Our baby arrived a few days early, in the wee hours of May 31. And over the past three weeks, my husband and I (and our parents) have become expert with the different types of cloth diapers in our initial stash.
I should confess that we did not start using cloth diapers the day we got home from the hospital. First, we were too exhausted to think about it, and then we were concerned about her belly button stump. (Note to self: next time, buy some newborn-sized cloth diaper covers with cut-outs for the umbilical stump to avoid rubbing.) The hospital sent us home with some disposable pampers that folded down neatly around the stump, so we just used those until the cord stump fell out at around 10 days old. Since then, we've been using cloth almost exclusively, with the exception of trips to the pediatrician or to breastfeeding groups.
I've been astonished at how easy it all is. The big difference between the hospital Pampers and cloth diapers is how much pee they can hold-- the Pampers have some kind of chemical gel in them that crystallizes the urine and traps it so that the baby doesn't feel wet-- great for overnights, less good for landfills (or the pocketbook, over time). The cotton prefolds, on the other hand, feel wet to baby (and parents) immediately, and so need to be changed more frequently.
Note: whether you're using disposables, prefolds, or all-in-ones, you should have the clean diaper READY TO GO on top of the changing table BEFORE you remove the dirty one. Rookie mistake, I know, but I want the world to profit from my ignorant incompetence.
We're washing our diapers at home, and it's been pretty easy so far since baby's exclusively breastfed. Milk poops don't actually need to be rinsed in the toilet before being washed, if you can believe it! (After she starts on solid food, of course, we'll have to change this). But for now, we just do a cold prewash with no detergent, and then a hot wash with Charlie's soap (which doesn't leave any residue that could reduce absorbency), and then a double rinse in cold. Easy. And since it's summer, drying them on the line has been a snap.
Of course, some of the diapers are easier to use, wash, and dry than others. Here's the score so far:
Prefolds and wraps have been our bread and butter. They're quick and easy, and by far the cheapest option going. Not having to change the wrap with every diaper change is nice, as well-- it cuts down on our washing. But not all prefolds and wraps are created equal...
Oso-Cozy blue borders: B+. These are narrow enough for a newborn, but still pretty long-- you have to fold down the ends to fit in the smaller wraps. They are fairly absorbent, but tend to slip to the side inside the wraps if you're doing a regular newspaper fold, so you have to retire the wraps more often.
Gerber: A-. I'm surprised by this-- I figured the Gerbers would be my least favorite. They stay put pretty well, although they're less absorbent than the Oso-Cozys and just as long.
Bummis Organic: A. These are bulkier than the Gerbers or the Oso-Cozys, but they're correspondingly more absorbent. They're not as long, so you don't have to fold them down as much to make them fit into the diapers. And they stay where you put them, so the wraps stay clean for more changes.
We haven't used any of the larger sizes of the prefolds yet, except as burp cloths, so I won't grade them yet.
Wraps:
Newborn Lite-wraps: B-. These fit pretty well now, but they won't for long (they're not adjustable; they're designed for 6-10 pound babies). In addition, there's nothing to tuck the prefold into, so the diaper can scoot around.
Thirsties Size 1: A. These are our favorite wraps. We have one with velcro (my husband's favorite), and one with snaps (my favorite). The velcro is quick and easy to put on when baby is squirmy; the snaps are durable and give you an exact fit each time. These have a little pocket at one end to tuck the edge of the prefold into so that it won't move around. Extra points for the cute colors.
Bummis Whisper Wrap, size small: B+. This is a cute wrap, and the velcro should make it as easy to use as the Thirsties, but it doesn't have the inner pocket to tuck the prefold into. And the fit isn't quite as trim, so it's a lot bulkier looking.
Bum Genius 4.0: A+. This is by far our favorite diaper overall-- we're ordering more of these! They wash easily and dry quickly because the fleecy absorbent insert can be dried separately from the wrap, and the fleecy microfiber insert wicks moisture away from baby really well, making this a great diaper for overnight when you don't change baby quite as promptly. Plus each diaper comes with two inserts (a large and a small), so you can double up if you find you have a heavy wetter. The snaps are easy to use, and like the Thirsties wrap, give you an exact fit each time. My husband is a big fan of this diaper for middle-of-the-night changes. Because the insert is already in there, he can practically change her with his eyes closed.
Tots Bots All in One: A-. This is easy to use--another favorite for late-night changes-- and has washed well so far, but it takes forever to dry on the line because the insert cannot be fully removed from the outer shell.
We're also planning to add some Fuzzibunz one-size all-in-ones to our stash, so I'll add a score for those when we've tried them for a while.
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