Cloth Diapering the Newborn Baby

For the first three months your newborn will eat, sleep and poop. As new parents we often focus on the eating and sleeping and just want to forget about the pooping. Whether to use cloth diapers is now an added decision for many new parents that want to make the right decision not only for their baby, but for the environment too.


My 1 week old son wearing a size small
Happy Heinys pocket diaper

Cloth diapering the newborn can have its own set of challenges when compared to diapering an older child. Once you have decided on cloth diapering your newborn, the only thing left to do is figure out how to do it and what products to choose (and of course choosing the products is often the most difficult as there are so many to choose from!).

First, select the style of diaper for your newborn. If your priority is to save money you will want to go with prefolds and covers for your newborn or a system such as the Flip system from Cotton Babies which is very economical. The functionality of this option lies in the quality of covers, therefore, make sure you get a good quality cover and prefolds with at least a 6 layer middle thickness.

If selecting a fitted diaper, you will also want one with a good fit around the thighs to keep any messes in the diaper. With any two part system like this, you can expect your baby’s bottom to be quite larger so you may need larger sleepers or pants with an elastic waist.  You can also get the Onesies Garment Extenders which are quite handy.

If you want a trim fit, you will want to go with a pocket style diaper or and AIO or AI2 system. You can choose either a sized option or a one size pocket diaper, but keep in mind that a one size will be bulkier and you may not get as good of a fit around the thighs than with a sized diaper. Newborn leaks tend to happen either out the thighs or up the back of the diaper, so make sure to choose a diaper with elastic around the back waist and a good fit around the thighs.

If purchasing diapers before your baby is born, you should consider going to an information session to get all of the information and seeing the various diaper options before you purchase.  You may also consider a cloth diaper “trial” package where you get a variety of diapers to try on your baby. These variety packages whether you purchase or rent, allow you to learn which diaper you like better, and which style of diaper will work best for your child’s body type. When you are shopping, factor in the benefits you get with a more expensive diaper and if it will be worth it to you to spend the extra money. If you sacrifice fit for a lower price you may end up getting frustrated from a poor fitting one size diaper that you may give up on cloth diapers completely.

Here are some of my favorite diapers for the newborn baby ...

Prefold diapers
Bummis prefolds, infant or preemie size (a little bulky)

Fitted diaper
Bamboozle size 1 (especially at night) (bulky)

Covers
Thirsties Duo Wrap
Stacinator So Simple for night once you stop changing your baby at night (look like little shorts :)

Pocket diaperHappy Heinys mini one-size pocket
FuzziBunz one-size pocket (I prefer the one-size over the perfect size)
bumGenius one-size pocket 4.0 (this one will be bulkier)

All-In-One diaper
Definitely the AMP Stay Dry AIO
TotsBots Tini Fit AIO

All-In-2 diaper
By far the SoftBums AI2 with a mini pod (one-size but shrinks down really tiny)
Flip system with stay dry inserts if you are going for economical (a little bulky)

You should aim to have a minimum of 24 diapers with a newborn baby up to approx. 4 months of age to be able to wash every 2 days.  Other useful accessories to consider to make your cloth diaper experience successful:  A pail liner or waterproof laundry bag to store your soiled diapers, wetbag to store your dirty diapers on the go and a good cloth diaper safe detergent.  You may also consider using cloth wipes instead to disposable wipes.  You can wash these with your diapers.

Good luck!

Vicky

Cloth Diapers at night, it is possible!

Cloth diapering at night is actually one of my favourite diapering moments. When I say that, people look at me like I am nuts! Keep these tips in mind when figuring out what works for your little one.

First, keep your baby’s age in mind. A newborn is going to wake up more frequently throughout the night, so it is more important at this stage to have a diaper that is EASY to change in the dark and when mom and dad are tired. My favourites are pockets or all-in-one diapers that allow for extra absorbency to be added as the baby sleeps longer and wets more.

Secondly, go for longevity. As your baby sleeps longer (you will want to as well), or once you make the decision to not change your baby through the night (usually once your baby stops pooping at night) make sure you have a diaper that is going to last as long as your baby sleeps – or heck, even longer! It may not be cute, and may be the infamous cloth diaper “bubble but”, but if that’s what you need to keep your baby dry for the night, that is what must happen! It may not be your prettiest diaper, and may even be a pink diaper for your son, but nobody else is peeking in your little ones diaper at night, so don’t worry about it!  My favorite night time conbination is a bamboo fitted diaper with a well covering cover (see pictures below).

Thirdly, remember to be flexible. Each child is different and may need to use a different combination or even style of diaper at night, so be flexible and try something new if you are having a hard time keeping your baby dry at night. You may have to give up your favourite daytime diaper for an alternative at night.  If you wash every 2 days, I recommend you have a total of 3 night time diapers or 4 if you wash every 3rd day.

Here are pictures of my favorite combinations for both my boys ...

Stacinator So Simple cover

overtop a Sustainablebabyish bamboo fitted diaper

Wonder Wrap Cover

overtop a Bamboozle fitted diaper with an added Jamtots fleece topped bamboo doubler

Bear Bottom Night weight Fleece Cover by Dancing Bears
overtop a DryBees Gone Natural fitted diaper

Bear Bottom Night weight Fleece Cover by Dancing Bears

overtop a Bamboozle fitted diaper

Sustainablebabyish organic knit wool cover
over a Goodmama bamboo velour fitted diaper

Sustainablebabyish organic stretch wool cover

over a Sustainablebabyish bamboo fitted diaper

Happy Night Time Diapering!

My shopping spree at Ottawa Cloth Diapers!

OK so after cloth diapering 2 boys in a span of over 2 years now, and after testing many many cloth diapering products as well as many other baby products I thought I would share with you what I would purchase if I were to walk into my own store knowing what I know now.

First let me start off by saying that all of the products I carry I have liked and used on my own kids. Any products tested that don't meet my family's needs, I do not add to my store. However, that said, if I did not own a cloth diaper store, I probably would not have all of these products in my home :) So if I were to walk into my store right now, here is what I would purchase.

In the cloth diapering section of my store

My daytime diapers would be a mix of ...

1) 10 Fuzzi Bunz One-Size Pocket Diapers

2) 8 Annie Marie Padorie Stay Dry All-In-One Diapers

3) 6 Thirsties Duo Pocket Diapers

My night time diapers would be a mix of ...

1) 2 Sustainablebabyish organic bamboo fitted diaper

2) 1 Bamboozle fitted diaper

3) 2 Stacinator So Simple Covers

4) 1 Sustainablebabyish knit wool covers (coming soon to my store!)

5) 1 Bear Bottom Night Weight Fleece Cover

6) 2 Motherease Absorbent bamboo liners for extra absorbency in the bamboozle diaper as needed

My choice of diapering accessories would be ...

1) 12 Annie Marie Padorie Microfleece Liners (for my night time diapers to keep skin dry)

2 Bummis Biosoft disposable liners (to use at daycare)

3) 2 Wahmies Diaper Pail liners to store soiled diapers

4) 2-3 wetbags for outings and for daycare use (1 JamTots or Fuzzi Bunz wetbags and 1 Planetwise wet/dry bag)

5) Nellie's Laundry detergent (100 loads)

6) Eucalan no rinse wool wash for my wool covers

7) Magic Stick All Natural Ointment

8) 2 packs of Fuzzi Bunz Wonder Wipes

9) bumGenius bottom cleaner (for my diaper bag)

10) Fuzzi Bunz changing pad (for my diaper bag)

Other
1) 2 Monkey Doodlez swim diapers


In the baby/Mama section of my store

For other baby and Mam products I would definitely get the following ...
1) All Natural baby brush (for my babies delicate head from 0-12months)

2) 2 Peppa Tino dolls (1 for home and 1 for daycare)

3) Pippalily toy strap (very handy to strap any toys to your stroller, carseat, etc).

4) Baltic Amber Teething necklace

5) 2 of each Perlimpinpin Sleep sacs (deluxe plush for fall/winter and the bamboo for spring/summer) - I adore these!!

6) Maman Kangourou Stretchy Wrap baby carrier (my ultimate favorite carrier for front carries from newborn until approx. 25lbs!)

7) 4 packs of Motherease bamboo breast pads (love, love, love these!!)

8) MoboLeez breastfeeding hat (so adorable!)

9) Mommy Necklace - dangling donut

Ok, that's it!! I guess I would have a pretty big bill :) Actually my total if I bought all of the above would be approx. $1500 which is still a lot cheaper than buying disposable diapers for one child! So I would be able to sleep soundly at night without any guilt (at least for this shopping spree :)

Good night everyone ...

New products from Happy Heinys!

Happy Heinys proudly introduces 2 new products and we are excited to bring these to you through our store Ottawa Cloth Diapers!

Happy Heinys have been working on a few new products over the last couple of months and are releasing them a little differently than usual. Typically they make a new product, have it go through testing, then release it to all retailers. This time they have done the usual testing, but decided to release these 2 new items as "Beta" products. They are also releasing them only in a couple of colors and only 100 of each product in each color. These 2 new products are not yet officially named, the company will be taking name recommendations from customers (including customers from Ottawa Cloth Diapers) and the name they choose, if it is submitted for the product by a customer, that customer will receive a $50 gift certificate from Happy Heinys.

First New Product: "BETA" Happy Heinys One Size Diaper cover w/gussets

This is an absolutely wonderful one size diaper cover that will fit most babies from 8-35 lbs. They have used the softest fold over elastic we could find for the entire edge of the cover and gussets. These gussets are wonderful for holding in the typical runny breastfed poo as well as most "illness poo". With a stuffed Happy Hempy this combination is a bullet-proof combination for over-night.

Second New Product: "BETA" Organic Happy Heinys One Size Pocket Diaper

This diaper has been born from the numerous requests for special diaper manufacturing of a pocket diaper with a natural interior. At this time there are no inserts included with these diapers. The hemp lining is fully absorbent and when combined with any insert of choice this has proven itself to be a bullet proof over-night product. There are several differences in this pocket diaper from other "Organic" pocket diapers. It is made with the proven Happy Heinys One Size design, a design that has now been around for 7 years. It is also made with Organic Hemp/Cotton. Hemp is antimicrobial and anti-fungal which decreases the chances of rash. Hemp is more durable and absorbent then cotton alone.

For both "BETA"models Happy Heinys is taking any and all input and suggestions both good and constructive. They are also in search for a name for these products. This contest is for customers only and the winning name submitter will receive a $50 gift certificate from Happy Heinys.

Good Luck everyone!

These 2 new products will arrive at Ottawa Cloth Diapers either this week (December 28th) or next week (1st week of January). You can order them now if you like. We will have a limited number of these in stock as only a few have been released from the company so far so get yours fast! Please contact us if you have any questions.

Happy New Year ... we wish you all the best in the year 2010!

Aplix (Velcro) or Snaps Closure on Diapers, what is best?

A common question from parents who are looking to purchase cloth diapers is whether they should purchase diapers with aplix (or more commonly known as Velcro) or with snaps closure. The answer is ... it depends :)

Here is a brief summary of the pros and cons of each closure option to help you make a decision.

Aplix is very adjustable, fast and easy. Most Daddies and babysitters will prefer aplix over snaps. However, some babies learn how to undo aplix (although some will also undo snaps). Aplix tend to wear off over time. When putting your dirty diapers in your laundry bag, make sure you use the aplix laundry tabs to prevent it to sticking onto other fabrics. If the laundry tabs come undone with your wash or dry cycle, consider purchasing a strip of aplix (the loop part) and cut them in squares that you can add to the hook (teeth part of your aplix) before placing your soiled diapers in the wash. This way you will for sure protect your other diapers from catching onto any aplix in the wash.

Snaps are not as adjustable and take a bit longer too fasten which can be tricky for those babies on the move. They tend to last longer than aplix (especially since most companies offer a lifetime warranty on snaps). If you want your diapers to last for more than one child, you might consider choosing snaps over aplix. The other option however is you can replace your worn out aplix easily once it is worn out.

Another option is to purchase a bit of both. This way you have the advantage of both closure system in your diaper stash. Some cloth diaper companies offer the same diapers with either fastening system (ex: Happy Heinys One-Size Pocket Diaper, Gro Baby One-Size Diaper (in vanilla only for snap option)

If you have any questions about this post or any other cloth diaper questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Please leave us comments about your favorite cloth diaper fastening option and why.

Have a great week!

Vicky

Wool Part 2 - Types of wool products for cloth diapers

I hope that everyone had a great Halloween. Weather around here was not that great but it got much better late afternoon and no bad weather can stop the little "monsters" from trick-or-treating!

Continuing with our wool discussion from 2 weeks ago, here are the types of wool products that are available as well as a little bit on the differences in types of wool and knits that you can find.

Wool products for cloth diapers available:

1) Wool soakers
Soakers are usually one piece pull-on covers.



2) Wool shorties
Shorties are exactly that, shorts. So a little longer than soakers but shorter than longies :) They can be used as a cover but also as clothing.





3) Wool longies
Longies are actually wool pants. These can be used as a cloth diaper cover but also as clothing.



4) Wool wraps
Wraps are similar to regular diaper covers you use for cloth diapers that close with either snaps or velcro.







5) Other
You can find other original wool products that are related to cloth diapers such as overalls, sleep sacks, wool tote bags, and more.



Types of knit and wool

As you browse the internet for wool products you will find many types of wool and knits available to you. Some products are hand knit, other are machine made. Some common wool fabrics used are wool flannel, wool jersey, and wool interlock.

Some products are made out of organic wool as others are not. Some are natural and many are dyed. Some products are made out of 1 layer and others have two layers (making it an even better choice for night time protection). Some products are also made from recycled wool such as old wool sweaters.

Most wool products are handwash only but there are some that are machine washable on the gentle cycle.

All of this to say that the possibilities are endless. There is something for every baby's needs.

Look for new wool products coming your way at Ottawa Cloth Diapers in the near future.

Currently we carry the beautiful Sustainablebabyish wool soakers and longies as well as Eucalan no rinse wool wash.

I'd love to hear from any of you about any wool products that you use with your babies.

Good night all!