Cloth Diapering Adventure - Part I

As a single mom, working part time, and studying full time, I tend to research a lot of things before I actually spend the money to buy something.

Like diapers.

I found that 20 cents a diaper is the typical going price. I knew there had to be a cheaper option. To find the cost of a diaper, I took the price of boxes and packs divided it by the number of diapers included.

When Blake was a wee one, he easily went through about 8 diapers a day. Now that he sleeps a little longer through the night and he has been pooping on his potty, he goes through about 4-6 diapers a day. On average, that's about $33 to $45 a month. Not too bad, I guess... but I like to try and cut costs wherever possible.

I researched cloth diaper options and was overwhelmed with the types, fits, and brands. But there's a local baby store that is big on cloth diapers so I made a little trip with the Blakester. They totally answered all of my questions! I left feeling like a pro!

Thinking of how I can keep things easy and understandable for Blake's dad, his grandparents, and babysitters... I needed to find something that was just like a disposable diaper. So that narrowed it down to hook-and-loop diapers, which are also known as velcro diapers. They stick and unstick just like disposies. But I only purchased a few of those since Blake is with me for the most part. The rest of his cloth diapers are snaps. Snap button diapers are known to last longer because the velcro on the other dipes tend to wear down.

Next, I found that one size diapers would be more beneficial for me in the long run because most accommodate kids up to 35-40 pounds. At the time, Blake was already past the newborn sizes anyway so I had no need to worry about tiny little dipes. Why wouldn't I go with the go-as-you-grow option?!

Now... did I want all-in-ones or pockets? Pockets seemed more reasonable to me because I could clean the inserts separate or treat the diapers if they get stains on them.

After all of that, I purchased about 12 diapers at about $15 a pop (give or take a dollar or so). That rounds up to $180. $180 for diapers... for the rest of Blake's diaper-wearing days. A year of disposable diapers would have cost me about $480 - $500 something. That's just one year...

I honestly love cloth diapers. The idea of not filling up landfills with my baby's stinkies is pretty cool, too. To top it off, Blake is absolutely adorable in cloth dipes! The patterns and colors are so fun to play with when I get him dressed!