My newborn is now a little over 2 months old. And she is wearing a mix of the Thirsties Duo wraps (with flats or 2+ preemie prefolds) and one-sized diapers. The first one-sized diaper we used was a Rumparooz. I stuff it with 1 Thirsties Duo Hemp size 1 insert, and it fits well. Since ours is snaps, it is sometimes hard to get a great stomach seal, but she never leaks. Then, we put a TotBots Easy Fit on her. I LOVE this on her, and we now have 2 of them to use. They are my go-to diaper when I have to change her outside the house. She also has 2 FuzziBunz OS in her stash. One is basically the new Elite diaper, and I love how the buttons are on the inside. These are stuffed with the Thirsties hemp or with the preemie prefolds/doublers too. Getting the 6 snaps on her isn't always easy, but it does fit GREAT on her.
At 2 months old, she was only 9.75 lbs and 24 inches long, so I am happy that these three brands fit her so well. We have a few other OS diapers in our stash, but I am not ready to move them to her just yet (as her brother is still in them). I MIGHT try the BabyKicks on her next though!
Showing posts with label Flats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Flats. Show all posts
Monday, October 24, 2011
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Newborn Adventures
Our newest arrival is almost 4 weeks old. We put her in her first cloth diaper a few hours before she turned 3 days old (since she finally was done with the nasty tar poop). Her first cloth was a Bummis Super Lite wrap (in brown) with a Bummis preemie prefold. It worked well for the short period she was in it. I used disposables on her later that day because we were going to be out of the house (since we hadn't had enough time to confirm the diaper fit well and wouldn't leak), but she has only been in I think 4 disposables since then - two that day and two for her two doctor's appointment. The only reasons I use disposables for doctor's appointment is weight checks and mainly because we don't have an hook and loop pockets that fit her yet.
Our stash for her is 12 OsoCozy natural flats, 6 Bummis preemie prefolds, 3 Thirsties Duo size 1 cotton doublers, 1 Bummis Super Lite NB cover, and 4 Thirsties Duo Size 1 wraps. She was born at just under 7 lbs, and she never lost much weight. The Bummis cover is definitely a better fit for the legs, but it is too short for the inserts. And since she needs more than just one of the prefolds, the cover normally doesn't work out great. But, it is very trim, so I use it when I want cute pictures without a huge rear end. The Thirsties Duo wraps are hard for me to get a good leg seal with. We have teh tabs crossed over as much as possible, but the legs are still a little loose. So, we have pee leaks occasionally. I have them stuffed with a flat, and luckily we never had poop leaks at least. I bet as she fills out they will be great though.
I now wish I had bought at least one HH Mini I think. I love that it is hook and loop and adjustable size. It seems similar in sizing to the Thirsties Duo, so it might not give us a great leg seal though. But, it would be something we could use for the doctor's appointment... But at this point, I don't think it is worth buying it. Before too long she will fit into our FuzziBunz OS and Rumparooz. Unfortunately, these are both snaps in our stash. She will probably fit into our TotBots soon though too, and it is hook and loop.
I am loving using cloth on a newborn though. It is great to not have to take so much garbage out or run to the store for diapers. With three kids now under 4, those things are huge!
Our stash for her is 12 OsoCozy natural flats, 6 Bummis preemie prefolds, 3 Thirsties Duo size 1 cotton doublers, 1 Bummis Super Lite NB cover, and 4 Thirsties Duo Size 1 wraps. She was born at just under 7 lbs, and she never lost much weight. The Bummis cover is definitely a better fit for the legs, but it is too short for the inserts. And since she needs more than just one of the prefolds, the cover normally doesn't work out great. But, it is very trim, so I use it when I want cute pictures without a huge rear end. The Thirsties Duo wraps are hard for me to get a good leg seal with. We have teh tabs crossed over as much as possible, but the legs are still a little loose. So, we have pee leaks occasionally. I have them stuffed with a flat, and luckily we never had poop leaks at least. I bet as she fills out they will be great though.
I now wish I had bought at least one HH Mini I think. I love that it is hook and loop and adjustable size. It seems similar in sizing to the Thirsties Duo, so it might not give us a great leg seal though. But, it would be something we could use for the doctor's appointment... But at this point, I don't think it is worth buying it. Before too long she will fit into our FuzziBunz OS and Rumparooz. Unfortunately, these are both snaps in our stash. She will probably fit into our TotBots soon though too, and it is hook and loop.
I am loving using cloth on a newborn though. It is great to not have to take so much garbage out or run to the store for diapers. With three kids now under 4, those things are huge!
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Made It! Flats Challenge
So, we only had to use flats through Sunday night. And I was kind of glad after my son had dirtied 3 of the four covers we were using. So, yesterday morning we used pockets. Plus, I had to finish a product trial (I am a tester for a company), so I didn't feel bad about switching at all.
But, I had to finish with hand washing all the diapers used on Sunday. Luckily the washing int he sink wasn't terrible. It wasn't fun, and it isn't something I would want to do on a regular basis, but it wasn't the end of the world. It is definitely something I could do in a pinch. Maybe if we travel again for a short period of time I might wash in a hotel sink. But, I don't see myself handwashing on a regular basis, that is for sure.
I think if a low-income family had an adult at home at least half of the time, using cloth would definitely be doable this way. But, many low income families have all of the adults working more than 40 hours a week. I really don't see families in this situation using cloth to save money. The time with the kids is more important than using something reusable in my opinion. Also, day cares won't accept flats and covers a lot of times since they are a little more work than disposables to put on. So, they would only use them at home.
With that being said, the families that are reusing disposables might find using a fw flats and a cover possible. If you only used 2-3 flats a day, you could easily wash in a sink every other day to every third day. It wouldn't cost much (you can get cheap covers for under $10 each, and they would only need one or two), and they would be more sanitary. There are even wasy to go without official cloth diapers. Some people use old t-shirts with fleece as a cover. Some people use old receiving blankets. It could be done for under $10 total if one had to.I am just glad I don't have to!
But, I had to finish with hand washing all the diapers used on Sunday. Luckily the washing int he sink wasn't terrible. It wasn't fun, and it isn't something I would want to do on a regular basis, but it wasn't the end of the world. It is definitely something I could do in a pinch. Maybe if we travel again for a short period of time I might wash in a hotel sink. But, I don't see myself handwashing on a regular basis, that is for sure.
I think if a low-income family had an adult at home at least half of the time, using cloth would definitely be doable this way. But, many low income families have all of the adults working more than 40 hours a week. I really don't see families in this situation using cloth to save money. The time with the kids is more important than using something reusable in my opinion. Also, day cares won't accept flats and covers a lot of times since they are a little more work than disposables to put on. So, they would only use them at home.
With that being said, the families that are reusing disposables might find using a fw flats and a cover possible. If you only used 2-3 flats a day, you could easily wash in a sink every other day to every third day. It wouldn't cost much (you can get cheap covers for under $10 each, and they would only need one or two), and they would be more sanitary. There are even wasy to go without official cloth diapers. Some people use old t-shirts with fleece as a cover. Some people use old receiving blankets. It could be done for under $10 total if one had to.I am just glad I don't have to!
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Flat Challenge Update
So, I knew the using flats would be easy. I also knew the drying rules would be easy. I already do those two most of the time, so it wasn't a big stretch for me at all. But the washing - oh the washing!
I first tried to wash in the bathtub on Tuesday. It wasn't a huge success. I found it hard to agitate them enough, possibly because I had too much water in there, possibly because of the smaller number of diapers in such a large tub. They were okay, but I wasn't 100% happy with the results. Plus, I did it later in the day so I didn't get to let the dry int he sun (which helps make the smell better). So, Wednesday morning I washed 4 diapers as my son took his morning bath. I washed in the sink where I could easily access the diapers and watch for them to be clean enough. And it seems to have worked. I am using Tide because everyone can find it, and I empty the sink 3-5 times each time I wash. But, since the sink holds around 1 gallon, it isn't a HUGE amount of water really. And since I am washing in the morning, I get to dry in the sun. Luckily my son only goes through 4-6 diapers a day (depending on his nap schedule and milk consumption). So, I can just wash daily in the sink until Sunday or Monday.
Now, if I was doing this long term, I would probably buy a hand-powered machine. There is one on the market for around $50 that would fit 10-12 diapers. If I didn't have the money up front, I would probably take the diapers to the laundromat at least once or twice a month to get a "good" cleaning in.
I first tried to wash in the bathtub on Tuesday. It wasn't a huge success. I found it hard to agitate them enough, possibly because I had too much water in there, possibly because of the smaller number of diapers in such a large tub. They were okay, but I wasn't 100% happy with the results. Plus, I did it later in the day so I didn't get to let the dry int he sun (which helps make the smell better). So, Wednesday morning I washed 4 diapers as my son took his morning bath. I washed in the sink where I could easily access the diapers and watch for them to be clean enough. And it seems to have worked. I am using Tide because everyone can find it, and I empty the sink 3-5 times each time I wash. But, since the sink holds around 1 gallon, it isn't a HUGE amount of water really. And since I am washing in the morning, I get to dry in the sun. Luckily my son only goes through 4-6 diapers a day (depending on his nap schedule and milk consumption). So, I can just wash daily in the sink until Sunday or Monday.
Now, if I was doing this long term, I would probably buy a hand-powered machine. There is one on the market for around $50 that would fit 10-12 diapers. If I didn't have the money up front, I would probably take the diapers to the laundromat at least once or twice a month to get a "good" cleaning in.
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