It’s a Whole New World

Well, it was a long time coming, but the day has finally come. I am a cloth diapering mama. *Bows during applause*

Okay, in the grand scheme of things, I guess it wasn’t really that long. My son is 3 ½ months old, so that’s all of the time and money we’ve invested in disposables. But once my husband realized how much we spent on disposables in that short time (even with having so many as gifts), it was easy to sway him towards cloth. This was at 2 months old. Because I had a good-size arsenal of disposables, I had plenty of time to research all the different types and brands to figure out what would work best with our tight budget and lifestyle.

It was completely overwhelming to research the world of cloth diapers. I had no clue what any of this jargon meant. AIO, prefold, RNG, stripping??? AGHHHH!!!!! It was harder to learn about them than it was to decide if I wanted to use them. But after about a week of drowning in information, I finally began to understand what it all meant. I have the most interest in using hybrid systems, so I have invested in the bumgenius flip system. Easier laundry since there are two pieces, so it’s quick drying. They are one size, so I won’t be purchasing new diapers ever few months. They are reusable covers, so I don’t need as many of those. Also, a big appeal was that they have a disposable option if we need it.

And most surprising of all, it was an even bigger money saver than I had originally thought. I thought I was going to have to shell out $500+. This didn’t seem like it would be that huge of a savings spread out over 2.5 years. My son can use almost any disposable (some better than others), so I was able to find great deals using coupons and sales since I wasn’t limited to one brand. I calculated I would spend about $1000 on disposable diapers. My biggest financial reason for wanting to use cloth was the multi-baby factor. It was for baby number 2 that I expected I would be saving money. But once I found the right compromise of quality, reusability, and cost, I realized I would be spending less than $300. Um, yes please, I would like to pocket $700 (and another $1000+ for each subsequent baby). Especially when you think about how sposies mean you’re basically just throwing money into the trash!

I also liked the “green” factor of cloth diapers. I am not a particularly green mama, I don’t recycle 100% of the time, my car is average on gas mileage, but I absolutely hate how many disposables I’ve thrown into landfills. Approximately 550!! In 3.5 short months! Ew.
I still have a small stockpile of disposables, and I still have a good number of cloth diapers to buy before I can go full time. But this new world is so much more fun and addicting than I ever thought it would be. I think I will end up buying a few one size all-in-ones or pockets, even though the majority of my stash will probably remain flips or other one size hybrids. Honestly, I think I’ll end up spending more on cloth than I would on sposies (shh don’t tell my husband!), but it’s not MY fault that there really are no cute options in the sposie world.

By Marianna G.