The Great Diapering Debate

Cloth or Disposable

By Guest Blogger Ruby from the Sweet House Life Blog

 

The Scoop on Poop

Disposable Blowout

When I first think of cloth diapers versus disposable diapers one word comes to mind.  Poop.  Let’s be honest here, every baby does it, not every diaper contains it.  Speaking from my own experience with cloth and disposables, I have only had one true poopexplosion using my cloth diapers, and that, unfortunately, was because of user error.  The poop exploded up her side and all over her pretty pink onesie.  It was gross.  So gross, I never wanted it to happen again.  Then, enters our weekend of disposables….. we decided to take a suitcase full of disposables on a weekend to the grandparents’ house (I was truly scared to travel with cloth at this point).  All was going well, smiling baby, giggling grandparents, tons of pictures, and then you hear “OH NO, grab a towel.”  In baby-land, that can mean two things, either you got blasted with spit up, or pooped on.  Unfortunately for grandma, it was the latter of the two.  There was poop everywhere, all over my daughter, grandma, her blanket and even her socks.  It was sick. What might you ask then is the difference between the disposable poop and the cloth poop?  Well, it happened four other times JUST that weekend…. that, my friends, is the difference.  One poop explosion, when we’ve been using cloth for over nine months, versus four poop explosions after using our disposables for a mere 3 days.   Needless to say, we now travel with cloth EVERY single time.  Also, after hubby received the other three blowouts, he was a cloth believer ;). 

                Why do cloth diapers tend to hold the poo in better? I believe it has to do with the back elastic on the cloth diaper.  It has the ability to be snuggly up against the baby’s back and conform to their actual curves, thus holding in the diapers contents.  With the adjustable leg openings, Velcro closure, adjustable absorbency, and back elastic, you have a diaper that fits perfect every single time.

All About the Benjamins

                Let’stalk about my husband’s favorite part of cloth diapering, saving all those benjamins!!!  I’m not going to lie, as the budgeter of the family, I love it too. Want to make yourself feel good? Write down all of the things you do to save money in one column with the associated costs, and then in the other column write down what it would cost you if you decided not to save that money. Ahhhh, instant gratification.  Cloth diapering will just add to that amazingly satisfied feeling.

 Let’s say you spend about $450 on your initial diapering costs.  This would include a package of enough Softbums diapers to get your child from birth to potty training, a diaper sprayer, some detergent, and your wipes and wipe solution.  This might seem like a large amount, and it is, up front, but me oh my it will save you in the longrun. 

Let’s assume that the average family using disposables will consume about 63 diapers a week (9 changes in a day).  Each disposable diaper costs about 27 cents (I used a package of Huggies on Amazon.com).  Therefore, disposables are costing roughly $68 a month, $816 a year, or $2,040 in 2 ½ years, and remember, this is conservatively speaking. 

Now, there are some slight continuing costs associated with cloth diapering.  Our water bill has gone up between $4-$6(using an HE washing machine), we hang dry, so we haven’t seen an increase in our electricity, and about once every four months I have to buy detergent which is $13.  Overall, a continuing cost of about $100.00 a year.  So from birth to 2½ years, it would cost roughly $700.  At this point, many of your items can be used for more children as well, thus giving you an even greater savings.  I don’t know about you, but in my mind $700 > $2,040 (however you want to do your math ).

 “So, It’s Just Like a Disposable”

                Now, one thing that people who aren’t into cloth diapers always say is, “disposables are just so much easier.”  My response? Well, let me show you how easy cloth is. I take it off of my child’s bum, use a cloth wipe, wrap the snapped in insert and wipe up together and throw it in a wetbag.  When the wetbag is full, I dump everything into the washer, and wash it.  When it’s done, I hang it up.  If it’s poopy, I spray it, so add 10 seconds onto my diaper change time.  I suppose I don’t understand the difficulty of it.  The interesting thing that a lot of people don’t know is that if you read up on disposable diapers, it actually states that you are supposed to flush the poo down the toilet.  It isn’t supposed to go into a landfill (I wonder how many people actually do that). So, if you truly used a disposable diaper in the way that it was intended, it wouldn’t necessarily save you any time during the diaper change process. 

                One thing I love is when I have a disposable diaper using friend babysit my child (this EXACT situation has happened three different times).  I go to show them how to use my Velcro cloth Softbums, and I do it by demonstrating on my baby.  Once I show them (in all of 5 seconds) the next thing out of their mouth is “so, it’s just like a disposable.”  Why yes, it is just as easy to put on as disposables, and I always want to throw in there “but yet my child won’t poop all over you,” but I generally refrain. 

                Remember that story from the first paragraph? Our weekend with disposables? Well, we had to stay in disposables for a while after that because my sweet little one had contracted a yeast infection from them (doc said it was likely the Ph level difference in the diapers), and we couldn’t use the cream with our cloth diapers.  Therefore, we were stuck using disposables for an extra week.  That being said, when we were nearing the end of the everlasting yeast infection, my husband was changing a diaper as I was sitting in the nursery, and he asked me “when can we go back to cloth?”  My response was,“soon, why?” and his most AMAZING response ever was, “because it’s easier.”  Enough said.

                So,when you have a friend or loved one say, “why choose cloth?” you have your gunsblazing and your facts ready!  It’s just obvious, cloth wins everytime!

 

And really, who can resist the cute factor?

Keeping the Sickies Away!

Colds, Flu's, Bug's

ICK ICK ICK, boogers and snot galore thats what has been in our house since the first snow!

So what are we to do about it? Every year we deal with this with our kids you would think we would have gotten it straight by now. Right? Nope..

Unless you never leave your house ever I think it's going to happen one way or another because germs are out there everywhere and not enough people are staying home when they are sick, unfortunately.

So what can we do to help prevent ourselves and our kids from getting sick?

• Hand Sanitizer/ Wash you hands.
• Netti pot/ Clean your nose
• Take Vitamins
• Purfify your home
• Stay home/ get rest.

How many times did you wash your hands today?

If you can remember how many times, then you haven't washed enough. haha, Well its true, we all simply do not wash our hands enough during the day. Which is why it is the number one reason kids get sick so easily. They put their hands on EVERYTHING! Then they put their hands right in their mouths. Try adding food coloring to the soap or buying foaming soap to make hand washing more interesting for the the kids. If you have senstive skin and hand washing wrecks havoc on your skin, try keeping some moisturizer next to the sinks you have in your house, also try buying soap with moisturizers in it.

Did you ever hear your grandma ask if you were keeping your nose clean?

It may sound strange but the nasal passages come equipped with tiny, hair-like structures called cilia, which beat back and forth to catch dirt, bacteria, viruses, and other unwelcome substances. The cilia beat and the mucus acts kind of like flypaper, catching spores and particles you inhale. Those particles get pushed down to the back of the throat, where they are swallowed and destroyed by stomach acid. But some mucus gets trapped or is too thick to make its way so thats where using nasal saline spray or a netti pot can help clear the passages, before the bacteria has time to grow and cause infections in the ear, nose or throat.

 

Are you getting the recommended Daily Value of Vitamins?

In the winter, most of us are not getting enough vitamins which causes, dry skin, dehydration, fatigue and a weaken immune system. By drinking more water (6-8- fluid oz daily), milk, pure fruit juices, and fresh fruits & veggies you will be getting your daily recommended amount of calcium, vitamin D, & A. Some other helpful vitamin supplements that can help boost your immune system would be zinc, vitamin b-12 and elderberry. It is best to ask your doctor and pediatrician before adding any supplements to your daily regimin just to be sure they are right for you and/ or your child.

Add Purifying Plants to your Home.

Photo Credit

 

There are several indoor plants you can buy (at home depot, lowes, even the grocery store) that have air purifying & oxygenating qualities. This is good to have in many rooms in your home to help rid the indoor air of toxins and help add oxygen to the air, and some even add humidity to the air which can help our bodies in the cold, dry, winter.

Here are a few indoor plants that you can look for: Areca Palm, Baby Rubber Plant or Peperomia obtusifolia, Ficus robusta, Bamboo Palm or Reed Palm, Chinese Evergreen, Corn Cane or Mass Cane, English Ivy, Ficus alii, Gerbera Daisy, Golden Pothos.

 

You can read more about each plant here:

http://www.sustainablebabysteps.com/types-of-houseplants.html

 

Finally, the easiest way to preventing collecting germs and illnesses is to stay home when possible, but when you can't, try and avoid the 8 most common places to get in contact with bad germs are:

• Restaraunt Menu's
• Lemon wedges (dont ask for lemon in your water, because the surface most places are cutting them are not clean)
• Ketchup Bottles
• Bathroom Soap Dispensers
• Bathroom Door Handle (uses a paper towel to open the door)
• Airplane bathrooms (try to avoid using them, go before you get on the plane)
• Grocery Store Carts (always wipe them down before using them)
• The Drs Office (If your child isnt sick dont take them to the clinic if at all possible, If for a well check ask if you can wait in a room right away instead of in the lobby with all the sick kids)

Resources:

http://voices.yahoo.com/the-top-10-vitamins-winter-5343955.html

http://www.webmd.com/allergies/guide/neti-pot-nasal-irrigation-pros-and-cons

http://www.sustainablebabysteps.com/types-of-houseplants.html

 

http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2013/01/08/avoid-these-8-surfaces-with-the-most-germs-stay-healthy/

February, 2013 Calendar Bum

One year of Calendar Bums! In 2012 we introduced Calendar Bums! Each and every month we introduced a new limited edition color or print. This month we are celebrating 1 year of Calendar Bums! Click HERE to see past months. To celebrate 1 year of Calendar Bums we are bringing back a much loved and requested color, FIRECRACKER! This time it is available only in Omni with Velcro.

Enter here to win one of your very own!  

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