Comments on: Confessions of a Cloth-Diaper Drop-Out

By: Nemomum

Nemomum — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 15:48:01 +0000

I’m at the contemplating dropping out stage. Toddler is almost 2 and I’m pregnant again. I’ve had such trouble with hyperemesis gravidarum (monster morning sickness and nausea) that I’ve been struggling to deal with nappies once, let alone having to have a huge bucket of them to wash at the end of the day. We’ve saved a lot of money by using them with baby one but I never get caught up with my laundry and I’m just plain tired. It was about £200 for the system plus £25 for the reusable wipes. I think the bag of disposable nappies are going to be replaced. Even if I didn’t have the sickness problem I think I’d be at the giving up point, something just has to give. I’ve got too much to do in my day and toddler nappies are so much worse than small baby ones.

By: Jessica

Jessica — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 22:09:44 +0000

Thank you! We decided to give up the cloth because using the laundromat was costing us TWICE what disposables would cost a month and running us ragged. I am so sad to fail at this, but without our own washer/dryer it was just not worth it… I realized I was paying not only more money, but so much of my time and energy. Thanks for making me feel less alone

By: cloth diaper

cloth diaper — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 01:03:42 +0000

I know the feeling, it s very easy to want to give up. I have baby number 2 coming and I’m not going to lie…I too am less than thrilled about re-entering the world of diapering…especially cloth diapers. So we’ll see!

By: Lynne

Lynne — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 22:51:35 +0000

I used cloth on my first two and not my third. When my 4th came along 7 years later I was even more “green” than before. I was impressed with how improved the wraps were. I washed the dipaers in my machine in a hot water wash. I am raising my daughter in the Montessori philosophy she was out of diapers at 21 months. I saved over $1500 and lightened the landfill.

By: cricket

cricket — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 21:23:22 +0000

split bottom pants at kids’ kove: that would be an awesome sight.

By: Peggy

Peggy — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 19:40:10 +0000

Thanks for the article, Erin. I chuckled at the part of you having cloth diapers written into your birth plan and the ambition to have cloth diapers at the hospital. You may view yoursefl as a dropout — but you are my hero!
I too tried the cloth, same reasons…and gave it up after about two weeks. I was so stressed out! I felt a failure.
I am currently pregnant with my third and plan on using a mixture of choices this time. Biodegradable disposabke in the beginning (1 penny more than Pampers) then switching to the g diapers as she gets older. There are so many feel-good choices out there…so much information. I am ready to take this on guilt-free with gusto!
When my second child came along, I couldn;t take the expense, nor mental anguish (read: guilt) of having them both in diapers at the same time switched to the Motherease and Kushies with the disposable liners (compostable if it’s just pee). It was more expensive upfront…but I found them to be wonderful. My first child was potty trained by the time he was two (not bragging — we lived in Ca, so it’s an easy thing to do with good weather and naked kids. RI is a lot harder.). The second…well..by 3…yet my guilt was assuaged a bit.
A friend sent me a split bottom pair of pants from China…I’m up for it…but I might not bring that to the playground…might freak some people out a bit.

By: Jamie Glowacki

Jamie Glowacki — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 17:02:36 +0000

I offer cloth diapering advice…I can get rid of the stink…the only way to properly cloth diaper is to deal with fecal matter…at all times…it’s do-able, though I appreciate the honesty of the article.

By: Jonathan

Jonathan — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 05:17:44 +0000

Why not go all the way – diaper free? Just when our kids finished with diapers, I remember seeing an article in the NY Times all about diapers, early potty training, and “elimination communication”.

Thanks to the Internet, you can still read it:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/09/nyregion/09diapers.html

The article states that 50% of the children in the world are potty trained by age 1. Made me wonder if we really could have saved thousands of dollars and avoided adding to landfills. My wife questioned exactly how we would have fit the experience of early potty training into our lives. I wondered what our house would smell like, since other dads and I compared the ability of some diaper changes to induce a gag reflex and changing a diaper genie with a leak was like transporting hazardous waste.

Maybe that 50% of the world mentioned in the article still has only one working parent or an extended family to constantly care for their children.

In reference to the article… I’d love to know if any dads out there are enjoying the elimination communication with their infants. I can’t think it’s really as much of a bonding experience as breast feeding.

And has anyone tried split bottom pants…in public? I’m thinking you’d have to pack a second pair for those inaccurate efforts on the toilet.

By: Jamie

Jamie — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 04:02:13 +0000

I loved this article! I too am a cloth dropout. My love for cloth actually started with my second son, but faded when my husband took a job in RI and left us behind in NY Monday-Friday for 6 months. I was a single mama with 2 kids and I just couldn’t keep up.

By: sarah

sarah — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 20:29:36 +0000

we all do what we can do at that moment, that hour, that day…. I always remember what one of my first LLL leaders said. “Baseball players get paid millions of dollars to hit one ball out of three, so if we are hitting one ball out of three (which I say we all are working really hard and doing way better statistically), we are doing fabulously! We do the best we can for ourselves, our children, and our world, one moment at a time…..
Erin, I have to say, I loved this piece. Thanks for sharing it!