i have a secret : we cloth diaper.

yep, you heard me right. we. cloth. diaper. and the kicker? we LOVE it. now before you go thinking i’ve finally lost it, i want to emphasize the title of the post :

MODERN.

MODERN cloth diapering is NOTHING like it was back in the day {right mom? :)} it’s, well, modern. and by modern, i guess i mean easier. and who doesn’t like easier right? and not only is it easier, it’s soft and comfy for sweet pea, saves the environment, saves me from my typical late night oh-crap-i’m-out-of-diapers diaper run AND it saves money. now you’re listening right? {nods head in agreement} right.

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i bet you’re wondering why we chose cloth diapering. and why, oh why, we chose it for our 3rd baby when the true value {*ahem* money saving} is in the use of cloth diapers for more than one baby…well, it went down like this {dim the lights, cue the music…}

i’d like to tell you it was a well thought out decision, deliberated upon and thoughtfully calculated, but the truth is, as with a lot of things i do, i did it on a whim {abstract random remember?}. a whim like she’s our 3rd baby and the only one that’s used cloth diapers kind-of-a whim. a whim that i’m so very glad i followed.

we spend our summers in montana {the mountains are calling my name right now, but that’s another story} and last summer, i happened into a baby store {which pregnant mama’s often do} only to stumble across a pile of the cutest, most colorful cloth diapers i had ever seen. EVER. is it fair to say it was love at first sight? maybe. i rounded up the sales gal {who also used cloth diapers} and gleaned as much info from her as i could. this didn’t sound so bad. this sounded possible. heck! it sounded do-able. do-able for even a person like myself who so obviously sucks at doing laundry. i left that store thinking : i can DO this. WE can do this.

{proof of the cute and colorful statement from above}

and that’s my fairytale story into the land of cloth diapering {insert ooh-ing and ah-ing}. a land that’s not what you think. it’s not old school. it’s new school. it’s MODERN.

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now, i know i said i {we} decided this on a whim, and truly, we did. but i DID do my research after talking to the gal. i researched different cloth diaper brands {there are MANY and each operate a little differently than the other} i felt/touched/used {in store} as many as i could to see how they feel and work. i researched the initial investment versus purchasing disposables for roughly 2.5-3 years. i researched the best ways to launder them, how many we would need, accessories that needed to be purchased, etc. and we still, chose YES! 🙂

after all was said and done, i went with the very first brand i saw and fell in love with. honestly, this design was the most appealing/well thought out design i found. the brand is fuzzibunz. the reason for their appeal? {besides their adorable colors!} they have a one-size diaper! that means one purchase. one time. and then never. again. ever. never-ever.

they have snaps that can be adjusted as your baby gains weight, adjustable elastics for the legs and fit babies from 7-35 pounds! i know this to be true because i ordered the diapers before sweet pea was born and had sunshine wearing them until he was potty trained! they worked like a charm, and he was actually asking for the *soft* diapers over the disposables, so i know they were comfy! seriously, so. cool.

by this point of the post, i can hear what you’re thinking, *yeah, you’re right. they’re cute. heck, they’re even cool. but what about laundry? what about well, poop?*

i’ll tell you, it’s easy. as. pie. and NOT gross…no joke! i’d be lying if i didn’t tell you, my biggest concern when switching to cloth diapers was the *poop* factor…i didn’t want to participate in any unnecessary poop touching, ha! so i found a source for flushable liners {$9 for a roll of 200…SUPER cheap} once your baby starts solids, just put one in every diaper and wa-la! no poop touching necessary, just flush it away! {really, that. easy.}

and laundry? well, we all know i stink at it {uber-stank!}, but honestly, diapers are my favorite kind of laundry, easy and no fold. you do have to buy diaper detergent. i use rockin’ green. it’s fabulous. smells amazing. enough said. wash. stack. stuff. done-dee.

{stuffing your fuzzibunz : liner + cover = stuffed diaper ready for baby :)}

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FAQs

• how many diapers do you have? 17. initially, i purchased 15. 15 diapers + a newborn meant one load of diapers every. day. by simply adding 2 more i now wash every other day. this should lesson as she gets older.
• where do you keep the dirties until you wash them? i have tall trash can with a lid sitting next to my washer. it’s lined with a waterproof liner, so when it’s time to wash, i pull the liner out, dump the diapers in, along with the liner and wash away.
• what do you do with the dirties when you’re out running errands? i have a cute {of course it’s cute, right?}, zippered wet bag that i toss the diapers into and then dump it all into the diaper pail when i get home. easy.
• is it REALLY more cost effective than disposable you’re buying a lot of extra *stuff*? YES, it IS cheaper to cloth diaper, and that includes a bigger water bill {for the extra loads of laundry}, the purchase of diaper detergent, AND diaper liners. still. cheaper. boom.

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here’s where i find my cloth diapering goodies {i’m a montana girl…so i try to *shop local* even though technically, i’m not really local}:

• bibs and binkies : fuzzibunz and rockin’ green {montana store***}
• the natural baby co. : diaper liners, pail liner, wet bag {another montana store***}
• fuzzibunz : for purchase/care of fuzzibunz diapers
• styleberry BLOG : another cloth diapering, photog mama with more personal experience and some great blogposts & videos!

{***BONUS : montana has NO SALES TAX!! tell them life as you live it photography sent you! :)}

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i’m sure there’s other topics i haven’t covered. if you’re interested and have questions, please, please, PLEASE leave a comment below! you never know, someone might have the same question and will silently thank you for asking 🙂

honestly, cloth diapering hasn’t added that much more work, and it feels SO. GOOD. not to look into my trash can with a guilty conscious at all those disposable diapers knowing they are going to sit in the landfill FOR.EVER. and even BETTER, knowing i’m giving sweet pea the best cushy for her tushy, ha! 🙂

happy day all!

xoxo,