Cloth Diapering 101

Half of my pregnancy was spent reading about cloth diapering, trying to decide whether I wanted to do it and trying to figure out what diapers were best. So I thought a little update on our experience with it might be helpful.

I started out with about 15 used BumGenius diapers, 6 new bumgenius, 2 Kawaii microfibre, 2 Kawaii bamboo and 2 Kawaii heavy wetters.  They are all pocket diapers.

Because Parker was so tiny, I ended up buying 12 used Kawaii newborns (6-22lbs) for $25.

I also bought the Ubbi diaper pail and 2 Ubbi cloth pail bags, and a small wet bag for when we go out.  I also want to buy a large wet bag for when we go away, when Parker is with grandparents for the night or for future babysitters.

As it turned out, the diapers I bought used needed the elastics replaced.  Bumgenius diapers are fairly simple to do this for, but I'm still in the process of doing it.  I find that each diaper takes me about an hour to replace the elastic, so although I can do it, actually finding an hour where I'm not doing anything else has been tricky.  If you are buying used diapers, this is something to be cautious of if you have no interest in replacing the elastics.  

Anyways, so far I'm really liking cloth diapering.  Obviously, it has already saved me lots of money!  Buying diapers when Parker didn't fit into the cloth was so frustrating!  I do have some leaking issues (especially with the used Kawaiis I bought, they may have to be stripped.)  A lot of my leaking issues are just caused by not changing his diaper quickly enough.  You really have to change them every 2 hours.  I ended up buying 12 bamboo inserts from Kawaii.  Bamboo is more absorbent than microfibre and I find it makes a big difference.  However, when stocking up on diapers, bamboo takes a lot longer to dry, so I'm glad I don't only have bamboo or else I would be waiting 3 days for dry diapers!  

My routine:

• Every 2-3 days I wash diapers
• Throw diapers in wash and remove inserts.  Make sure any velcro tabs are attached so they don't stick to inserts.
• Cold rinse
• Hot wash using a small amount of Nature Clean detergent so that there is no build up
• Warm rinse (my machine doesn't rinse in warm so I run a short wash with no soap)
• You need to keep rinsing until all the soap is gone, I find with the one extra rinse it works for me as long as I don't use too much detergent
• Hang to dry in laundry room, or even better on the line as they dry faster and the sun bleaches the stains
• Sometimes I will throw inserts only in the dryer if they aren't drying quickly enough
• Once dry, I stuff the diapers with inserts so that they are ready to go

I don't find the extra laundry a big deal at all!  So far Parker is exclusively breast fed which makes it super easy as there is no pre-rinse required, I can throw the diaper straight in the wash without removing any poop!  Let's just say I'm not in a rush to get him on solids because of this!  I have purchased a diaper sprayer for when that day comes.

I find I like the Bumgenius diapers because they are trim and I actually think they are super cute.  The Kawaii diapers are a bit bulkier but they are nice diapers as well and besides the newborn ones (which have probably already been through a few kids) I don't seem to have leaking issues.  I bought the BumGenius when they were buy 5 get one free so I got a bit of a deal.  Kawaii diapers are much cheaper, so it's definitely nice to get some of those to save money.

I haven't even attempted overnight yet and always put Parker in disposables.  I also sometimes put him in disposables if we are going out as they can typically last longer than 2 hours and I know that I likely won't have any leaks. 

Parker rarely gets any sort of rash with the cloth diapers, and when he was just in disposables I found that he often had a bit of a red bum.

I would definitely recommend cloth diapering to people.  It's not as difficult as you might think it is and they are pretty dang cute, even if they give your baby a big booty.

Parker at 5 months

Weight: Around 9lbs 13 oz

Eyes:  I'm pretty sure they are changing to hazel, which I love.  I have hazel eyes and Ryan has blue eyes and since so far Parker looks 100% like his daddy and nothing like me, I would like to get those hazel eyes!

Clothes: Parker is in 0-3 month clothes but probably won't be for too much longer as I'm thinking he's going to be too long for them soon.  But I always say that and then 6 weeks later he's still in the same size.

Diapers:  Still size 1.  But I have increased the size of some of his cloth diapers as they seemed to be a bit snug.

 Feeding: On demand, so every 2-4 hours during the day.  His morning bottle he has taken up to 6 oz and since I don't usually give him bottles later in the day, I didn't realize that he was eating more then too.  When he stayed at his grandma's overnight he ate a 5oz and a 6oz bottle in the evening.

He's sometimes a bit distracted when he's eating, which I find hilarious.  He will stop and look up at me and smile.  He's starting to get quite the little personality.

Sleep: He's still a super sleeper at night and will usually wake up between 7:30-8:30.  I'm really trying to get him to nap consistently during the day but it's not going very well.  You wouldn't want to miss anything!  He tends to just fall asleep when he wants, and when I actually try to put him down for a nap it never works!  Most of the time that's fine, but sometimes it backfires if we have somewhere to be because if he hasn't napped he gets cranky.

Likes: Holding onto toys and blankets.  Shoving anything and everything into his mouth.  Sucking his thumb/hand.  Bath time.  Being naked.  TV.  

Loves mornings!  I go into his room and if he's awake he gives me the biggest smile.  He's usually pretty happy for a bit before he gets fussy to be fed.  Then after that first feeding he's the happiest baby I've ever seen, non stop smiles!

Dislikes:  Tummy time.  Naps.   

Milestones:   He rolls over a bit more now.  But still often gets stuck on his hand.  He rolls over the most when nobody is paying attention to him.  If he has someone looking at him he's content on his back.

The other night my mom was talking to him and he just started laughing at her.  It was the funniest sound although I'm not sure what it was that he found so funny!  So then of course we had my entire family standing around him laughing at him.  Nothing like being the first baby and getting all the attention...

Firsts:
He had his first sleepover at Grandma and Grandpas.  He was a very good boy for them!

First time swimming and camping.

First wedding. 

Dear Parker:
You are such a happy easy going baby and I don't know what I did to deserve a baby like you!  You bring me so much happiness every single day.  I can't wait to watch you grow and develop every day and yet I want you to stay my teeny tiny baby forever.  You are developing such a little personality, which looks funny in a 10 lb baby, but I love it!  Thank you for making me a mother.  It's the best job in the world, and even though the only payment I get is baby smiles, it's totally worth it.  

A Weekend of Firsts

This weekend we had quite a few firsts.  It was Parker's first wedding, my first night away from Parker and Ryan's first Father's Day.  Let's start at the very beginning...

Saturday my cousin got hitched.  There is nothing my family loves more than a good wedding, and this one did not disappoint!  We brought Parker to the ceremony because I didn't want to push it with how long I could be away from him.  And I found him a cute outfit...

He did great during the ceremony although I did shove a bottle in his mouth at the end of it because he was starting to fuss...

After the ceremony my in laws came to pick him up.  He's a super good baby, but I was kind of nervous that he would be out of sorts once he was in a different place.  Well I was wrong.  He behaved perfectly for them an I'm not really sure he missed me at all.

I was also afraid that I wouldn't be able to let loose and would worry about him all night.  I was wrong about that too.  A few glasses of wine later, I was having a great time!  I only had to put that great time on hold to pump twice. (And dump, don't you worry...) #momproblems

I only had a minor break down when we got home and Parker wasn't there.  It may have been partially alcohol induced.  But overall it was nice to have a baby free night.  I haven't been away from Parker for more than about 3 hours since I had Parker so after 5 months I think that time away was definitely good for me.  

Anyways, the next day was Father's Day!  We went out to Ryan's parents pretty early to see his dad and pick up Parker.  

Parker made Ryan a Father's Day Card all by himself and did that awesome wrap job! (A huggies wipe box with a blanket over it, we're pretty fancy like that.)

It has been amazing to me to see the father that Ryan has become.  From the second Parker was born, Ryan was in love with him.  He was so supportive of both of us with everything we had to go through in the days after his birth.  Parker sure loves his daddy and I can't wait to watch them play together in the years to come.

In a Speedo Trying to Tan His Cheeks

So he wasn't actually in a speedo, and of course my 4 month old baby isn't actually trying to get a tan.  I want him to be as white as his mama!  But Parker did go swimming for the first time.  

My Aunt and Uncle had a pool party this weekend, the pool was 86 degrees, and I thought this was the perfect opportunity to take Parker swimming for the first time.  I was expecting screaming and dramatics.  It turns out, I think Parker liked the pool.  He just kind of sat there in the water thinking "What's the big deal mom?"  We didn't stay in long but I'm thinking that this pool might be somewhere that we frequent this summer.

This picture is from exactly one year ago today at the same pool party.  I remember while we were there I said something about being pregnant and my cousin said is there a chance you are pregnant?  I said well every month there's a chance, but I really don't think I'm pregnant this month.  Little did I know that teeny tiny Parker was growing already.  It's funny how much can change in a year.  I went from wondering if we would ever have a baby to having the sweetest little guy in the world. (I might be biased.)

That Time We Went Camping

This past weekend we went camping for the first time this year.  And Parker went camping for the first time ever.

While I was pregnant I was kind of nervous about camping with a baby.  If you have a baby who is up crying 3 times a night, the last thing you want is to be waking up all of the campers around you as well.  Luckily, Parker isn't that baby.  And he can sleep through pretty much anything.  

So basically Parker did amazingly well this weekend.  I think that the fresh air was great for him.  He slept tons during the day, but when he was awake he was happy and content.  I would just set him in his stroller and he would sit there and smile at us. 

At night he was his typical good baby self and would go to sleep as soon as I put him in his playpen.  The first night he woke up at 5:45 and was fussy, so I did feed him (but being so close to him and being able to feed him in bed is super easy).  Then he went back to sleep until 8.  The second night he slept straight until 8am.

So first camping trip was definitely a success.  Plus the rest of us had a great time too.  We went with my parents and sister.  We had a nice long bike ride.  It was supposed to be a leisurely bike ride but I tried to take a short cut back and we ended up on a mountain biking trail.... oops.  We played games, had camp fires and ate.  

Now we just have to plan the next camping adventure!