Why did I decide to use Cloth Diapers?

I'm a 39 year old first time mom, and my decision to use cloth diapers was influenced largely by cost. In addition to the immense cost savings, switching to cloth diapers immediately cleared up my baby boy's severe diaper rash (he was in disposables for the first 3 weeks he was born until the meconium had totally cleared his system). Of course, it's also much better for the environment because no plastic or human waste is going into a landfill, and it forced me to use less laundry detergent that is more natural for all of my laundry... not just my diapers. By the way, this too is cheaper than what I was using before!

I should mention that I live in a home equipped with my own washing machine and dryer, and I have a private yard for drying diapers outside (when it get's warmer, we still have snow up here!). I only mention this because I believe immediate access to laundry facilities is the only must have for cloth diapering.

I started this blog largely to give women out there a personal experience with Cloth Diapering. Every day I'm learning something new, and i'm constantly modifying my "system" to make it easier, better, etc.

How much did it cost for me to start cloth diapering?

In total, I have spent approximately $550.00 (give or take a few dollars and cents) to get started on my cloth diapers. My stash could quite easily get me through until potty training.

I bought a variety of diapers to start with to cut costs.

I bought a hybrid mix of diapering products for my system, including:

• a dozen indian pre folds (Bummis)
• 4 pre fold covers (Thirsties)
• 14 one-size pocket diapers (Fuzzi Bunz)
• 2 All-in-2 Flip covers with 4 inserts
• a couple of Snappis (although one would have been enough)
• 6 soaker/liners (Thirsties)
• one Sandees fitted diaper
• one Wool Cover for extra overnight wetness (Woolly Bottoms).
• 1 Grovia "Magic Stick"

In addition to the diapers themselves, I bought a cute little mini garbage pail with a lid (white) and 2 PUL bags for dirty diaper disposal between washings.

If any of this sounds overwhelming, keep in mind that 3 months ago I knew absolutely nothing about cloth diapers, other than what little I had learned from a quick demonstration by sales ladies in local diaper shops.

Today, I feel like a pro, and my "favorites" have expanded from the one system I started with (pocket diapers) to include a variety of diapers for different situations.

What diapers are the best?

In my own opinion, there is no clear-cut "best" cloth diaper. What works best for moms and their babies is going to depend on a variety of things including price, style, maintenance level and most importantly your baby's size, shape and how much he/she wets and poops!

Originally I started with a dozen pocket diapers in a variety of colours that would match my baby's wardrobe (yes, this is very fun). I backed this up with the pre folds just in case I didn't get all my diaper laundry done before I used up all the pocket diapers. One day this did actually happen (with only a dozen I have to wash diapers every day... no big deal since I'm a stay at home mom until he's bigger). To my surprise I found the pre folds faster to change and decided to use them instead for situations when I needed a fast change.

When he was about 7 weeks, we started having issues with overnight wetting, and wetting through his diapers. He's a