (and then thrown away) each year.
Clothe diapers do use water for washing, but the amount of water used is minimal compared with the lack of waste created.
2) Cost Effectiveness -
Clothe diapers are a lot cheaper in the long run! For two years in diapers, parents will spend about $1600 on disposable diapers. We will spend probably $400 total on cloth diapers. Factor in doing the laundry (we have to use coin machines) and the total cost should be $1000 or $1100 total! Already we have saved $500! Plus, cloth diapers are reusable from child to child, so with our next baby, we should only have to buy a few new inserts and pay for laundry, and we'll be set!
I have been pricing out diapers for a month or two now. There is a local kids store who had a huge sale today. I got a 20% coupon when I walked in the door this morning. I figured this would be a great day to stock up on some diapers. The best price I've found for FuzziBunz and Bumgenius diapers has been about $19. But with my coupon, I was able to get the diapers for $16! I went ahead and got 11 diapers. I know I will need more, but I wanted to just get a start on buying the diapers.
I got 7 FuzziBunz and 4 Bumgenius. I was going to get all FuzziBunz, but I couldn't pass up the really cute Bumgenius artist series. I have been eyeing them online for a while!
Here's my loot:
A close up of a FuzziBunz diaper:
The artist series:
Seriously, how cute is that pattern???
5 comments:
1) My parents used cloth diapers for me, but they used disposable for the boys (or at least for Ryan). In other words, at least some people in MS have used cloth diapers in the last 2.6 decades!
2) You're going to need WAY more than 11 diapers. Don't babies go through like 8-12/day? If I hear of any sales I'll be sure to let you know. I think Jennifer Bouley used them; you can ask her about them.
love the diaper choices!!! you will be happy to have a few different kinds since babies are all shapes and sizes. you might need a few more diapers but not too many. it's true that newborns go through about 10 diapers a day, but after 2-3 months, they average about 5-6 with one over night diaper (stuffed with two inserts).
Do you remember Denley Perry from Prep? She has a 1 1/2 year old baby and #2 on the way. She does cloth diapers and wrote 2 blog posts about it:
http://inthewarmholdofyourlovingmind.blogspot.com/2010/12/babykins-bootykins-part-1.html
http://inthewarmholdofyourlovingmind.blogspot.com/2010/12/babykins-bootykins-part-2.html
I did/do cloth diapers. Not 100% of the time, but a good majority. It is not that bad, and after the first 3-5 weeks, the baby poops less often sonyou won't have to wash as many as often. I used them up until my son was about 18 months and am using the same ones for my daughter now. I use BumGenius adjustable diapers. Good luck.
Could refer me to the store where you bought the cloth diapers mentioned in this post? I am from South Mississippi and haven't been able to locate any stores closer than New Orleans.
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