Cloth Diapers

...or crap wrappers... oh how I love you! One day my little brother was visiting and came up with his own brand of cloth diaper:

The Turd Turban: Treat your bottom like a Sultan

(makes me laugh everyday!)

I wish someone would have told me about modern cloth diapering when I had my first baby. It seemed like I pushed the stroller over to our neighborhood grocery store a few times a week for yet another package of diapers so scented that my baby would get rashes up his legs.

I wish someone would have let me in on the cloth diapering secret that your baby will never have blow-outs, since diaper covers have gussets and elastic waists, as I threw another cute (stained!) baby outfit in the trash.
(Then again, I am kind of glad I never cloth diapered my son, as he produced what my hubby called "Satan's buttercream frosting" several times a day. Soo glad that's over!)

Ah, life lessons!
The basics:
Cons: A few extra loads of laundry a week, some dye/scent free detergent purchasing, potential "zoo-butt" (cloth diapers aren't scented like regular diapers), and a bit more diaper changing, as it's not cool to keep your baby in the same cloth for 6 hours. Also, cloth diaper booty (big ol' bottom which sometimes requires a size up in pants).

Pros: Cheaper (you can save hundreds of dollars a year), no blowouts, proven quicker potty training, less diaper rash, more environmentally friendly (yes, trash is more polluting than water waste), you can use the same diapers for your other kids...and, get this---the same diapers for your baby and toddler!

Observe:

 
Here are Cash (age 2) and Cosette (age 7 months) wearing the same diaper, a Coolababy One-Size Diaper. The "Cool" thing about these is that they fit from baby to 35 pounds and you can stuff it with more cloth to make it more absorbent. We like ours, although I am a little sad about the fact that they are made in China.

Everyone has a different system, but I use the old-fashioned prefold ones (like Grandma used) just folded in thirds and laid in a Thirsties or Bummis SuperBrite cover (the only ones with good gussets or leg elastics). At night, I put two prefolds in one cover, and that lasts over twelve hours. When I change diapers, I put the used ones in a garbage pail with a tight lid lined with a waterproof liner (called a wet bag or pail liner). #2s of course get tossed down the toilet, and the dipes rinsed out if needed and then in the pail, too. You can also just use flushable liners. I wash every 2 or 3 days with a cycle of rinse first, warm wash with good detergent, final rinse and then dry on low heat. We have no stains, and I have used the same diapers on Cosette for over 9 months!

That is all I am going to say about cloth diapers. We use them. We love them. We can't imagine ever going back to disposables for any of our kids. There is almost too much information about them out there, so here are some good links:

The Basics of Cloth Diapering: The Facts, What You Need, How to Use the Different Types of Diapers

The Diaper Jungle: Everything cloth diapers, patterns to make your own, reviews, and getting started

 Little Lions: Good prefolds for a great price
 
 Cheeky Diapers: Diaper Patterns Galore!

Diaper Swappers: the ultimate cloth diaper forum. There are over 40,000 moms on here making, buying, selling, and trading cloth diapers, clothes, craft supplies, etc. I buy all my covers here (and also all my fabric!) for very cheap. The site is confusing at first, though.

Jillian's Drawers has a Changing Diapers, Changing Minds program that allows you to try several different types of diapers for 3 weeks for just $10. I did this and really loved trying out the different dipes!

The Cloth Diaper Foundation provides free cloth diapers for needy families. We got a big box from them when Coco was born, and it was amazing!

 

Too much information, right? I'm done now. Let me know if you want even more info. :)