Demystifying Cloth Diaper Lingo

When I first started doing research on cloth diapers, I found the amount of information out there very overwhelming. It was made even worse from the fact that I had no idea how to de-code what people were saying on the websites I visited. I saw things such as, “My LO has a BG OTB today!” My mental response to this was, “What?! Is that even English?” The good news is that I have been cloth diapering for months now and have found it much easier and more straight forward than I anticipated. However, I must say that even after stalking many cloth diaper groups for months, the lingo can still be confusing. I frequently find myself googling terms to make sense of what people are saying! From all that I have learned so far, I put together a glossary of some of the more common abbreviations that I have seen on the cloth diaper sites. The list below is in no way comprehensive but I hope it will help out some of you new cloth diapering mommas who are feeling just as lost as I was a few months ago!

Cloth diaper related abbreviations:

CD- Cloth diaper
AIO - All In One diaper
AI2 - All In Two diaper
OS- One size diaper
F&C - Free & Clear (detergent)
FM - fluffy mail
H&L – Hook and loop (Velcro closure diaper)
PUL - Polyurethane Laminate (fabric in which a waterproof laminate has been applied to the back)
BB - BestBottom
BG - bumGenius
FB - FuzziBunz
HH - Happy Heinys
Aplix - Velcro closure on diapers (it’s the same as H&L)
NIP-New in package (Not to be confused with nursing in public!)
Sbish- Sustainablebabyish diapers
EUC- Excellent used condition
OTB-On the bum

Other abbreviations that are not specifically cloth diaper related but are often seen on cloth diaper or natural parenting forums:

FTM- First time mom
BLW-Baby led weaning
LO-Little one
EDD-Estimated due date
BM- Breast milk (occasionally this is used for bowel movement, so context clues are key!)
AP - Attachment Parent
BF - Breast fed
BW – Babywearing
CS - Cosleep
EBF - Exclusively Breast Fed
EC - Elimination Communication (form of early potty training)
DD - DS - DH - Dear daughter, dear son, dear hubby
EBF- Exclusively breast fed
TTC- Trying to conceive
NIP- Nursing in public (don’t confuse with new in package!)

If you see an abbreviation you don’t understand in a forum, you can always comment and ask what it means! It is also helpful to google “cloth diaper [and then the abbreviation].” If you google the abbreviation alone, you may not get anything close to a cloth diaper reference.

I hope the list helps everyone out and demystifies some of those comments you see on CD Facebook pages and forums. CDing is so much fun! Don’t let the lingo intimidate you!

Bio: Laura is a CPA by profession but currently a stay at home mom. She lives with her husband and 6 month old daughter in CT.


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