Then I started scouring Kijiji and eBay for better deals because I felt like I should be able to find some.
And I did.
Wouldn't ya know in my wonderful wonderful hippie city (of course in the downtown core) I found several ads on Kijiji for cloth diapers. At less than 1/2 the price.
So I went to check one ad out yesterday. 6 barely used Happy Heiny pocket diapers plus 9 inserts, 5 more prefolds and 2 more covers for 2/3 of what I paid for the prefolds and wraps at Diaper Days.
Well, I put Jude in the prefolds yesterday and despite getting peed on because I wasn't ready with the diaper fast enough it went okay. I still used disposables at night because they just hold more than regular cloth diapers. I'll look into getting soaker inserts for nighttimes.
Today I put Noah in a cloth diaper after his nap and he was NOT happy about it. To be fair, the Pampers diapers with Elmo, Cookie Monster and Winnie the Pooh are a lot more exciting to a 2 year old. But I stuck with it, adjusted it because he said it was "hurt my bum" so I figured it maybe was a bit tight and then went on until I smelled poop.
It was a major blowout. From Noah. And surprisingly it all stayed in the diaper! It was disgusting as all get out because it was diarrhea (sorry, TMI) so I couldn't exactly just "dump" it in the toilet, so I had to spray it down in the laundry room first. But...he accepted the second cloth diaper much more willingly.
Jude's experience today was also filled with poop. But his didn't stay in the diaper. Not a lot got out, but still, if he had been wearing a disposable it wouldn't have leaked. So that was frustrating. he's on his third (fourth?) outfit today. Oh laundry.
As for fit - well, cloth diapers are WAY more bulky than disposables, but it's bearable.
I also went out and bought three garbage bins. 1 for Noah's room (because the one in there is cracked and broken), 1 for Jude's room and 1 for the downstairs bathroom (because I don't want to have to traipse upstairs with a dirty diaper every time I change one downstairs). So we'll see how it goes. Not sure of the best cleaning method for the bins yet...probably a wash out and then a wipe out with disinfecting wipe or something?
It seems like a lot and there's definitely a learning curve, but I do want to stick with it because I KNOW it will save us money down the road so I think that in and of itself is worth it.
Let's see...current $ spent on cloth diapering: ~$200
How quickly would I spend $200 on disposables with two in diapers? I'm guessing around 3 or 4 months.
More to come on my cloth diapering journey I'm sure...
thats interesting because the Montreal-based diapers I've seen all have reviews form clients saying they were more snug and less bulky than the disposables...maybe because they do hold less liquid (bonus is that it'll help potty-train quicker, so they say).
ReplyDeleteSo great that you found them 2nd hand too!!
I'm glad you're trying this out before I will be, thanks for the post!
Thanks Vanessa for the update... I wondered what happened with the night time aspect.
ReplyDeleteCan you put liners or old shopping bags in your garbage bins and then just throw the liner out after you empty the cloth? Just a thought... it may make it harder, not sure.
Baby M had diarrhea in her second cloth diaper as well. Kind of gross. No diaper liner will contain that! Diaper liner for babies who are eating solids will probably help though.
ReplyDeleteSoakers definitely keep more liquids in the diaper, but I still use disposables for overnight and long outings - mostly for my peace of mind and not having to wake up baby M for a diaper change during the night.
Oh... and tea tree oil helps mask smells and if you add a couple drops into the diaper laundry load, it improves the smell of diapers post-usage and cleaning.
I use a big plastic bucket to hold the cloth diapers until I wash them in the washing machine. Then I give the bucket a little rinsing, drop some tea tree oil at the bottom and use it again. Disinfecting is probably a good idea.
@Deb - thanks so much! Yes, I had read about tea tree oil being useful for containing odours. I'll have to keep my eye out for it the next time I'm out.
ReplyDelete