Now it’s time for Advanced Wipes 202.  Settle down class, My name is Heather and I’ll be your instructor today.

Sometimes cloth diapering feels this way in the beginning… like we should be taking a series of classes and stuffing our heads with ALL available information.  Luckily for us, there is plenty of time (despite the urgent urgings of third trimester hormones) to learn all that we need to know and more.  If you are still contemplating the overwhelming number and types of diapers, please feel free to skip this blog entry… it’ll still be here later, when you feel you’re ready.

For those of you who are still with me, welcome!   Many people who come into the store have questions about how to do wipes with cloth diapers.  Some are convinced that they are just going to use disposable wipes, and some just want to know WHAT to do to use cloth wipes.  Like diapers, just to go with the option that makes the most sense to you.  It may be different than what I do, and that’s ok!

I was one who started with cloth diapers and disposable wipes.  We tried to keep a plastic grocery bag hanging from the changing table to catch the disposable wipes while our cloth diapers went into the pail.  We often forgot to replace the bag after taking the trash out, so we were left with nothing to do but leave the dirty wipes in a little pile on the changing table.  We would have the very best of intentions to come back and get those dirty wipes, but our baby was amazing, entrancing… spectacular!  We often forgot.  So the little pile would become a big pile until finally someone would take care of it.  I decided to try cloth wipes, but I was determined that it would be just as convenient at the changing table as the disposables had been.  So I bought a stash of wipes and folded them one into the other so that they would pop up out of our wipes warmer.  Then I made a solution out of 2 cups water, 1 Tablespoon Witch Hazel and 1 small drizzle tear free soap.  I poured this solution over my stack of folded wipes in the warmer and used them exactly like I had been using disposables, except for the mountain of dirty wipes trash.  These wipes went directly into the pail and got washed just like everything else!  We were quick converts.

Image credit The Feminist Breeder. Click here to see her step-by-step photo instructions.

There are several ways to use cloth wipes:

1.  Wipes warmer, wipes, solution – you can fold your wipes or you can just stuff them into the warmer and dig one out when you need one… either way is fine and convenient.
2. Dry wipes, wipes solution spray – this is what I do for in the diaper bag, but lots of people just keep the spray at their changing table and use this for all of their diaper changes.  I have found that I need a bit more moisture for poopy diaper changes, so I usually try to start with a wipe wet with water before I change the diaper.
3. Wipes wet with water in a container at the changing table – you don’t have to use a wipes solution at all… many people just use water, and it works just fine for them!  For the diaper bag, you could just keep the dry wipes and wet them in a faucet before changing baby’s diaper.
4. Wipes in a container of some sort (plastic with a lid) wet with wipes solution – this is what we have gone to with our son… he likes to play with electrical plugs, so outlets in his room are strictly baby safe!

Last minute advice:  anything can be used as a wipe.  The ones you buy are going to be the highest quality, longest lasting.  For a great out and about/possibly disposable option, cut up a t-shirt.  You can wash and reuse if you want or if it’s a particularly gross poop diaper, you have the guilt free option of throwing it away.  Whatever method you choose, enjoy your diaper changing time… it’s the perfect bonding moment for parent and child!

I have serious verbal issues.  If there was one thing I’d like you to know about me right off, it’s that I have certain conversational needs that just aren’t met at home with my toddler.  It’s not a big deal; we do lots of playing and dancing and ‘ride a pony’ instead.  I’m perfectly happy; but like a dam redirects a certain volume of water, this conversation back log can only go so far.  Eventually the dam’s going to break and the words are going to come out.  Usually all at once.  Usually at Green Bambino.  You might come in to ask about a diaper funk issue and get the VERY VERBAL SALES MOM.  You might want to just drop in for a sec, but end up talking with me for several minutes.  You might leave Green Bambino thinking, “That Heather… She’s a talker”.  I’ll apologize in advance.

I chose to cloth diaper my son because, in my opinion, cloth diapers are less offensive than paper diapers.  When I began, I had absolutely no idea of the environmental impact of paper diapers or the cost of paper diapers or the chemicals packed into paper diapers.  I was just skeeved out by the diaper left in the parking lot at The Generic Big Box Store that survived over a week of 100+ degree temperatures.  Something about the very full plastic lump on the hot asphalt just made me want to gag, and I swore to myself that I would not use that mess on my children.  This incident happened while I was in college over 10 years ago… before I married my husband and very definitely before I had any immediate plans to have a family.

I’ve been cloth diapering my son for two and a half years now, and I’ve had two babies in cloth diapers for the last 11 months.  Buying and using cloth diapers has changed a lot about how I live my life.  As I’ve said, I didn’t choose cloth diapers for economic or environmental reasons.  I didn’t want to use gross disposable diapers so I started doing some research, and found the number of chemicals in disposables a bit daunting, and a good excuse to do what I really wanted to do and invest in cloth.  I think I may have used economics to sell my husband on the cloth diapers, but that’s the extent of my thinking on the subject.  This was a decision that was made by my gut, not my brain.

Once I began, I was introduced to a whole new way of thinking about reusable items versus disposable items.  I started to see that stinky week old diaper in my paper towels, in my disposable wipes, in the paper changing pads we used while out and about.  I started thinking about all of my purchases as long term investments instead of short term conveniences.   I started to think about every single thing I put into the trash can.  Hubby’s old t-shirts aren’t just something to fight over anymore… they’re cut up for diaper bag wipes.  I’ve cut up old greeting cards for diaper swap price tags.  I plan to use the two huge pads of completely crayoned paper for wrapping and for Christmas cards this winter.

Cloth diapering may have not begun as an environmentally or fiscally responsible act, but I’ve found that it has helped my family to live in a way that is sustainable.  We don’t spend money every week on diapers or wipes or formula or baby food.  I use cloth diapers, nurse and make almost all of our baby food.  This has made it possible for our family to absorb the birth of an unplanned second baby with much less impact on our budget.  I’m a stay at home mom with a fun Saturday job.  I love going to Green Bambino and sharing my knowledge and enthusiasm for all things reusable.  I love everything about the Mom Club, and working at Green Bambino is like getting paid to talk with friends… if you come in I may talk your ear off, but you’ll walk away with a bit more information, and maybe even a friend for life.