Cloth Diaper Peddler

I recently found a blog post going around Facebook titled "Becoming a Walking Cloth Diaper Ad." I related to this blogger on so many different levels. Before Monkey was born, I had never been introduced to modern cloth diapers. Since he was born and I started using cloth, I could literally talk all day about it to anyone that listens. I am certainly a peddler of cloth.

There are tons of different types of diapers and different brands. There are diapers made by WAHMs (Work At Home Moms) that can be custom made to fit your specific needs. There are some people that literally collect cloth diapers like a child collects Pokeman cards. Wait, that's showing my age. I should say like Sassy collects Bakugans. There, that sounds more "hip."

I do not collect diapers for the sake of having them. One of the biggest reasons I gave cloth a try was the potential to save money. If I'm collecting every new diaper that comes out in every pattern, I will not be saving any money, even if I can sell the diapers I do not use to fund my habit of buying the newest dipe on the shelves. Don't get me wrong, I would LOVE to have more diapers, try out a few different types, and have some custom dipes made. But I just can't justify it.

I love the dipes I have and am very happy with the "stash" of dipes I have. I have around 30 pocket dipes with close to 60 inserts. I have 2 wet/dry bags to use in the "diaper bag", which oddly enough usually just consists of the wet/dry bag itself. All of my cloth needs are being met at this time, so I cannot justify buying more to feed an obsession I have.

But, gosh darn it, they sure are cute. I love to look at cloth dipes. I love when an online store has a sale on dipes. I love to look through the selection and specials at Abby's Lane. I love when one of the discount sites, like Zulily, BabySteals or Baby Half Off has a sale on dipes. I usually cannot justify buying any because I do not *need* any dipes at this moment.

So I have found another outlet for my cloth dipe obsession: Conversion of the Masses. People are naturally curious when they see me changing Monkey and I pull out a dipe that is safety cone orange or has skulls and crossbones on it. They see me snapping the snaps instead of dealing with flimsy velcro tabs on sposies that often come undone when baby squirms. They see me ~gasp~ put the wet or dirty diaper back in my diaper bag instead of tossing it in the nearest trashcan.

And then the questions start: How do those work? Do you like them? Are they confusing? They look confusing. What do you do about poop? Do you have to handwash them? How do you wash them? I bet they are no fun to wash.

That last one is my personal favorite. I actually prefer to wash dipes instead of doing regular laundry. It is less time consuming to wash the diapers/inserts, line dry or toss them in the dryer, and toss in the diaper basket in Monkey's room instead of going through stain patrol, washing, drying, and hanging up or folding the regular laundry.

I answer questions when they are asked. But my favorite is when people are genuinely interested and fascinated by it. These are the people who remind me of what I looked like at my first Mama*ology event when I saw a mom pulling cloth diapers out of her diaper bag and changing her baby. So when I see a genuine spark of interest, I do turn into a walking cloth diaper ad.

I am the person that will be sure to tell anyone that I know that is pregnant that I use cloth diapers, that I love it, and that if they want to learn more to let me know and I will point them in the direction of great local resources. I am the person that was SO excited to buy girl cloth diapers for a friend's baby shower because: a) I am so glad she is going to try cloth diapers b) I am so happy to get to buy girly dipes since I did not know about modern cloth dipes when I had Sassy and Diva. I am the person that will strike up conversations with strangers when they say that my son's underwear (giggle) is cute when he bends over and the dipe peeks out of the top of his pants.

I am also the person that has spent 20 minutes talking to a pregnant waitress in the bathroom when she saw me changing Monkey. She had just started break and noticed the diapers. We spent 20 minutes talking about them, me explaining why I love them and showing her all the features, etc. When my aunt finally came to find me because she thought something was wrong, I wrote down a long list of websites and local resources for the waitress. I've never seen her again and have no idea if she is using cloth dipes, but I love that she was genuinely interested and seemed so excited to go home and research all the information I was telling her.

So there you have it. I most certainly AM a walking cloth diaper ad. I do not pretend to know all about them. I know that there are different types of diapers that I know nothing about. But I also know that I found the type of cloth diapers that work for me and my family and that I love it. Why not spread the love, right?

Disclaimer: I did buy some diapers over this past weekend. Mama*ology and The Eco-Friendly Family, my personal go-to for all my diaper questions, hosted a workshop called Cloth Diaper 101 on Saturday. Several mamas brought their used diapers to sell. I found several WAHM diapers that are fleece inside and out with a PUL layer sewn in the middle. There is no insert sewn in to the diaper or a pocket to put inserts, but for these diapers you just lay an insert inside the diaper.

Monkey has been showing signs of awareness when he poops and sometimes when he pees. After talking to some of the BTDT (Been There, Done That) moms at the workshop, I learned that using dipes where the insert touches his skin will be optimal for potty-training so that he is more aware of the wetness. And at roughly $7 per dipe with insert, I couldn't pass up grabbing a few. I'll have to post pictures when we start using them because they are adorable.