I hate disposable diapers as much as any yogi environmentalist. I have as much guilt as any mom who has a conscience and knows better. And yet, I still go for the convenience.
I tried. I really did with my first. I even bought a bunch of great hand-me-down "pocket" cloth diapers. How green is that! I had a blast in the summer time with my son romping around in his colorful trendy cloth diapers. I loved seeing him in them. Ah, and all those colors hanging on the clothes-line. I loved blissfully drinking in the air of being a good little earth-mom.
But then winter came. No more dumping the poop water outside and using the hose. No, it had to come inside, and in my small space. I had to draw the line. No poop in my sinks. And definitely no unrinsed poop in my washing machine. Ew. Did I mention my very poopy vegetarian son? He has a three-times a day habit, and very loose. Not so friendly. So I failed for most of the year.
Now at two, going on three, my son is *blow whistles now* potty trained. Yeay, no more guilt about wearing disposable diapers! (Next on our environmental agenda: water conservation). Oh but wait. I am pregnant and only have a couple months break from diapering again. Darn.
I was in our local green baby story,
Barefoot Kids, gazing all starry-eyed at the different types of cloth diapers, and all the different inserts, and all the sales. The sales-guy even tried to tempt me with the "hybrid" cloth diapers with the disposable inserts. There was even a diaper swap going on in the next room.
But all the while I knew: NO.
Seriously, I thought, there is only so much poop and pee one woman can be expected to deal with. Two kids is dirty enough. It will be a fight to keep anything clean. I don't need to add a whole new level of dirty feeling to it.
So away I went smiling, guilt free (almost), no money spent.
But now I am getting closer to my due date. The reality of having a brand-spanking-new-barely-been-exposed-to-our-harsh-chemical-ridden-world
actual mini-sized human being is smacking me in the face.
I am revisiting everything that may come in contact with her skin, or respiratory system. From chemicals in her bedroom (fake-wood storage unit emitting formeldahyde is out, air-purifier in), to lotions and wipes.
Friends of ours gave us a few packages of their left-over bleached-white cheap newborn diapers. They smelled like plastic. I couldn't help but visualizing that tiny new-born-bum sitting in that plastic, with who knows what chemicals inside.
Ah! I suppose I could splurg for a while and get some chlorine-free more natural disposable ones. But they are quite expensive - as much as fifty cents a diaper! That is fifty cents times 8 diapers a day = $120/month on diapers! Not really in the budget. At all.
But at last, the decision was made for me. So I feel. I was trading in some of my son's old shoes for some newer ones at Once Upon a Child, and happened upon a
steal of all steals. While browsing through an aisle, totally put off by most of their overly priced second-hand items, I happened to look down and see a brand new package of very trendy expensive "
G-diapers". They were amongst the first generation of "cloth diaper hybrids". They are cloth/velcro fitted with a green disposable insert you can flush or compost. Or you can have the regular cloth insert.
Nice I thought. But how much. Mmm, $15. Okay, well what exactly is in this stash. Turns out this brand new starter pack buys me
four g-diapers (two small, two large) and about 40 disposable inserts. Sweet. Somebody didn't price this one properly. The going rate on amazon for such would ring you up to about $80! So, with that little purchase, it sent me into a tissy on getting my hands on more g's.
Sure, buying the refills are a bit expensive, but at least they are biodegradable. And it gives me an easier out if I need it. I hope to get some cloth inserts too to try it out to see if I can handle it. We are in a new house, and hopefully I can rig up a hose that runs from the sink to the toilet to wash them out or something.
Now, my conscience feels a little better. Even if I fail again, I know I tried. I figure I will give the g-thing a go at least for the first few months. I still have my old cloth pocket diapers if I make it beyond three months too. Summer for sure. So, with that, I can feel better about calling myself a proper earth mom.
Read More
10 Weeks Down: A Newbie's Cloth Diapering Review
