Sized or One Size

Dec 22,2009 / By Maria / No Comment

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One of the big questions when looking for diapers is, do I buy sized diapers or one size?

It was pretty easy for me to choose one size. They do tend to be a bit bulkier because of the snap down rise, but that is worth the convenience to me. I thought fuzzibunz were annoyingly bulky on the sides in a medium setting, so I would definitely be interested in trying a medium FB.

I stress over clothing sizes as it is. Sizing isn’t consistent from brand to brand, sometimes you need a different size top and bottom, trying to pack up one size & get another out. It makes me crazy!

Sized diapers tend to be a few dollars cheaper than their one size counterparts, since there is less material used. I’ve heard many people say they were able to make due with just small and medium sizes, skipping newborn and going to trainers in lieu of larges. Still, you’re looking at a larger expenditure for sized diapers.

With one size diapers, you can easily switch sizes on the fly, making for simpler diapering of multiple children. It’s also nice to be able to go up a size & add extra inserts for nighttime.

I’ve also heard people say their size went down as they became more mobile/their body shape changed a bit. O/S diapers make this more manageable.

Now, one size diapers often say they will fit at 7 or 8 pounds, but do not really fit well until 9 or 10. If you have a really tiny baby, this can be a problem. Happy Heinys and Rumparooz have an extra small setting, and a few companies even have a mini one size diaper that will go from birth to 15 pounds or so. You still have the issue of steering clear of the umbilical cord stump though. Some people just do disposables for a few weeks. Rumparooz has a tiny all in one that fits preemie-12 lbs and has a snap down for umbilical cord care. They have the inner gussets and they are just soooo little and cute. I don’t think I could justify the expense, but I sure do love them!

If you have a very large baby, or a late potty trainer (learner), one size diapers may not take you all the way through either, so keep that in mind!

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Peace Bears!

Dec 20,2009 / By Maria / 2 Comments

>I already have a Happy Heinys Diaper in the silly monkey print. I loved the peace bears print and was so excited to get it! It’s adorable as I expected.

It must be a newer version than the other one I have, because the inserts are slightly contoured, making for a better fit.

Also as expected, it fits wonderfully and trim!

One thing I like about HH over other one size diapers is that they have 4 settings.

Extra Small

Small

Medium

and large

The wide, overlapp-able tabs give you plenty of adjustment. They also come with snaps, and I’d love to try one. The laundry tabs on this diaper aren’t great, but I have pretty good luck twisting and connecting the tabs as illustrated on their site.

Overall, it’s a bit bigger than the Bumgenius 3.0. I don’t have any trouble with this diaper!

Edit August 2010: This doesn’t fit my son well and ends up leaking. It’s in my “laundry day diapers” drawer now, but I hope it will fit again when my son grows.

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Cloth Diapers Giveaway

Huuuuuuge giveaway!

Dec 18,2009 / By Maria / No Comment

>This is the best diaper giveaway I’ve ever seen! Diaper Junction is giving $300 worth of cloth diaper products. The winner gets to choose! That is enough $ to be able to CD full time!

Go enter! Go go go!

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Cloth Diapers

Go with the flow

Dec 14,2009 / By Maria / No Comment

>The best piece of advice I could give for getting started with cloth is to go with the flow.

People who know me well know how unlike me that really is. I wish I were easygoing, but I’m just not. I have to have everything planned, figured out, all scenarios worked through in my head. It’s only been in recent years that I’ve accepted that I’m wound a little bit tightly and that’s OK.

When I thought about starting cloth, I wanted to know exactly what brand to buy, how many, and how often I would wash. I wanted to wash, dry, stuff, fold and put away. I wanted to have some upstairs and some downstairs. A pail up and a pail down. Everything neat and in order. I wanted a stash in the diaper bag at all times. Now, I just grab a couple as we’re leaving, depending on how long we’ll be gone, and go with it. I needed to know exactly what my washing routine would be. Now, I vary it based on whether they are wet or dirty, how many there are, whether they’re stinky and so forth.

As I’ve been trying new things, my initial intent was to figure out what brand I wanted to stock up on. I’ve managed to loosen up and take a different approach. Instead, I am just trying new things and figuring out what I like best. If there’s something I really like, I will choose that brand if I have a few bucks to spend on diapers, or if there’s a really good sale. If it’s not my favorite, it will be at the bottom of the pile, in essence a “laundry day” diaper.

While I was expecting my first child, I was worrying about the teenage years, college and weddings. So when I was thinking about cloth diapering, I was worrying about solid foods and potty training. I’m working on a post about solid foods and cloth diapers now, but again, right now I am just doing what works for us.

We’re actually using our laundry room as a “diaper pail” right now, either throwing the diapers directly into the washer, or putting them in the utility sink if I am doing other laundry. If we change one upstairs (usually just one or two a day up there) we just carry it down. Definitely NOT what my little organized mind wants, but it’s working for us!

I am really proud of myself for being able to stick with what works for us right now & not worrying too much about tomorrow.

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Cloth Diapers

Biokleen Bac Out

Dec 11,2009 / By Maria / 1 Comment

>I had noticed that some of my diapers, specifically the BumGenius, had a stinky smell to them. It seems that “microfiber stink” is fairly common, but the stink I was experiencing wasn’t an ammonia or urine smell, it’s more of a musty, wet towel smell.

Enter Biokleen Bac Out Stain & Odor eliminator.

I had read up on it online and found it at my local organic market. It was $7.99 plus tax for a 32 oz concentrated bottle. The same size bottle without the sprayer was $1.00 less.

Here is the info as listed on the container:

Bac-Out Stain & Odor Eliminator

with Live Enzyme Cultures:

It seems everyone has a Bac-Out story. Bac-Out’s live enzyme-producing cultures attack pet, food and beverage stains, organic waste, and odors until they are gone, digesting them back to nature, safely and naturally. Bac-Out is safe to use around children and pets, even birds.

• Lime Peel Extract cleaning power

• Destroys the toughest odors so they are gone for good

• Excellent for mold and mildew

• Preferred by commercial carpet cleaners nationwide

It seemed a little spendy, but it is a concentrated bottle and it foams when you spray it. I wish I could capture that in a photo, but I haven’t been able to. I figured if it saved my inserts from stink, it would be well worth it, being cheaper than new inserts!

I sprayed each diaper and insert quite liberally and used a good bit of the bottle.

I didn’t initially realize that I was supposed to soak the diapers after spraying, I washed them right away. The spray smelled wonderful, a fresh, lime scent, and left the diapers simply smelling clean.

I even sprayed the washing machine itself, hoping it might help with some of the mustiness I’ve noticed.

I’ve got my shower curtain liner soaking now, and I hear it is great for pet odors. I had used Odo Ban for pet odors in the past, but I’m not a big fan of the eucalyptus scent.

I have to wait & see if it does the trick on the diapers!

Edit August 2010: As of today, the only thing I’ve found that truly takes the ammonia smell out of my microfiber inserts is a dab of bleach.

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