One-Sized Diapers for More Than One Reflections

If you've read any of my other posts, you know that I currently cloth diaper 2.25 kiddos. My preschooler overnight and my toddler and 2 month old fulltime. As time progresses, and new issues pop up, my perception about which diaper best suits our needs is changing. Here are some things I've learned in regards to each of my children and their diapers:

Preschooler:
My girl is big and tall. Although she's 3 1/2, she easily fits into 4T pants and shirts, she's just so long. At the same time, however, her thighs are big and strong (like mama!). So I've found that diapers have to be big enough in the legs or they will dig into her hips.

Kawaiis and Rumparooz leave red marks on her legs, she's just too big to push the 35 lb limit (my guess is that she's around 40 lbs now).

Our go to is a BG 4.0 double stuffed, usually with a hemp insert. I can't remember a time where we've used an additional hemp insert that her diaper has leaked, and she drinks a lot of water. Lately, I have also found that the econobum, even with only one prefold, also does a great job, and as long as I make sure it's on the last snap, it fits fairly well.

Toddler:
The main person we switched to cloth for, her stash consists of a litany of diapers, those recommended to me, those I thought might work, and those I received as the always wonderful free OS diaper coupons. Her stash consists of flips, econobums, BGs, Rumparooz, Kawaiis, Happy Heinys, Knickernappies, Fuzzibunz, a bummis cover, and a couple of Thirsties Duo diapers and covers.

When I first started out, I thought that BGs were the bees knees. Not knowing anything else, they seemed incredibly simple and straight forward. While they are still probably my favorite for her, I love how simple the econobums are when it comes to changing time. In fact, she has managed to takeover all of the econobums that I bought with her little brother in mind.

We rarely ever have leaks with any of her diapers, and if we do, it's usually because she is sitting down, either in a carseat, highchair, or stroller, so that the diaper is somehow squished. I don't think we have ever had a blowout of any sort, and there has certainly been occasion.

I also usually double stuff her diapers at night, usually also with a hemp insert, but it seems I can remember a time or two when we forgot to double stuff and there were still no leaks. I've also grown particularly fond of her Thirsties w/ a cover at night because they just seem so comfy and soft, and they hold their weight very well.

Two month old:
This guy, perhaps not surprisingly, is where I have learned the most so far. When I was purchasing for his stash, before he was born, I tried to use the information I had learned from my girls, which has faired pretty well, but there are some things you just have to observe firsthand.

I knew the BGs would be good for when he got older, and so far they are fitting pretty well, especially the aplix. The snaps are so tough because he is clearly in between sizes, but I know from experience with the toddler that they will pay off in the future in terms of him not being able to get them off as easily.

I knew from both girls that the Rumparooz seemed to run a bit smaller, so I thought those would work out great at least for the first year or so. There happened to be a sale while I was still pregnant, so I got a handful of those in some great colors.

I also had a few Kawaiis, both from my toddler, and also from gifts--who could resist the camouflage print? Certainly not me. (I also ordered a cow print, but my husband said that was too girly, so it went to our toddler :) )

The flips have worked out pretty well, but I have found that both they, and the econobums are just too much to deal with when I am trying to change a screaming newborn all the while preventing my 3.5 and 2 year old from jumping on my bed, climbing into the cosleeper, hiding in my closet, etc., since everybody has to come when it's time to change baby brother's diaper. You can imagine the chaos.

I don't remember how I first decided to order the Fuzzibunz one size diaper, I think it was because I needed a few more diapers to round out his stash, and they were some of the only ones in stock at the time. My toddler has a medium fb in her stash that works well enough, so I decided to give them a shot.

When they first came in the huge box of diapers we had ordered--which both my toddler and I were equally excited about (see photo), I was perhaps overly excited about the adjustable elastic and softness of the interior. Unfortunately, the bright colors I had wanted were out of stock, so we got 3 brown toned diapers.

These have so far been the most challenging diapers for us, but I am determined to make them work. Like I mentioned earlier, my boy is often in between sizes, which has made figuring out what setting to make the elastic tricky. There have been far too many occasions where he has either had major leakage at the seems, including leakage onto me while nursing him, or most recently this week, apparently the elastic was so ill fitted that the diaper didn't catch anything, and the leakage went through his pajamas and onto the floor in a puddle. I've since tightened the elastic, and haven't had leakage since, though we have had some issues with marks on his little legs from being too tight. I haven't given up though. In fact, I went back and ordered two more (this time in the bright colors!) because I am so optimistic that they will eventually, and hopefully soon work out. Aside from issues with leg sizing, we have had no leaks or blowouts, unheard of!

My most recent discovery was how amazingly the Happy Heiny's fit my little man. I hadn't ordered them because they were somewhat frustrating with my toddler. As I mentioned before, anything adding time to changing can be a problem, but that is not the case here. The wrap over tabs are awesome in terms of fit. If I would have known how well they would work out, I would most definitely have ordered at least a few, probably in lieu of the BGs or FBs. Plus, this HH was my free OS, and it came in bright green! In addition to the aforementioned beige, I was so excited to be having a boy that I ordered predominantly blue, so we now have broken the blue/beige monotony, and have a slough of different colors. The adventures of cloth diapering continue!

By Caitlyn Obolsky