There are many reasons to move over to cloth diapers too. Economical, the savings are substantial and more and more parents are seeing today's cloth diapers are not like when their moms used them.
Also, eco-friendly. Did you know disposable diapers take almost 500 years to biodegrade. Yes our kids will not around to see the affects on this but our kids kids will be. That is a lot of waste to rack up to "convenience." But what happens when parents make the decision to go "cloth" and then are faced with another decision....putting your little one in daycare. Now what?
Just the other day, I was talking to a friend of mine that has a new born and she was starting to look at cloth diapers, after hearing me talk about how I love this brand and that brand. They had already found a daycare for their little tike. After calling their new provider, they were were told the facility does not take cloth. That stinks, in the world of cloth but also just stinks. In case you are in that situation, check out this great write up about what you can do with your daycare or finding one that will use cloth, click HERE. Also here is a great tip sheet you can print/save/re-read from The Real Diaper Association .
While I have never had to deal with a daycare and cloth wipes, my other friend has. She just provides them with a zipped wet bag and that is it. I think more daycare facilities will come around to the idea since really it no extra work. Cloth diapers these days are as easy to use the disposables.
Want more info on cloth diapers? Here are a few more links that are great to just read through.
Where to start?
How to get 1000K stash for $500
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Babies...Check, extra One-Thousand Dollars...not so much
Recently, I did a little contest called the Green Quiz Quest. I had never participated before and I must say I am addicted now. There is info at the bottom, if you want to check it out. One thing I loved about the contest is the knowledge I picked up about all the different and amazing companies out there. It just helped me realized how deeply addicted I am to the cloth diaper industry. I found so MANY new brands I had never heard of. Mind you, I have only been using cloth diapers for 4 months. Little did I know of how many other talented individuals are out there making their way in the cloth diaper arena.
Another area that makes me realize how much I love cloth diapers is I guess after speaking to my other girlfriends who use cloth, it seems I kept spitting out what I would do with an extra $1000? Most might think I would spend it on a vacation for my husband and I. Maybe drop it into what we call our "savings account", or maybe get some new items for the house. Not this wife,mom, sister, daughter, friend. No, I would go and find all the cloth diapers I either have not tried or never heard of and put them to the test. I have the babies, our son is a little over a year and we have a new one coming the end of August, so trials will not be an issue. Then I would know what works, what doesn't, which styles are better or not and even offer some as giveaways on here. Unused of course. I have only tried cloth on our son but from what others say, it really depends on the baby, but also the quality of the product.
Oh cloth diapers, where have you been my whole life? I also would love to let everyone know out there that cloth diapers are NOT YOUR MOTHERS CLOTHS DIAPERS!!! I should do a poll to see what people first think when someone says "cloth diapers".
Here are just a few diaper sites, I would love to try. I am loving the diapers called "All-in-one" since they grow with your baby. You don't have to buy S, M, L just one or 50 and done! Check them out yourself. Just remember that these are just a few out there and there are a lot of web site stores that carry these brands which offer specials, even free shipping like: Diaper Junction, Diaper Shops, Kelly's Closet, The Green Nursery and Niki's Diapers. If you want to know of more brands, email me at helpfulsister@gmail.com. I would be happy to send you my list! Some you can even find on YouTube which shows off each of their features. Go to YouTube and enter in the diaper name, and see what shows up
If you are interested in the Green Quiz Quest, it ends July 31st. Go to the web site to find out more, click here and you can follow them on Facebook, click here. There is also a ton of info out there now adays to help you determine what kind of cloth diaper to use, the cost, how to travel with them. Email me if you want more links but here are few to help. Also, you can find on all these websites links to their Facebook and twitter pages. Sign up with them. Most have sales all the time, or fun contests. Plus you get to keep to date on any changes or new products that are coming out.
http://www.clothdiaperblog.com/the-cloth-diaper-report/
http://www.bumsawaydiapers.com/aboutcloth/
Enjoy and let me know how your stash is growing. I would love to know what diapers you have and how they are working or not. Look for more posts with more info as my itty bitty stash grows into a MOTHERLOAD.
Another area that makes me realize how much I love cloth diapers is I guess after speaking to my other girlfriends who use cloth, it seems I kept spitting out what I would do with an extra $1000? Most might think I would spend it on a vacation for my husband and I. Maybe drop it into what we call our "savings account", or maybe get some new items for the house. Not this wife,mom, sister, daughter, friend. No, I would go and find all the cloth diapers I either have not tried or never heard of and put them to the test. I have the babies, our son is a little over a year and we have a new one coming the end of August, so trials will not be an issue. Then I would know what works, what doesn't, which styles are better or not and even offer some as giveaways on here. Unused of course. I have only tried cloth on our son but from what others say, it really depends on the baby, but also the quality of the product.
Oh cloth diapers, where have you been my whole life? I also would love to let everyone know out there that cloth diapers are NOT YOUR MOTHERS CLOTHS DIAPERS!!! I should do a poll to see what people first think when someone says "cloth diapers".
Here are just a few diaper sites, I would love to try. I am loving the diapers called "All-in-one" since they grow with your baby. You don't have to buy S, M, L just one or 50 and done! Check them out yourself. Just remember that these are just a few out there and there are a lot of web site stores that carry these brands which offer specials, even free shipping like: Diaper Junction, Diaper Shops, Kelly's Closet, The Green Nursery and Niki's Diapers. If you want to know of more brands, email me at helpfulsister@gmail.com. I would be happy to send you my list! Some you can even find on YouTube which shows off each of their features. Go to YouTube and enter in the diaper name, and see what shows up
 | ||||||
| BABY KANGA RED LADYBUG- ONE SIZE |
 |
| Katydid One-Size MELON |
New Generation Cloth Diaper
 |
| Rumparooz All in One- GUMBALL |
If you are interested in the Green Quiz Quest, it ends July 31st. Go to the web site to find out more, click here and you can follow them on Facebook, click here. There is also a ton of info out there now adays to help you determine what kind of cloth diaper to use, the cost, how to travel with them. Email me if you want more links but here are few to help. Also, you can find on all these websites links to their Facebook and twitter pages. Sign up with them. Most have sales all the time, or fun contests. Plus you get to keep to date on any changes or new products that are coming out.
http://www.clothdiaperblog.com/the-cloth-diaper-report/
http://www.bumsawaydiapers.com/aboutcloth/
Enjoy and let me know how your stash is growing. I would love to know what diapers you have and how they are working or not. Look for more posts with more info as my itty bitty stash grows into a MOTHERLOAD.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Cloth Diapers are on Trial & A FuzziBunz Giveaway (end 7/21)
Through all my blog/tweet/facebook connections, I came across another great web site. I have not ordered anything from them yet but the inventory is amazing. Do you want to try a cloth diaper because you are new? Do you want to try a new brand? Go to Nicki's Diapers. This web site has a huge inventory for cloth diapers, cloth diaper accessories, nursing, baby wearing and more. Nicki's Diapers also offers a 15-day TRIAL period for any of the cloth diapers, training pants and diaper covers. What a great way to see what diaper works for your little one but also try the enormous selection of cloth diapers.
I personally can not wait to try Nicki's Diapers very own invention, Better Bottom One Size. Looks the perfect solution to my current issue! They have some pretty cute colors too. Head on over and get signed up for the blog. They do some great giveaways!
The current giveaway which ends July 21st is for FuzziBunz Perfect One Size Diaper. I have personally used this diaper and love them because they wick away moisture so great. This style of FuzziBunz will grow with your baby from birth to potty training. It has a "stuff and go" design as well. Great brand and a great giveaway! Head on over here and get signed up. Don't forget to tell all your friends who cloth diaper and those who have always wanted to try.
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| Better Bottom One Size in Mint Choco Chip |
The current giveaway which ends July 21st is for FuzziBunz Perfect One Size Diaper. I have personally used this diaper and love them because they wick away moisture so great. This style of FuzziBunz will grow with your baby from birth to potty training. It has a "stuff and go" design as well. Great brand and a great giveaway! Head on over here and get signed up. Don't forget to tell all your friends who cloth diaper and those who have always wanted to try.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Stick Me! Plus a Giveaway (ends July 22 2010)
Came across this great web site via Funky Monkey web page! Pretty cool items they feature. They featured a product called Picky Sticky. Simple concept...You stick a sticker on a piece of clothing and take a photo. Easily capturing a milestone. No more wondering "how old was he in this photo?" Great baby shower gift. Buy a set of stickers then a set of onesies, for up to a year....poof, your are the hit of the baby shower.
They also have pregnancy stickers to stick on your cute growing belly if so choose.
Simple concept, perfectly priced and they are doing A GIVEAWAY! Click on over here to enter. Send me photos of which stickers you either WIN or purchase. Can't wait to try it out on our new little bundle.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Prepared for Baby...then Baby Happened
So I just read an article about The 10 Things You Don't Need to Buy for your New Baby, find the article here. This article got me thinking, about what would I have done differently or we are doing differently, since baby #2 is coming in about 6 weeks? Where there things that we thought were must have's? Yes of course. Out of the most expensive things you can buy we actually did pretty well.
We didn't buy a "changing table", we just converted an already used dresser into one, by putting the changing pad on it. Worked out great but since we were so tall, we soon just changed our son on our ottoman with one of the best inventions the Patemm Pad! FYI, Patemm just turned 6! Till the end of July you can get your own pad for 20% off. Use code 6BDAY. This pad is great because it is ROUND not rectangle or square and it folds up into a square. Easy to clean and it eco-friendly. We love ours.
Meemaw bought us a crib from Ikea, above. I liked it when I viewed it on the web and I liked the price. It doesn't really fit through our house doors, so when we decided to move into our bedroom from the nursery, we found that it was a real pain to have break down and put back up again. Plus, I don't like how the bars are round. Our son is a mover and a shaker when he sleeps anyways, but I am thinking now, I should of found a crib that had flat pegs and he might of slept better. But truthfully, he has been sleeping with us since he was brought home from the hospital. The only time we use the crib is when he naps. But this would of been solved if we bought a co-sleeper pad that fits on our bed, so he would be safe from falling out. I found one at one of my favorite sites Franklin Goose.
Still wondering how it work sleeping at night and movement but it seems to be a good idea. We are looking forward to breaking the crib down. With Baby #2 we have a borrowed bassinet but we will see how it works out to co-sleep with both of them.
With regards to co-sleeping, I have so many of my friends and even family that have not heard good things about co-sleeping. We made our minds up to co-sleep after doing research on attachment parenting and then making an educated choice. If you want to learn more Google attachment parenting or find parents that co-sleep, there are more out there doing it than you think, then make up your own mind after you feel you have been educated on both sides.
We bought a stroller, Phil and Ted Sport with the doubles kit, above. Found it on a great site called Pish Posh Baby. We knew we would have more kids soon so this was a logical and small footprint of a choice. I had known other mothers that had double strollers that barely fit through doors and even through isles of stores. PRO: I wanted one that was easy to move around but could fit two kids and I could manage to afford. We will soon find out how the doubles kit fares. CONS: Just from looking at the stroller I don't know if it will work out to have an infant and our son in the stroller but to be honest we rarely but our son in the stroller until he could hold his head up.CONS: The break is pretty had to engage and release. I am ex-college basketball player and can easily lift and carry things, most men should. So finding that the break is hard to use is not speaking lightly. One good thing though, once that darn break is engaged, it is engaged!
What I would of done different?
Now I wish I would of looked at the Bob (found at REI or Bob Gear) I have had a few friends that rave about their Bob. Go test drive it at your nearest REI!
Or another option:
Bumbleride double strollers. The features seem to be right on with what we would need and narrow enough to fit into places that some strollers don't. I think both would be nice to have now that we have two coming.
I don't know if we are sling/carrier incompetent, but when I say we I mean me, but maybe my husband wants to be included on that. We have tried a handful of slings. I don't know if it is because we are so tall (6'0 and 6'4" respectively) but slings just didn't seem to work. We knew we wanted to have our son near us at all times and a car seat/stroller option just was not in the cards. Everywhere we went, he was carried by us in some sort of fashion. After trying out a few slings we went to the carriers. We tried the Baby Bjorn but found that we could not hold him very long before both our backs started to hurt. Plus, to me, if I had privates and gravity was in play and I had to sit ontop of a small plastic piece, I would not be very comfortable. Our son never told us differently. He seemed to like it.
The next thing we bought was the Moby Wrap.
I think we bought this a little to late since our son was already 6+ months and he was just a little mover. I think this wrap is perfect for newborn in the "4th Trimester." They are close to the parents heart and swaddled which are two things that soothes newborns.You can find them anywhere, Target, Baby R Us, but also online. A great place to shop for anything baby it Diapers.com or Diaper Junction.
Our current carrier is the Boba Organic G2.
I have not been able to try it since I am well into my 3rd trimester, but my husband has twice. The great thing about this carrier is it is more erogonomical for the child to sit. Plus it comes with foot rests so the babies/child legs are not hanging and pressure is created. Boba also has extra inches of height to keep the parents center of gravity closer to your body and support to give more support to the babies/childs back. Our son is still getting used to it, since he loves to explore with his new found walking talent. But we think it will be great once the other baby comes. One baby in the Moby and our son in the Boba. We got our Boba at another great place for baby Franklin Goose.
We received one as a gift and by now (1 year later) we don't use it. One- we went to cloth diapers, well Hybrid cloth (GroVia). We can either use cloth inserts or disposable inserts (biodegradable in 100 days). If it is a poopy diaper, we either flush the waste or take the disposable insert out to our garage. If you know me you know we live in a very hot summer climate so you might say, well that will make your garage smell of dirty diapers. I would have to say, we have not experienced that as of today. Our garage still smells like a garage. We also went to cloth wipes. We found a local woman who makes them, so our waste is pretty much rare. We love our cloth wipes. We still use eco-friendly disposable wipes when we are out and about. We used to use Natures Babycare Fragrance Free wipes. PRO: Very absorbent and thick. CON: if you don't put them in a warmer or another carrier, we would get 2-10 wipes at a time. It was hard just to get what you need so we ended up using more than needed or stuffing the unused back into the package. We now use Seventh Generation Wipes, which you can find most anywhere but I purchase mine from Diapers.com (free 2 day shipping over $49). I like them because we get out what we want to use. They are eco-friendly and clean up messes very well.
Having baby #2 on the way, and soon to be living on one income, we have come to realize that there some things that we just don't need to have be new anymore.
#1 Toys- We have found that the best toys are things around the house. Our son loves pots and pans and basically anything else that we find that is safe for him. The toys we do have were either given to us or we go to a second hand store and stock up. But really, the best thing is just the interaction with him and us. Our house is not overran with toys and it will stay that way.
#2- Clothes- It is nice to get new but then reality hits. 50% or more of our sons cloths were worn once or never worn at all. It is nice to get things from the Grandparents but I have even let them know that if they find sale pieces or second hand, send it our way.
Second hand all the way, or if I find a good deal online at my favorite deals and steals websites. Babysteals and Kidsteals has one steal a day. When the item is gone it is gone. Most pieces are over 50% off and are high quality, must have items. Zulily, Totsy and bTrendie, you have to sign up to access their sites. I have ordered a few things off of these sites and the order takes a little longer to get, but is well worth it. Babysteals, Kidsteals, Zulily, Totsy or btrendie. Kids outgrow clothes so fast. Why spend full price on something? Find a great second hand store or even better, consignment sales.
Wel, hopefully this shed a little light into the maze of things to buy, things to not, things to wait and see, things to really research. Being a parent is an amazing experience so take each moment as they come. Everyday is learning experience, isn't it.
Changing Table/Pad
We didn't buy a "changing table", we just converted an already used dresser into one, by putting the changing pad on it. Worked out great but since we were so tall, we soon just changed our son on our ottoman with one of the best inventions the Patemm Pad! FYI, Patemm just turned 6! Till the end of July you can get your own pad for 20% off. Use code 6BDAY. This pad is great because it is ROUND not rectangle or square and it folds up into a square. Easy to clean and it eco-friendly. We love ours.
Crib/Co-Sleeper
 |
| Humanity Organics Family Sleeper |
With regards to co-sleeping, I have so many of my friends and even family that have not heard good things about co-sleeping. We made our minds up to co-sleep after doing research on attachment parenting and then making an educated choice. If you want to learn more Google attachment parenting or find parents that co-sleep, there are more out there doing it than you think, then make up your own mind after you feel you have been educated on both sides.
Stroller (Double)
What I would of done different?
 |
BOB Revolution Duallie Stroller, found at REI.com |
Or another option:
Bumbleride double strollers. The features seem to be right on with what we would need and narrow enough to fit into places that some strollers don't. I think both would be nice to have now that we have two coming.
 |
| 2010 Indie Twin from Bumbleride |
Sling/Carrier/Wraps
The next thing we bought was the Moby Wrap.
I think we bought this a little to late since our son was already 6+ months and he was just a little mover. I think this wrap is perfect for newborn in the "4th Trimester." They are close to the parents heart and swaddled which are two things that soothes newborns.You can find them anywhere, Target, Baby R Us, but also online. A great place to shop for anything baby it Diapers.com or Diaper Junction.
Our current carrier is the Boba Organic G2.
Diaper Pale/Diaper Caddy
We received one as a gift and by now (1 year later) we don't use it. One- we went to cloth diapers, well Hybrid cloth (GroVia). We can either use cloth inserts or disposable inserts (biodegradable in 100 days). If it is a poopy diaper, we either flush the waste or take the disposable insert out to our garage. If you know me you know we live in a very hot summer climate so you might say, well that will make your garage smell of dirty diapers. I would have to say, we have not experienced that as of today. Our garage still smells like a garage. We also went to cloth wipes. We found a local woman who makes them, so our waste is pretty much rare. We love our cloth wipes. We still use eco-friendly disposable wipes when we are out and about. We used to use Natures Babycare Fragrance Free wipes. PRO: Very absorbent and thick. CON: if you don't put them in a warmer or another carrier, we would get 2-10 wipes at a time. It was hard just to get what you need so we ended up using more than needed or stuffing the unused back into the package. We now use Seventh Generation Wipes, which you can find most anywhere but I purchase mine from Diapers.com (free 2 day shipping over $49). I like them because we get out what we want to use. They are eco-friendly and clean up messes very well.
Things We Don't Buy New Anymore
#1 Toys- We have found that the best toys are things around the house. Our son loves pots and pans and basically anything else that we find that is safe for him. The toys we do have were either given to us or we go to a second hand store and stock up. But really, the best thing is just the interaction with him and us. Our house is not overran with toys and it will stay that way.
#2- Clothes- It is nice to get new but then reality hits. 50% or more of our sons cloths were worn once or never worn at all. It is nice to get things from the Grandparents but I have even let them know that if they find sale pieces or second hand, send it our way.
Second hand all the way, or if I find a good deal online at my favorite deals and steals websites. Babysteals and Kidsteals has one steal a day. When the item is gone it is gone. Most pieces are over 50% off and are high quality, must have items. Zulily, Totsy and bTrendie, you have to sign up to access their sites. I have ordered a few things off of these sites and the order takes a little longer to get, but is well worth it. Babysteals, Kidsteals, Zulily, Totsy or btrendie. Kids outgrow clothes so fast. Why spend full price on something? Find a great second hand store or even better, consignment sales.
Wel, hopefully this shed a little light into the maze of things to buy, things to not, things to wait and see, things to really research. Being a parent is an amazing experience so take each moment as they come. Everyday is learning experience, isn't it.
Saturday, July 03, 2010
Can you REALLY afford Cloth Diapers?
What a great write up.
Take a look and make the decision yourself.
The Daisy Blog did a great write up to help answer this very question. Click here to read on.
4th of July Weekend= Free and huge discounts....
Everyone, well most everyone, loves when they get something free or at a nice discount. Have fun with all these giveaways and sites that are offering great discounts over the 4th of July weekend!
Sip some lemonade, take in some sun and save a little!! The sites I have put up are some of MY personal favorites. Feel free to pass along all these great offers to your friends, family and anyone else who might take part in some great savings.
Happy searching, shopping and saving.
Zulily.com is offering some great discounts on their sales right now. Haba toys, Feather Baby, Bumkins and a ton more. Find disounts which make your bank account smile!
Tropical Traditions has some amazing products, with everything from just coconut oil, household, pet and skin care products. They are offering a great discount to use until Wednesday day July 7th. Click here to get the code and to shop.
Want even more discounts? Head to The Cloth Diaper Whisper Blog the discount code at a cute shop online called Kellys Closet. You receive 15% off any order of 99$ or more. Huge savings and you will be amazed at the selection at Kellys Closet. Get the code here!
This is another great site for your cloth diaper needs and much more Diaper Junction Starting today, Saturday, July 3, 2010 to Monday, July 5, 2010, you will receive FREE SHIPPING on orders of $25.00 or more! Be sure to use COUPON CODE: HAPPY4TH at check-out!
PLEASE NOTE: The FREE SHIPPING will not be honored for previous or pending orders; orders must be placed between July 3-5, 2010, excludes full size detergents and diaper pails
Giveaway- click here to enter the Cloth Diaper Blog, Feed Your Stash Fridays (button to the right too). This week you are going FLIP! Win 2 Organic Flip diapers, you choose the colors. Entering is easy and also fun. FEED YOUR STASH. Click here to enter.
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