Fluff Mom Monday

Tell us about yourself! What is your name? How many little ones do you have?

I'm Katie and Austin is my little fluffy butt. You can learn more about us at www.BabyBumbleB.com

How long have you used cloth diapers?

We've been using cloth diapers for about 2 months! Currently Austin is 3 months old. He was born 6 weeks early at 4 pounds. Once he hit a little over 7 pounds, he started wearing his Bumgenius Onesizes!

What made you decide to use cloth diapers?

A friend of mine mentioned them for her daughter with sensitive skin. I don't think she stuck to it, but she had planted a seed in my head. When I barely pregnant I started researching! I couldn't believe how much money I would be saving. That was the biggest thing to me. $200 and diapered from birth to potty training?! Then when Austin was still too little to fit in them he started getting awful rashes and blisters. This made me buy some prefolds and covers and get OUT of those nasty disposables.

What was your first cloth diaper purchase?

My first purchase was 12 Bumgenius 3.0s!

Tell us about your stash.

Currently I have Bumgenius, Goodmamas, BananaBottoms, Flips, Econobum, BambinoMio, MonkeySnuggles, and I'm always adding and trading! Most of those are Onesize!

What is your favorite cloth diaper/diapering system? Why?

My favorite diapers are my Bumgenius. It's what I have the most of and what I know the best. With the fitteds I have to use a cover and Austin is still pretty little, so a diaper PLUS cover is a bit bulky still. I haven't gotten a chance to try my Flips yet, but I want to love them so much! We just got an AppleCheeks, and is now our absolute FAVORITE!

Tell us about your wash routine.

I do a rinse cycle and then a hot wash cycle with Grape Soda Rockin Green! To strip my diapers I just wash the inserts like 5 times in hot hot water. I did this for the first time this week and it seemed to work. We will see ;)

Have your friends and family been supportive of your decision to use cloth?

I told my husband I wanted to cloth diaper the baby. He said "ok". That was that. He's great and has never had a problem changing them. My mom was skeptical and scared I was going to make a big purchase and then not use them. But once she saw my major commitment to pumping and then breastfeeding she finally got on board with the cloth diapers. Everyone else thinks I am crazy. They all say "wait till he has formula poops" (umm, won't happen) or "wait till he starts eating solids!" It makes me want to make it work even more! So thanks y'all ;)

Any challenges you've run into with using cloth diapers? What did you do about it?

My baby is currently short and fat. His legs are so short so the diapers are really bulky and I hate that he can't really sit in them. I heard that the pear shape evens out around 6 months (which may be 7-8 for my preemie), so I'm just looking forward to that. Sometimes we have leaks but it is usually operator error. Any problem I have come across I've had help with or figured out on my own.

Your best piece of advice for someone new to cloth diapering.

Ask for help! It's so incredibly

overwhelming when you first start to research. I used to start researching and quit, go back,

quit, go back... I didn't make my purchases until AFTER Austin was born because I just DIDN'T KNOW! I had tons of help on Twitter (@graciekate) and I learned a lot and finally decided. Now that I have my

basis go-to diapers I like to try others here and there. DiaperSwappers is my BFF

Fluff Mom Mondays

Tell us about yourself! What is your name? How many little ones do you have?

I'm Janet. I'm a full-time WOHM, working as an engineer in the auto industry, married for almost 10 years to Barry. I have one son, Alex, who is 19 months old. Alex was a preemie, born at 27 weeks, 1 lb 7 oz, and has a lot of breathing issues; he came home on a ventilator but is now only on it when he's not feeling well. We're hoping to be rid of all the tubes in the next year and a half or less.

Alex at 2 days old

How long have you used cloth diapers?
Alex's premature birth complicated our cloth diapering journey. We had a whole stash ready for Alex's eventual homecoming, and a daycare lined up that would take cloth (yay!). He outgrew the first stash before he made it out of the NICU at 9 ½ months old, so I got to buy a whole new stash all over again (which was a lot of fun, in all honesty), and his medical needs have made daycare an impossibility for the time being.

So, in total, we've been cloth diapering for about 10 months. I realized recently that the smell I most associate with hospitals is the smell of disposable diapers, so I think if we have another child, we'll be cloth diapering from the very beginning.

Over at http://ourlittleacorn.blogspot.com you can read about things going on with us – diapers, special needs, parenting, and whatever else strikes my fancy.

Alex at 2 months and about 3 lbs

What made you decide to use cloth diapers?
We had always planned to use cloth diapers. I remembered using cloth diapers with my younger brothers, and then I found out there were such easy versions available now. We try to be environmentally friendly, and I had a lot of heartburn about how much trash disposable diapers would cause.

When I realized how much less expensive used diapers could be, or even that I could win diapers for free in various contests, the challenge of finding what we needed became a nice entertainment break from the NICU.

Furthermore, we had a horrible time with diaper rash in the NICU. It was apparent to us that Alex's skin needed more air, and that he needed to be changed more frequently, and disposables encouraged some of his caregivers to leave changes indefinitely rather than staying on top of it.

pic of Alex w/ Pocket diaper

What was the first cloth diaper you bought?
Our first purchase was infant prefolds, quickly followed by more prefolds, covers, some Happy Heineys, and two lovely Minkee Pockets that I can't remember the brand name of.

Alex's first day at home, 9 ½ months

Tell us about your cloth diaper stash (numbers, sizes, types, brands, etc.):

Out of rotation:
a dozen or so small AIOs and pockets (mostly no-name; one BG 2.0, one of the minkee ones, I think 2 Happy Heineys)
2 dozen infant prefolds
2 dozen more infant prefolds dyed in various solids and tie-dyed, and 3
preemie prefolds, all of which are in use as burp cloths
2 or 3 small fitteds
a half dozen small and extra small covers.

There's also a handful of medium covers out of rotation. Most of these were bought used, but a couple were bought new with baby shower money when we thought Alex was coming home at 4 months old.

Current rotation:
7 covers - Out of that, one is heading towards worn-beyond-usability, and 2 more are going to be outgrown soon. Almost all of these were new.
3 dozen flats. All bought second hand, though 2 dozen were still new in package. We've mostly only used these when we took a long trip out of town recently.
26 premium prefolds (some dyed, some bleached). All bought used.
18 Imse Vimse contours - 3 new, the rest bought well used. Many of the used have holes, and ought to be patched. These are a really great "one size" diaper solution for our nurses who aren't so used to figuring out cloth diapers, since all they need is a snug cover
8 WonderWorks pockets - bought used, not our favorites. 2 more of these have serious leak issues and are out of rotation.
1 AI2 - It's cute, green, and embroidered, but I can't remember the name
off hand. I won this one.
1 Smartipants pocket - I love this diaper, and the snaps - I won this as
well.
16 BG3 - a white one that I won, the rest were bought barely used, in
yellow, orange, and 2 shades of green.

Addtionally, we've got several snappis (most bought used), a half dozen pins (which we only started using now that we've got flats), 3 hanging wet pails (2 of which get used as pail liners, one of which I won; the other hangs in the laundry room for any diaper changes that happen downstairs), and numerous smaller wet bags (almost all of them purchased new - we use them to segregate things in the massive diaper bag/emergency medical kit). We use cloth wipes too, most of which I made in a frenzy one weekend – they're either flannel/flannel or flannel/fleece.

I'm still shocked when I write this all out, because I never intended to have more than a couple dozen diapers total. But…it works for us. It gives a little flexibility on when laundry has to get done (and extras for days where things get puked on), and to do whatever works best for the day's plans.

Alex in July w/ diaper cover

What is your favorite cloth diaper? Why?
Our go-to diapering solution is prefolds and covers. We have 6 nurses who take care of Alex throughout the week, and most of them manage just fine; prefolds are more forgiving of diaper creams and such, and convincing some nurses that Alex doesn't need to be plastered in cream has been a challenge. They also seem more forgiving of washing routines. Our favorite covers are the new Thirsties Duos.

Alex w/ original Thirsties cover

Our out-and-about choice is pockets – mostly one-size BG 3.0s (largely because I caught a good deal on gently used ones locally), but my personal favorite is our one and only SmartiPants diaper – it fits perfectly, never leaks, and I love the snaps.

Tell us about your wash routine

Except in very unusual circumstances, we wash diapers every other day.

We do a double (cold) rinse. Then we wash on hot with about a half cup of a mixture of equal parts regular Tide, Oxy-clean, and baking soda, and a cup of white vinegar in the softener dispenser. We finish with another double rinse on cold.

We're in Michigan, so much of the year, line drying is out of the question. Even during the summer, we were often bringing still-damp diapers in off the line at dusk and throwing them in the dryer.

Alex, after a bath – see the bag of diapers in the corner?

Have your friends and family been supportive of your decision to use cloth?

Mostly. Our family members are somewhat hands-off because of Alex's medical issues, but both my husband and I were cloth diapered, so it's not a huge deal either way. Our friends think it's funny that we're being so "trendy" but agree with the idea of less waste. A lot of people generally think we're crazy for using cloth diapers with a special needs child, because it's "just so much more work" but really, we find it's not – washing diapers is easier than running to the store for another package of disposables.

Any challenges with using cloth diapers? What did you do about it?
We've had some leaky diapers, and we've given up and taken them out of rotation. In this case, reviews when I bought them were great, but I'm finding more and more bad reviews on that particular brand after it changed ownership.

Our biggest challenge has been convincing nurses that putting a microfiber insert from a pocket diaper into a contour or prefold as a doubler is not good for Alex's skin. I try not to be too picky about how his clothes get put away, since the nurses often fold and put away his diapers and other clothes for us, but this is one thing that drives me nuts. We've got multiple signs up in the room, and we've talked with each of them, but sometimes it slips through the cracks.

Alex all dressed up for a New Year's wedding

Your best piece of advice for someone new to cloth diapering
Don't go out and buy "a whole stash" of just one type of diaper. Buy a few of several different things, because no matter what your friend/sister/neighbor says, what works on their child may not work on yours, or it may not work for you at a certain point - either in terms of fit, or in terms of function, or in terms of your daily routine.

Also, don't assume some particular type of diaper is too hard or too easy just because everyone else says so. We love our flats, and would put them back into regular rotation if we were convinced the nurses could figure out how to actually attach them to Alex successfully :)

Your favorite scripture, quote, or anything else that you'd like to add?

One of my new favorite quotes is, "I've met the villagers, and I don't want them raising my child." We try to be mindful of the influences in Alex's life, and try to ensure that we surround him with people who care about him and are interested in helping him grow up to be a caring, thoughtful, independent, and responsible adult. We are thankful every day for the blessing of his life, and that it appears at this time that he will outgrow all of the medical issues he faces.

Fluff Mom Monday

Tell us about yourself! What is your name? How many little ones do you have? How long have you used cloth diapers?

Hey! I'm Margaret, a cloth diapering, breastfeeding, babywearing, SAHMama to a little 5 month old AppleBlossom and married to a fabulous Enginerd. We have been using cloth diapers since we came home from the hospital at birth and then got out of the bilibed. You can find me over at my

Creative Madness that Makes me Myself where I share my latest quilting activity and reviews of books, baby products (including cloth diapers), and anything else that finds my fancy.

What made you decide to use cloth diapers?

My sister is a homeschooling, navy wife, SAHM to five and she cloth diapers and so when I was expecting my AppleBlossom it was not even a second thought that when I decided to CD.

What was the first cloth diaper you bought?

The first cloth diapers that I acquired was the infant sized Bummis Organic Cloth Diaper kit that includes Bummis Organic prefolds, a few covers, fleece liners, a wet bag, and flushable liners.

Tell us about your cloth diaper stash (numbers, sizes, types, brands, etc.):

After the Bummis kit, I got some Kissluvs fitted diapers (and this combination still seems to be my favorite). Then I was onto BumGenius Organic OS AIOs because they were such a great sale in getting rid of the velcro ones over the snaps. And then... more and more. To this day, my stash consists of 6 tiny g's (prototype gDiapers), 6 small gDiapers in one each of got chocolate brown, golly molly pink, gEarth, grasshopper green, go fish blue, ga ga pink, and 2 orange, 2 vanilla, and 12 gLiners - we use these with the gInserts that we toss although I would love to try the gCloth some day. Then also I have: One Bambino Mio nappy and cover in newborn dots, small white and medium dots, a single Bamboo Baby AIO OS with velcro in sage, 2 Blossom Pink and 3 Twilight Blue bG AIO OS with velcro, two total Imse Vimse AIO with snaps in small and medium, a FuzziBunz pocket OS in butter yellow, 3 FuzziBunz pocket small in sage, pink, lavender. Then... 6 white small Bummis Super Snap covers borrowed from my sister, and in small a green super brite, a white super brite, a froggy pond Super Whisper Wrap, Celery SWW, two white SWW, Flower SWW in small and medium, and then just recently a Medium Super Stars in Yellow and Sage. In fitted diapers I have a Mother-Ease Sandy's side snap in small, a Kissa's organic NB size fitted, 6 natural colored size one (older) Kissaluvs and a new berry purple V2 (from ThanksMama.com). Lastly I also have a Kushies ultra AIO sized Infant. We are still using the small size on my itty bitty. Yet I have dreams of what I want to acquire for my medium stash consisting of more Kissaluvs in size one (as soon as the purse can afford it!) Bummis covers and we'll see what else seems to be my cup of tea.

What is your favorite cloth diaper? Why?

My favorite is the Kissaluvs fitted diapers with Bummis covers although I do like the Bummis prefolds as well. AppleBlossom is a heavy wetter and she seems to be the happiest in her Kissaluvs. We use them for naps and nighttime, nothing else would work during the night with her quantity. She is an interesting wetter and holds it and goes all at once in a large volume. This we assume will come in handy when we get to potty training. I do love the Bummis prefolds, they fit perfectly in the covers and they are ever so soft. I do plan on getting a good few for our medium stash as well. We've never had a problem with leakage of fluid or otherwise with either diapering format.

Tell us about your wash routine.

For washing, it's prewash cold with Charlie's Soap if they're really dirty, just water if not, then wash cold with CS, wash warm or hot depending on the load, and into the dryer twice. We've also started using OxyClean with Vinegar to work on ammonia buildup, but that's still an experiment in progress.

Have your friends and family been supportive of your decision to use cloth?

As with my sister being in cloth diaper routines it was nothing new to my family. DH was all on board with both the idea of savings with cloth as well as avoiding the chemical exposures with sposies. Other individuals are give and take. One thing that we often get from various people are questions on where and how to get started, I'm always more than willing to let people know on how to start their cloth diaper addiction.

Any challenges with using cloth diapers? What did you do about it?

I really have not come across any challenges in my effort of using cloth with my baby. It just makes more sense and works out that way. We're lucky.

Your best piece of advice for someone new to cloth diapering:

My best advice for someone new to cloth diapers is to try out a sample of various types of diapers before investing in a stash. No matter what you buy it will be money well spent and you'll still have savings over what you would have spent on sposies. But, if you get the ones you really want, you'll be so much happier in the long run than with some types that you only kinda like. For example a fabulous store Diaper Junction has a 30 day trial of all sorts of types available and I highly recommend it. I did not know about it in time to do it, but because of my sister's experience I had a pretty good idea as to what I would want.

Your favorite scripture, quote, or anything else that you'd like to add:

"You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me." - C.S. Lewis

Fluff Mom Monday

This week I'm excited to feature Laura Franchetti from Bamboo Bums! Laura began using cloth diapers, and unsatisified with the diapers currently available on the market, she created her own, using squishy soft bamboo. Here's her story:

Tell us about yourself! What is your name? How many little ones do you have?

My name is Laura Franchetti and I am super mom to Chas (3.5) and Maddie (2) and married to the man that makes the laugh the hardest.

How long have you used cloth diapers?

Our family has been in cloth for almost 2 years, we switched shortly after Maddie was born in Nov of 2007.

What made you decide to use cloth diapers?

There were a few reasons that made me decide to switch to cloth. The first is that I desperately wanted to stay home with the kids, both of which were in diapers at the time, and I knew I had to find a solution to our everyday expenditures. The realization of switching to cloth came the one morning, literally like a sign from the heavens, as I sat at the kitchen table early one morning and hubby took 3 bags of trash out to the curb, all of which were disposables. 3 BAGS! I couldn't believe it, and it made my stomach turn. I quickly did the math and figured we were tossing somewhere near 103 disposable diapers in the trash EACH WEEK. The guilt of my nature geek roots quickly took over while I scoured the web for more info on alternatives. I was in the middle of a diaper order at diapers.com when I had this epiphany and saw their g-diapers, so I ordered a pack. This obsession grew and I found a brick and mortar store near me that carried Fuzzi Bunz and checked them out too.

What was the first cloth diaper you bought?

The first real diaper I purchased were Fuzzi Bunz, and only because I could touch and feel them. I only bought a couple per kiddie at first- one was in smalls and one in larges, and with in a week I outfitted both completely. I was skeptical about buying online because I didn't know what I was getting into but in retrospect, I wish I had done more research as I think I would have ended up with a better system for us.

What made you decide to start making diapers?

I was really frustrated with the stuffing, striping and sorting of my sized pockets and their inserts. I began to regret not doing more research because I was having to purchase mediums for my daughter and we didn't really have the money to spend on a new system for her. I didn't want to buy all of them used because I had run into a seller that wasn't so honest on one of the FSOT forums. Summer was upon us as well as potty training and now, in addition to needing medium diapers, I also needed swim diapers and training pants which translated to more and more money that I didn't even think about when I made my initial purchase. I was disappointed in myself for not knowing and not asking more questions ahead of time. I didn't know any better in the beginning.

We even tried other brands and I quickly discovered I hated velcro and the kids were sensitive to suede cloth. I tested out some bamboo and love it, but they were prefolds that shrunk up like crazy on me, which really ticked me off. Again, my lack of knowledge on the offerings eluded me.

One day while griping to my mom about needing to purchase all this extra stuff, we started talking about making trainers and the conversation just evolved into a diaper that would serve all my needs. Literally, over the course of a few days, we had our idea on paper, we were drafting patterns and researching the market. There weren't any diapers like I needed, and so we gave it a shot. After finalizing our plans, testing began on a number of friends and viola, the Utility Diaper was born.

We've set out to provide a one size diapering system that is final. No need to buy additional soakers to make them more absorbent. No need to purchase training pants if you don't want to. No need to buy swim diapers unless you want to. No hidden expenditures on the horizon. It's a product that since we've converted, I haven't felt the need to purchase anything but undies for the kiddies, and that makes me happy. It's simple and versatile.

Tell us about your cloth diaper stash:

We only have our Utility Diapers, fitteds and prefolds in our stash. I believe there are 20 diapers in total.

What is your favorite cloth diaper? Why?

Um...ours ;)

I love the absorbency, I love the versatility and I love the nature of the fabric. It's a diaper that I feel good about promoting and showing off.

Have your friends and family been supportive of your decision?

At first, they thought I was crazy for cding, but they've come around. I have converted a few friends and my mom is my business partner. I think her love affair with bamboo is even stronger than mine, lol. She literally carries swatches of the fabrics around with her.

Any challenges with using cloth diapers or with running your own diapering business? What did you do about it?

Challenges...boy, have I ever been faced with them! In the beginning, the stripping of diapers was enough to almost make me stop cding all together. And the customer service I experienced, or didn't experience in my case, in the beginning left me a little jaded. I'm just happy I discovered bamboo when I did because I was close to tossing all the others in the trash.

On the business end, there are a number of regulations that I was unaware of that I want to comply with as a matter of professional integrity. The big guys will probably not look at me, someone who's not making any money for them to make an example of, however, I try to conduct our business in the most professional manner that we can afford. I do my best to assure that customers feel that all their questions are answered and I make sure that I know what is going on in the government and industry. And truth be told, cloth diaper making isn't easy, unless your diapers are super simple. I didn't know completely what I was jumping into, but it's been great for me because I am a person who thirsts for knowledge, and I've learned a lot in the last two years.

Your best piece of advice for someone new to cloth diapering?
Go with your gut instinct. There are a lot of vendors out there and they all want you to buy their products. Go with someone who you feel will not only provide you with a great product for your family, but all the follow up service you need. Questions arise and if they're not forthcoming about what you may need, or face, then I'd seek out someone else.

Your favorite scripture, quote, or anything else that you'd like to add?

I just wanted to add that I've worked with a number of new moms to be, some local, some not. In every instance, I've explained everything that is out there for them. One of the couples actually commented that they liked knowing that I was giving them options, other than my diapers, and that is why they went with me. They knew I was being honest with them, which means the world to me. For me, it's not about the sales, its about getting more babies in cloth, honestly.

Fluff Mom Monday

I don't know about anyone else, but I always love hearing from other moms who use cloth diapers. It makes me feel like I'm not alone out there! Plus, it helps to see what works for other moms, and gives me new ideas of things to try. Family of the Cloth is beginning a new series called Fluff Mom Monday, where I will interview a different fluffy mom each week about all things cloth diapers. A big thanks to Keisha for being our first ever Fluff Mom! I hope you all enjoy reading it, and if you're interested in participating, please email me at familyofthecloth@gmail.com

Hello! My name is Keisha M. I have two November boys, 8 years old & 11 months old. I am new to cloth diapers, I have been using them {disposable free} since August 2009. My blog address is http://onefallday.blogspot.com/.

What made you decide to use cloth diapers? They are better for my baby & environmental reasons. I only wish I would have started using them earlier, I love them!

What was the first cloth diaper you bought? I own ALL Gro Baby!!

Tell us about your cloth diaper stash (numbers, sizes, types, brands, etc. Any pictures you want to provide would be great!!): I have 12 Gro Baby Shells, 24 Gro Baby soakers, 18 Gro Baby boosters & 20 Bummis fleece liners.

What is your favorite cloth diaper? Why? I have only tried the Gro Baby system, which I believe is equivalent to an AI2. It is fabulous! So easy & since my little guy rarely leaks, I don't go through shells quickly reducing wash.

Tell us about your washing routine: I use a front load so I always add additional rinses to each load. I use "to line 1" of liquid Planet. My entire wash takes a little over 1 hour. I toss the soakers, boosters, liners & wipes in the dryer but never the shells, I always lay those out to dry. I set the dryer on 60 minutes & they're done!

Have your friends and family been supportive of your decision? Support is 50/50. My husband is supportive and there are a few friends & family members who are as well. I think for everyone who uses cloth there are always a few people who think you're nuts & must be using pins or sheets -- cloth has come a long way, people! LOL

Any challenges with using cloth diapers? And if so, what did you do about it? My only challenge thus far has been learning what works for my son. He began getting a rash that I could not tackle. He had never had one before. I finally realized it was the soaker cotton & he needed a fleece liner to wick the moisture. Now, his bum is happy once again.

Your best piece of advice for someone new to cloth diapering? Don't expect to become a pro over night. Take it slow & enjoy it! Always remind yourself that this is better for your baby AND the earth. We're making Mother Nature happy & creating less waste means our children will have a chance to experience a cleaner earth.

Your favorite scripture, quote, or anything else that you'd like to add? "The single greatest thing you can do to change your life today would be to start being grateful for what you have right now" - Oprah