The Change-Diapers family is growing! I am pleased to announce two Change-Diapers contributors, each of whom is expecting a new baby in the coming months. Keep reading to get to know them a little bit.
Meet Janel:
Janel Clark is a full-time first-grade teacher as well as a mom. She loves being around kids. Sharing cloth diapers with family and friends, as well as other products her family enjoys using is a passion of hers and she is eager to share that with you too. She has been active in the cloth world since before having her son. In fact, using cloth diapers was actually her husband’s idea and he loves sharing about it too!
Janel, her husband Chris, and their adorable 2.5-year-old son, Miles, live in Kentucky with their 2 dogs and 2 cats. Miles is such a blessing in their lives. These days he is keeping his parents busy with potty learning and stepping up to the role of big brother. Janel and Chris struggled with infertility, taking quite some time to get Miles. The family is over the moon excited to welcome baby boy number 2 who is expected to arrive in early February.
The Clark Family used cloth diapers from the very beginning with Miles, although it did take them a little while to build a stash before committing full time. The Clarks have tried many styles of diapers. While they have variety in their stash, between working full time, home, daycare and grandparents, all in ones work best for their family. They can’t wait to take out the cute newborn diapers and get them ready for the next baby as Miles nears the end of his time in cloth diapers.
Meet Bianca:
Hola Everyone!
My name is Bianca, and I am the newest blog contributor for Change-Diapers! I have been a part of the Change-Diapers Family both the Change-Diapers Facebook Page and Change-Diapers Facebook Group since September of 2013. I stumbled across the blog after one year of having my first born son in cloth diapers. I’ve stuck around ever since. So when Maria said she was looking for new blog contributors, I jumped at the opportunity!
I am a 27-year-old wife and mother to 2, soon to be 3 children. Born and raised in Long Beach, California to immigrant parents from Mexico, my family moved to Rowan County, North Carolina in 2001. Moving from the West Coast to the South while I was a teen was hard and culture shock has always been something that has stuck with me. I did my meet my husband here in NC; we had our first child in 2011 and married in 2013. We are a multi-cultural family; I am Mexican American, and my husband Henry is African American. Our children are Emilio Artis (age 6) and Lucy Ann (age 3). Gender and name of Baby number 3, due at the end of the year, will be revealed when he or she is born!
Emilio was my first cloth diapered baby and is now 6 years old and in first grade. He was born in August of 2011. I did not start cloth diapering him until he was 12 months. Yup, he was one year old when we started our cloth diaper journey. I was gifted my first sets of gently used cloth diapers by a group of wonderful women, I have only ever met these ladies online through a breastfeeding support group. The diapers included the original Bumgenius pockets and microfiber inserts, Kushies All-in-Ones, and Kawaii pockets – just enough to get me started. From there I searched the web for more information about cloth diapers, started buying my own cloth diapers from Buy Sell Trade groups, and eventually ventured into cloth retailers.
So, a year passed by of E being in and out of cloth diapers. Around the time he was 2 ½ our family hit one of many rough patches. Financially, we were struggling to make ends meet and with that, struggling to buy disposable diapers. It was at this point that we decided as a family that we would have to cloth diaper our son full time in order to save some money. Not too long after, we found out we were pregnant with baby number 2; estimated due date May 2014. During my second pregnancy, our home was foreclosed, and some days rarely had anything to eat. Sometimes the only food we did have was food from our WIC vouchers. The first 5 months of my second pregnancy were hard and I was hospitalized a few times for dehydration, but by the last 4 months we were in a much better place, and ready for our baby to be earth side. Lucy was born June 2014, just a couple weeks late of her EDD, and with Lucy, came so many blessings.
Lucy was in cloth diapers when she was two weeks old and after her stump fell off, we were in cloth full time. She was a small baby at around 6 lbs, so she still fit great in her newborn cloth diapers. This was our first time cloth diapering a newborn and I loved every minute of it. My favorite styles and brands to use at that time were Kissaluvs size 0 fitteds with RumpARooz covers, and Bummis Super Whisper Wraps with padded prefolds. And after newborn cloth I bought so many styles and brands of one size cloth diapers. I had two in cloth at one point: Emilio in cloth trainers, and Lucy in one size. Lucy is still in cloth and soon we will have a new baby to cloth diaper. I’ve slowly started building my newborn stash and I have a great variety. Some of my favorites, of course, are Kissaluvs, prefolds, and Bummis. And some new styles and brands to try! I am so excited and can’t wait to document and share our cloth diaper journey with baby number 3!
I am so excited to have Bianca and Janel join the Change-Diapers family. I think they will each bring a fresh new perspective and, of course, those squishy new babies! Be sure to stop by the Change-Diapers Facebook page or Change-Diapers group and say hello to both of them.
Maria wants to live in a world where cloth diapers are the norm and moms can make parenting choices without judgement. When she’s not chasing her 18, 14 and 11-year old kids around, you might find her checking out the latest gadgets, organizing something (again) or exercising in the fresh air. 
