Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Wherein I talk about butts and poop

(So if those things make you uncomfortable, skip this post.)

So, we made a big switch around here... we started using cloth diapers, and they're surprisingly easy! Poor McKayla has had THE worst diaper rash for about a month, possibly longer. It goes away for a day or so, but comes back for a week. Last time she actually got a chemical burn from her disposable diapers, and diaper rash cream was not helping. I decided it was time to take the plunge and start cloth diapering. For about a month I did tons of research about types of cloth diapers, benefits of cloth vs. disposables (do y'all know what is in disposable diapers!?!?), cost savings, water/electricity usage, and how to wash the darn things. Then I bought some, and waited, and waited for UPS to finally bring them.
I got three Flip covers and three bumGenius 4.0's. My bumGenius diapers are pocket diapers which have pockets you can stuff with absorbent layers to make them more or less absorbent. Once they are stuffed they're pretty much the same as disposables. Especially since I got mine in hook and loop closures, which for those of you who are now confused, like I was.. VELCRO. Seriously y'all, this is NOT hard. Flips are a little different. They're covers that have flaps on the inside top and inside bottom and you stuff the insert between those flaps and then put it on the baby. Flips are nice because when I need to change a diaper, I can just change out the insert and leave the same cover on. Well, unless it's soiled, like, you know, with poop. Both diapers are one size diapers which means they're both fitting my itty bitty baby girl and my GIANT 40 lb. two-year-old.
Y'all, McKayla, my SUPER sensitive-skinned baby girl, woke up this morning WITHOUT diaper rash! Granted she leaked a little because she fell asleep in a Flip and not my double-stuffed bumGenius, but she was not even red. John slept in a bumGenius though and he didn't have a single leak. Oh, and poop, it's really not such a big deal, and I don't even have a nifty diaper sprayer. I grabbed the insert by it's tag and dunked it. I didn't touch poop, and I didn't touch pee which never happens because McKayla always has a blowout when she poops! No one should get concerned at this part... I wash my hands. In all seriousness, cloth diapering is maybe a little more time-consuming than disposables, but the benefits far outweigh a few extra loads of laundry and some poo dunking.