Diaper Decision: Part 2

This weekend while we were in Ovid to visit the Cool Family (which was a great time, but more on that later), Brian and I attended a Cloth Diapering Class at Jillian's Drawers in Ithaca. I was a little intimidated by the idea of taking a class-- images of having to practice awkwardly on dolls, or of preachy environmentalist teachers were swirling in my mind. Turns out, none of that happened and I'm SO glad we did it.

The class was very casual, held right in the store before they opened. There were 3 couples including Brian and I, both of which were very friendly and normal (whew!). One couple brought their baby who, amazingly enough, was quiet and attentive for the entire duration of the class-- about 1 hour. I hope his easy, calm temperament rubbed off on our baby...

Anyway, so the teacher, who was very normal and not preachy at all, started off by addressing many of the myths associated with CDing. She explained things from personal experience-- she has a 4 year old daughter that she and her husband exclusively CDed. She was refreshingly honest, admitting that at first, it was difficult to get the hang of, especially with prefolds, but that eventually they developed a routine and had no issues. She then moved into a breakdown of the different types, styles, and brands of CDs, and passed them around for us to see. It was great to actually get to hold and manipulate these diapers that I've looked at so extensively online. Again, with this she was very honest, telling us which brands are better at containing leaks, and which styyles she's heard negative feedback on. She also filled us in on detergents to use, accessories (which to invest in and which are just gimmicks) and how many we'll need.

SO... after having the whole CD world demystified before us, here's our to-buy list, along with a price breakdown. We plan on this taking us from birth to about 2-3 months, depending of course on the size and shape of the lil' Cooligan: * The Kissaluvs are super gusseted around the legs, but not highly absorbent, making them better for infant "explosions." They also have snaps for securing the diaper, and the snaps provide different fits including a fold down, low-rise option to allow room for a healing umbilical cord.

** Thirsties Duo Wraps have three rows of snaps on the front, that can be snapped together allowing for 3 different sizes in one diaper wrap.

Note: All of these products will fit the baby until he is about 15-18 pounds, depending on his shape. We have yet to make a decision about what will work best for us in this next stage, but figure that will be a good time to try Jillian's Drawers' Trial Package.

Feedback is welcome of course, but we're highly commited to this, and even Brian is excited to try!