Fast-forward a couple of months. I was planning to start a mommy and me swim class with the Miss. For the class, she needed a swim diaper and vinyl pants over it. The pool sold them, but there had to be something better on the Internet, right? What did I find? Re-usable cloth swim diapers with a waterproof outer shell? That would work! And, what are these other things this website sells? bumGenius? Pocket diaper? All-in-one? Huh? I was intrigued but ordered my swim diaper and nothing else.
Around the same time, my best friend was deep in planning for her first baby. She mentioned to me that she was looking into cloth diapers. We have always been highly competitive. So, obviously, if there was something to this cloth diaper thing, I couldn’t let her out-do me. I really started looking into cloth more seriously. The money savings was a big plus. Not having to buy diapers or worrying about how many we had left was a bigger plus. I will admit that, at the time, the environmental benefits didn’t matter that much to me, but it didn’t hurt. Not having all those chemicals against Miss’s eczema prone skin also was a benefit. But, the choices were overwhelming. What do I do?
That’s when I had the fortune of coming across a way to try out a bunch of diapers. I mentioned all the insanity to my husband, not really being sure of what he would say, and he was all for it. We were able to try flats, prefolds, fitteds, all-in-ones, pockets, one-size diapers, snap-ins. It was great. I still remember the first cloth diaper that went on our daughter’s bum: a bumGenius! 3.0 one-size pocket diaper in blossom. The Miss loved it, as you can see in the blurry cell phone photo to capture the moment.
We ordered a stash of bumGenius! 4.0’s when they came out. Luckily for us, my mom watches Miss, so daycare and cloth wasn’t an issue. Washing and using cloth diapers full-time quickly became part of our daily routine. Most people think I’m insane when they find out we use cloth on our girl. Then, I show them a diaper. You can see that moment of realization on their faces. It may not be an “I’m going to get a bunch of these right now!” moment, but their curiosity is definitely peaked. Just making them aware of modern cloth diapers helps spread the fluffy love.
After a late start in cloth and a little wavering in the beginning, I am definitely known as a cloth diaper addict. I’m fine with that, and I try to spread my addiction everywhere we go. Cloth has even made me more environmentally conscious. We have switched to natural cleaning supplies and toiletries. We use reusable snack and sandwich bags. I’m even trying to convince my husband to ditch the paper towels, and we’re going to be installing a rain barrel in the next few weeks. Who would have thought that a swim diaper would have completely altered most of my life? Thank you modern cloth diapers.
Melissa is a first time mommy with a very active and amazing 16-month-old girl. When not working, she can be found playing with her girl, working around the house, exercising, or doing something related to cloth diapers. :o)
6 comments:
My very first one was a swim diaper too!
Even if people don't go for cloth for every day use, it sure works for swim diapers! How much do those swim sposie diapers cost? More than a bummis I'm sure. :)
I've always been disgusted with the idea of babies in pools. Nice to know swim diapers are required in some places.
It's amazing how one thing leads to another! I used disposibles with my first until he was about 1 and I was expecting his baby brother and was looking for ways to save money. Now, I wish I wouldn't have waited so long!
When I was first pregnant, I thought using cloth diapers was insane, but one of my online buddies used them for her daughter, and so I was intrigued. I looked into them, and now, we cloth diaper full time. In fact, my LO has never worn anything BUT a cloth diaper! =D
I also had a late start to cloth diapering - I didn't begin until my daughter was 7 months old, and my motivation was the cost of sposies. But like you, I've become so much more "green" since making the switch!
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