Going Cloth

Our journey into "cloth" began when I worked at BESTFed, a breastfeeding resource store which has since closed. The owner, Susan, cloth diapered and whenever she changed her kids I would say the obligatory "You're so good, I've been meaning to try cloth diapering...(trail off and start straightening slings)"

Giving It a Try
It was my husband who finally kicked my butt into trying it. He heard a sermon entitled "God is Green" by Rob Bell. So he comes home and starts spewing off these facts:
-Disposable diapers make up at least 15 percent of municipal solid waste
-Disposable diapers are the 3rd largest single item contributing to our landfills.
-By the time a child is potty-learned, the average child will go through close to 5,000 diapers and put more than 2.5 tons of waste in our landfills.
-Parents will spend, on average, approximately $3,000 on disposable diapers and wipes from birth to potty-learning.
-It takes 440 to 880 pounds of tree-fluff pulp and 286 pounds of plastic (including packaging) per year to supply one baby with disposable diapers.
-It takes one cup of crude oil to make one disposable diaper, not to mention the oil used and emissions created by the creation and transportation of them to local stores.
Okay, okay, I get it.

Getting Started
On my friend and boss Susan's insistence, I took a trip to Wildflower Diapers in Scottsdale, Ariz. Shannon was incredibly helpful in getting me started trying pocket diapers, which are just as easy to use as disposables, keep baby feeling dry and come in lots of cute colors. Once I found out which kind I like (Happy Heinys One Size for me), I started branching out and exploring prefolds and Snappis (no more pins!), cute fitted diapers (I ordered a Goodmama Switchbox!), and even yummy custom-knit wool shorties and soakers. Needless to say, I'm sustainably addicted. What started as the environmentally responsible thing to do has turned out to be my favorite hobby.

Sustainably Addicted
I think it's safe to say that I'm addicted. I've tried to figure out what it is about CDing that is so darn fun. I love everything about it. I love hanging my laundry out to dry on a clothes line. I love stuffing the pockets and folding the fitteds neatly in a little basket. I love picking out which diaper he's going to wear next. I know, I know: They're diapers. But other CDing mamas will tell you the same thing - there's just something about it.
Still stumped as to what is so addicting about cloth? Here's what I've come up with.
-Women love to shop, but hate to spend money on themselves. It's a way to indulge without really spending it on ourselves.
-We love deals and FSOT sites are great for that. When you find that dream diaper in the perfect fabric for $10 less than it retails for, well, it's exhilarating.
-We are creative by nature. Choosing fabrics for a custom diaper or sending in colorway for a custom wool soaker, and then seeing another mama turn it into something beautiful is really exciting.
-We seek out sisterhood. I love knowing that I'm buying handmade items from work-at-home moms, or swapping diapers with another mama who shares some of the same parenting principles I do. For a mom who works from home and lives far from most of her other stay-home mommy friends, these forums can feel a lot like friendship.

Try It!
If you're even thinking about cloth diapering, I encourage you to try it. You can get started for pretty cheap if you check out some of the more popular For Sale or Trade (FSOT) sites like Diaper Swappers and Diaper Pin.
The biggest challenge for me was figuring out the laundry aspect. You have to use special detergents or you'll ruin your dipes (Country Save and Calgon work well for me). There's a great chart on detergents for cloth diapers, too.
I'm happy to answer any questions you have about cloth diapering. The same goes for breastfeeding or anything else you see me post about on here. I love to give CDing tutorials. Just ask my husband. :) LOL.
Happy diapering!