Adventures in Cloth Diapering: The Beginning

FLASH BACK:

For a long time i hadn't even thought about whether or not to cloth diaper future children.  No strong opinions, no manifesto on pros of one way or the other.  Believe it or not, I didn't spend my time pre-pregnancy scouring google for comparisons.   One day Tad turns to me and declares, that yes, he'd LOVE to cloth diaper our baby.  (this is early in our pregnancy, like month 1 or 2.)

I had nothing against it, I mean, it's inexpensive (which appealed to my cheapskate side), its environmentally conscious (which appeals to my norcal roots).  I figured, I Tad feels so strongly about it, I should give this a try.  

But I knew NOTHING about what that means.  Do I just throw a sheet around him and pin it in the front?  who knows...  

Come to find out both our parents clothed us as babes. Tad for the whole time, the main appeal being how cheap it was. Me; only for a few months until I got too many rashes.

FAST FORWARD TO 3 MONTHS AGO:

A friend introduced me to a facebook circle of local cloth diaper-ers (surprise: One of my co-worker's girlfriend is a part of this circle and clothes!)

I lurked around up until a few days ago.   When i got there, I was overwhelmed.  Some of these ladies are superwomen!  And they were using language i didn't understand!!!!   Pockets, AIO AI2, Stripping, complicated laundry procedures, prefolds, hybrids, snappies, thirsties, and on and on and on.  DONT EVEN GET ME STARTED on acronyms! 

I gave up even thinking about it.  I mean, it was overwhelming. I think I said that already. I left it alone. I had enough to worry about, I wasn't going to let this consume me.

FAST FORWARD to A FEW WEEKS AGO:

I think something just hit.  The close arrival of my LO.  The fact that i was on summer vacation. something.  I started researching.  Now, I KNOW if i would have asked, the ladies in the group would have helped. But I needed to feel confident in the basics, with procedure, and with a direction of what I wanted to do.  I found the resource page on Diaper Jungle to be particularly helpful. 

  NOT that there aren't other sites out there, I just found it easy to navigate and clear and to the point without searching through tons of blogs and review etc. 

THE CURRENT RESULT:

From the research I have done, I find that method I am most comfortable with and will fit our lifestyle are hybrids or AI2 (All-in-2).  These are shells that have a place to put a cloth insert that is removable and washable.  The shell can be quickly wiped off (if needed) and used several times before washing.  Like a pair of jeans.  Most of these covers can be washed normally in your own laundry once a week or so.  The inserts are washed when you get enough of them (every 2-3 days).  Beyond that, I can use certain disposable inserts in case of travel/long days/babysitting.

Source: gro-via.com via Alisa on Pinterest

You might recognize gdiapers as one type of hybrid diapers.  I am also looking into grovia AI2 hybrids.   (If you are interested the gro-via site has a great explanation on hybrids and the best cost comparison I've seen yet)
Plus Look how adorable these are!

Source: gro-via.com via Alisa on Pinterest

Now, Only time will tell.  But Now I am feeling more confident about what to expect, how to launder, and I'm even getting ready sew up some cloth wipes!   

SAVING THE ENVIRONMENT ONE BABY BUTT AT A TIME!!!