Cloth Diapers?

[phoenixgirl]

Yay, so excited to see pics of Ethan in his CDs! Glad you are figuring out what you like and don't like. You are so smart for doing the trial . . . it'll be a big "oops" if I don't wind up liking part of my $$$$ newborn stash!

I think Bummis and Grovia both make disposable liners. I'd check Amazon so you can get them to your house ASAP. Kelly's Closet takes forever to ship. Diaper Junction is pretty good, but maybe that's because I'm also in VA.

Mayerling, yeah, I would launder them like that, but for actually washing your soiled CDs, I would do hotter than 40/100. I had mine on 125 and now I've bumped it up to 135. Especially if your hot water is on demand, it doesn't get as hot as it's set unless you run the sink a long time first. At least that's a flaw of mine.

 

[mayerling]

Yay, so excited to see pics of Ethan in his CDs! Glad you are figuring out what you like and don't like. You are so smart for doing the trial . . . it'll be a big "oops" if I don't wind up liking part of my $$$$ newborn stash!

I think Bummis and Grovia both make disposable liners. I'd check Amazon so you can get them to your house ASAP. Kelly's Closet takes forever to ship. Diaper Junction is pretty good, but maybe that's because I'm also in VA.

Mayerling, yeah, I would launder them like that, but for actually washing your soiled CDs, I would do hotter than 40/100. I had mine on 125 and now I've bumped it up to 135. Especially if your hot water is on demand, it doesn't get as hot as it's set unless you run the sink a long time first. At least that's a flaw of mine.

Do you mean you need to run the hot water in the sink before turning the washer on?

 

[phoenixgirl]

Mayerling, most people in the US don't have on-demand hot water heaters, so I haven't been able to consult anybody else about this, but when I turn my hot water on, it takes a while to get hot. So at least with my system, if you just turn the washing machine on set to hot without getting the water hot first, most of the water will be tepid. But this is just something i figured out one day when I realized that if the water in the sink next to the washer isn't hot, then it's probably not hot inside the washer either. Especially if you only have it set at 40. If you have it set at 60, I'm sure you'd be fine to turn the washer on without prepping it first. And if you have several smaller units, they probably work faster. We have a single hot water heater for a three story house, so you have to wait a good two minutes to take a shower upstairs.

 

[mayerling]

We have a hot water boiler which seems to provide us with hot water every time we turn it on. I think it has a thermostat and when the temperature in the water tank goes down, it just turns back on and reheats it. So I'm hoping it won't be an issue.

Phoenixgirl, I have to say I'll miss you when you're off to have your LO. I've learned so much about CDs from you that now I'm thinking I'd better come up with all my questions now, before you're off to give birth.

 

[phoenixgirl]

Aw, thanks Mayerling!!!! Hey, I'll still be around a lot, just typing with one hand while I nurse! The DH got me a sleek little MacBook Air for Valentine's Day so I'll be able to balance it pretty easily, I think.

But FWIW, I know about one thing . . . pockets. I'm really clueless when it comes to the rest. I was going to be all ambitious and do prefolds and covers with the baby, but then I thought, nah . . .

 

[mayerling]

Aw, thanks Mayerling!!!! Hey, I'll still be around a lot, just typing with one hand while I nurse! The DH got me a sleek little MacBook Air for Valentine's Day so I'll be able to balance it pretty easily, I think.

But FWIW, I know about one thing . . . pockets. I'm really clueless when it comes to the rest. I was going to be all ambitious and do prefolds and covers with the baby, but then I thought, nah . . .

I do have another question actually.
Is it common to use some kind of cream when changing the diaper. From what I've read, it seems that some might interfere with the diaper's absorbency. Or is it the case that there are some creams that are okay, or that people only use cream in the event of a diaper rash?

 

[lliang_chi]

Mayer, seeing that I'm in the throes of diaper rash right now, anything with Zinc will probably interfere with absorbency (PhG, I might need some help on how to get rid of the zinc creams. DH got a little bit on one of the prefolds). You can use a disposable liner to protect the diaper but still keep the cream on the baby's bottom. But for normal changes, you won't need creams. CJ Butter is supposed to be pretty good too. I have a tiny bit of it (free sample) but by the time we caught Ethan's rash it was already quite red and I think we needed the "big guns".

Also I highly suggest getting multiple pail liners and wet bags. I need to get them now too. I have 1 wet bag that I'm keeping the fitteds/pre-folds in. And no pail liners. Ordering from Amazon today....

~LC

 

[mayerling]

LC, thanks for the multiple pail liner tip. Coincidentally, I was just browsing online for pail liners, but it never occurred to me that I would need more than one.

 

[bobbin]

Here's S in a Bamboo Easy Peasy - print is called 'Hooty Booty'!

It looks like S is, for the time being, not a prefolds bub. I had her in bamboo prefolds + PUL covers the other day and she soaked through the prefold and bamboo booster within 90 minutes - the problem with this being that it woke her halfway through a nap. So I'll probably use these prefolds to stuff pockets for now. We haven't tried flats yet and her fitteds are still too big for her but I think they may work a little better than prefolds for our little super soaker!

I love owl print nappies! I want to get the Thirsties covers with the owls.

Pancake, do you think it is the brand of prefolds that is the problem or is it just that S is a super soaker? I was about to buy some NB and infant size Dappy Shop prefolds, but after you posted this I hesitated. Do you think they just aren't absorbent/thick enough?

 

[pancake]

Bobbin, I don't have any "regular" newborn prefolds so I can't compare. The Dappies are very absorbent BUT they just don't hold ENOUGH wee for little S! I have not gone hardcore with boosting them - maybe I should try that before writing them off completely. They are extremely user-friendly though - the stretch makes them so much easier to fasten! I also have some Iish-Fly and Baby Safari prefolds (all bamboo) - these are thicker than the Dappies so may be a better option for us, but they're a bit big for Sylvie at the moment.

Since you are in Australia too, I would consider buying some Bambooties - I bought them for about $11-$13 each on sale (on BrandsExclusive, and also from the Bambooty post-Christmas sale) and so far they are so easy to use!

S is currently in a Nature Babies Diddy fitted (cotton terry lined with cotton fleece, fastens with a Snappi) with a Thirsties cover. She's been in it for nearly 3 hours and is asleep - so far, so good. Not the trimmest combination, but if it works I will be very happy as it's a very user-friendly combo. I also have some Nature Babies bamboo fitteds, which I might try this afternoon.

 

[pancake]

He's got a pretty stubborn diaper rash so I'm hoping the cloth diapers will help out with that. We're doing BalmX but I'm lining the diapers with dry wipes (not wet wipes) so they don't get on the diapers. Does anyone have suggestions for disposable liners?

Yay for starting CDs LC!! The key with nappy rash is just to change him often and air his little bottom (if you can) - the wetter the bottom the worse it will get. Re liners - I am using Imse Vimse flushable liners (I flush the dirty ones, wash the wet ones) and they have been great so far.

 

[mayerling]

Phoenixgirl, everything okay? You're getting so close now that when I don't see you on the boards I think the baby might already be here!

 

[phoenixgirl]

Not here yet! My cervix is radiating and I'm sure I'm past the 4 cm I was last week, but I am starting to despair of it ever happening! (I'm still 3 days away from my due date but it's starting to feel like I can't walk around like this much longer.) I''ll try to get someone to update on here if I'm not online after she comes!

 

[mayerling]

Do you have an OB appointment coming up? Maybe they'll say that you're already in labour.

 

[phoenixgirl]

I think I qualify as being in early labor, but it hasn't picked up and gotten regular yet. I'm sure I'm beyond 4 cm now (radiating cervix and feeling like the baby is going to fall out) and often at night I have contractions. Last night they were pretty strong and regular (8 min apart) but then they died down. On Monday the OB told me I was having a contraction when he touched my belly, and with DD#1 I was having contractions that I couldn't feel when I went in to be induced, so probably I'm having them all the time but only feeling them sometimes. The problem is that the baby is not in the "launch position" (she's posterior). Sigh.

 

[mayerling]

So what's the plan? Do you go in on your due date for an assessment?

Sorry to everyone on the CD thread for changing the subject.

 

[phoenixgirl]

I don't have another appointment until Wednesday, which will be 40 weeks 3 days. Hopefully I won't make it until then!

With #1 we jumped the gun on getting things going (OB was all, I'm on call tonight, so let me strip your membranes and then come in, wink wink . . . ) and that ended in a c-section, so we are letting things happen on their own now. As frustrating as it is! I will definitely be asking lots of questions about the next step at my next appointment. I know that at my 41.5 week appointment they'll consider action because they won't want me to go to 42 weeks. Based on my original experience I've switched to a much lower-intervention practice so they are pretty laissez-faire about things at this point. They didn't even check my cervix at this week's appointment, but I'm sure I've moved beyond 4cm based on how it's been feeling.

 

[mayerling]

I can see why you want to let things run their course. I hope you have a baby in your arms soon! Do you know what you're having?

While I have you here , can I just ask what detergent you suggest I use on my CDs? And would the same detergent work on all baby clothes? Also, the area I live in has hard water. Would I need to adjust my cleaning routine for that?

 

[lliang_chi]

PhG, wow! So close!!! I'm sending you quick and successful labor dust.

Also posting some diaper pics of Ethan. I like the Thristies owl prints but we also broke out the TotBot Tini (something like that) pockets. I have yet to do the Kissaluvs AIOs yet. But DH really likes the cloth diapers! Hooray!

 

[mayerling]

LC, he looks so precious!
In the first pic, the CD looks almost as big as he does

 

[mayerling]

Question for all CDing mommies:
What do you do about baby clothes? From what I've read/seen/heard, CDs are bulkier than disposables. Does that mean you dress the baby a size up to fit the CD? So for a 2-month-old, instead of wearing 0-3 you put them in 3-6? Also, I've read that onesies don't really work with CDs and they cause leaks. Is that true? If so, what do you dress them in? Just pants/skirts and shirts? Pyjamas?

 

[pancake]

Mayerling, so far Sylvie is in her CDs underneath her regular newborn growsuits and onesies - I don't dress her in anything else! I am yet to use our flats, but I suspect we would have to put her roomier suits on over those, and the fitteds I have used so far are also a bit bulky but they do fit under her normal clothes (although they probably wouldn't fit under her slimmest growsuits). Our prefolds are very trim, so again - not an issue. The Bambooty AIOs are not an problem at all, they are not much bulkier than disposables and everything fits over those just fine. I am not using OSFM nappies on Sylvie yet, but I suspect that when we start using them snapped down to the smallest setting, they may be a little bulky.

That said, she is quite a slim bub, so that probably makes a difference too!

 

[pancake]

Bobbin, if you were still thinking about buying some Dappies, there is a discount code - have a look here: http://diaperdecisions.com/hunt/huntvacation.php,, there are lots of participating online stores. Also - if you want recommendations for other online nappy stores in Australia, let me know. I have a few favourites

 

[mayerling]

Thanks for the reply, pancake.

I'm still feeding my addiction
I saw this promotion and I couldn't resist so I just bought another two flips. This time they're snapped; one in light blue and the other in light green. I don't know if anyone's in the UK and interested in a discount, but www.babame.com is offering 15% off on everything until Sunday.

 

[missrachelk]

Hi

Just starting to think about CD and all the options. With what I've looked at so far I think I like g diapers. A blogger I read uses them almost exclusively and I've jsut read a long series of posts about them and I like their look too. Anyone have experience with them? I want a simple system that will hopefully be transferrable to daycare / sitter once I'm off of leave. Hopefully baby won't be in all day daycare since my DH works at night, we're hoping to find a solution where baby will only be in casre for a few hours between when DH leaves for work and when I come home (inlaws??? more likely a sitter or a drop in center)

The gdiapers can work with a flushable insert, a cloth insert with a flushable liner, just the cloth insert or a prefold used as an insert, so it seems there are lots of options. The pant itself is also seperate from the liner and waterproof part so only what gets soiled has to be washed, and the stuffing is really just laying the insert into the waterproof liner. I don't really like the idea of needing to stuff and unstuff CD's like bum genius (I think that's the one I watched some youtube videos on that had a pocket for the liner). They're also sized so don't seem as bulky as the one sized ones.

Thoughts?

 

[mayerling]

Missrachelk

I've only recently started the whole CD issue (literally - I think if I look back on this thread I'll see that it's only been about two weeks). I knew I'd be interested in doing it when we first started TTC but didn't really commit or start to do research on it until two weeks ago.

When I first started, I was like you - in love with gdiapers. I loved everything about them: the colours, the fabric, the way they work. And I still love all those things. There's only one thing I don't like about them and which has made me decide not to get any: the fact that they're sized. I really want to save as much money as I can, and for that reason I've decided to go the onesize route. Since I don't plan to start CDing until my son is 3 months old, and hopefully past the newborn stage, I'm hoping that going with one size will actually work. But I really do love gdiapers...

I don't like pockets just as much as you, so I've decided to go the hybrid route - which is what gdiapers are - but with one size covers. For the moment, I've got two flip covers (and two more on the way), and I'm absolutely in love with best bottoms so I intend to get a few BB covers as well.

 

[pancake]

Rachel - there are a few hybrid options like that. Grovia makes one, there's Hiney Lineys (which are a little different), Flips, GDiapers, a few others.

I think the key thing that I'm finding - and that a lot of other CDing mamas said - was that you don't want to put all your eggs in one basket until you have your baby and have tested a few CDs out. Sylvie is a long slim baby (although quickly filling out!!) and some nappies are definitely a better fit than others, especially around the legs. At the moment we are using mostly fitteds + covers and AIOs, and having found an AIO that fits her well, I have ordered a bunch of those in the next size up for her. I have quite a big stash of OSFM pockets and hybrids for later (Hiney Lineys, Flips, BumGenius, Charlie Banana, Bumcheeks, Designerbums) but I don't yet know what will fit her best.

Initially, like Mayerling, I thought I would go with OSFM only but now that I have my baby I am really glad I bought sized nappies as well because she is quite little and would completely swim in OSFM at the moment. The other thing is that OSFM will never be as trim as a sized nappy.

 

[mayerling]

Rachel - there are a few hybrid options like that. Grovia makes one, there's Hiney Lineys (which are a little different), Flips, GDiapers, a few others.

I think the key thing that I'm finding - and that a lot of other CDing mamas said - was that you don't want to put all your eggs in one basket until you have your baby and have tested a few CDs out. Sylvie is a long slim baby (although quickly filling out!!) and some nappies are definitely a better fit than others, especially around the legs. At the moment we are using mostly fitteds + covers and AIOs, and having found an AIO that fits her well, I have ordered a bunch of those in the next size up for her. I have quite a big stash of OSFM pockets and hybrids for later (Hiney Lineys, Flips, BumGenius, Charlie Banana, Bumcheeks, Designerbums) but I don't yet know what will fit her best.

Initially, like Mayerling, I thought I would go with OSFM only but now that I have my baby I am really glad I bought sized nappies as well because she is quite little and would completely swim in OSFM at the moment. The other thing is that OSFM will never be as trim as a sized nappy.

Excellent points, pancake. I don't think any of the flips I've got already would fit a newborn. They might not even fit a 3-month-old when it's time for my son to start on CDs.

As for Grovia, I was all set to get some of those - I'd even picked out the patterns - until I watched some reviews on youtube and discovered that the cover has a mesh lining which means that if it gets wet or soiled it can't just be wiped clean (unlike flips or BBs), which for me defeats the purpose of a hybrid.

 

[mayerling]

More fluffy mail!

This time I got inserts as well; it's nice to see them all stuffed and ready to go!

 

[pancake]

Nice, Mayerling! Did you get the organic inserts or the stay-dry inserts? I only have 2 Flips and about 6 of the organic inserts, but I figured I could use regular prefolds to stuff as well.