Switching to Cloth Diapers. Learning the "Foreign" Language, HELP!

I like prefolds with a snappi (It is a pinless diapering thing) and then a plastic cover. message me if you need more help.

I cloth diaper and hated gDiapers. They were just a huge mess to deal with but that was my experience.

I did the same with my son. We used diapers till his body was ready to go all night. You can get large size covers or all in one diapers that you would need to add extra absorbency to so he'd make it all night-like hemp liners.

If you go with Fuzzibunz make sure you get the one-size. I bought the ones without the adjustable rise and they never ever fit my daughter correctly.

I have to disagree with you can just decide that your daughter is ready to train. My daughter started telling us at 17 months but her body was not ready to fully train. She is now 2.5 and she's almost there. And that's with us going diaperless around the house and such.

You don't want to use the prefolds from Target or BabiesRUs. They really aren't what you want in a cloth diappie-too thin and not nearly absorbent enough. Greenmountain.com has the gold standard for prefolds. We are using the same prefolds that I bought when my daughter was 4 months old and she is now 30 months old and they are as absorbent as the day they went into use! It's all about caring for your diapers properly and using them in rotation so a few diappies don't get worn more than the others.

And the laundry soap won't double. With cloth diapers you barely use detergent! The more detergent you use the *worse* it is for your diapers. You will literally use a tablespoon+ for a large load! And you really only need to wash every other day or every 2 days depending on what you get.

I can tell you from my 2+ years of cloth diapering that you will save a considerable amount. The increase in electric/water is minor compared with the cost of disposables. And if you are going to have more kids the diapers you get now will last thru those kids if cared for properly.

Cloth wipes are awesome and another huge money saver. You wash them right along with the diapers.

I highly recommend the website pinstripesandpolkadots. S. the owner is super helpful and she would be happy to guide you to brands that would work for your little ones best!

Your daughter is old enough to start potty learning. I had mine in training pants (gerber) at 18 months. I clothed my daughter from birth, so by 15 months, she would tell me when her diaper was dirty. My 12 month old son will go to the potty seat when I ask him "where does poop" go. He isn't anywhere near ready to use the potty, but he is already learning the concepts.

I say this because you shouldn't waste any more money on diapers unless you plan on having another kid. Your kids are old enough to be trained and/or in training. So think "training," not "diapering." There are some great cloth training pant product out there that will work almost as well as a diaper. You may want to try some of them on your daughter, and get her in a bathroom routine.

Also, chances are, the cloth diapers will help your son finish up with his nap/night training. So I'd only buy two training diapers for him, and then just wash them. He will wake up and feel his wetness, so it might inspire him to wakefulness. ;-) My daughter night trained at 21 months, and I know it was because of the cloth diaper (and my limiting water).

I personally don't like the gDiapers because the sewage system is old around here and they just aren't a good idea. The key to a good fitting diaper is going to be your kids "rise," rather then weight. I love my Bum Genius diapers, but I adore Rumparooz. Fuzzi's one-size are also nice. There are some WAHM brands that specialize in larger toddler size. You may want to just do a google search for them.

Of course you could just do prefolds. Cheapest way to go.

My kids are also very tall, and I like Fuzzi Bunz because they have such a high rise. You can buy themon amazon.com. However, unless you are planning to have another child, I am not sure they will be financially worth it for you, as it takes several months to break even with them (depending on how many you buy). You should run the math before you make a purchase. Instead, you might consider prefolds with large covers (I like Bummis covers) to help save money, but those will be bulky. I have never used gDiapers, but they may be the way to go. Good luck with whatever you do..

If you can afford to buy them, do bum genius. I am a single, SAHM, I would suggest (if you can sew) make your own. It is pretty simple. I bought some fleece and some PUL online. I used a pattern I got free online. I put in some elastic and sewed the two fabrics together. The first set I made, I used velcro---I wouldn't suggest it. I bought a button press and I used it when I made some friends some diapers. I had bought some prefolds, but that was a waste, for the most part. I also bought microterry towels, which 2 yrs later I am using for EVERYTHING else :) You just fold the insert in thirds and stuff it in. Good Luck. There is a store near the Whole Foods on Metcalf in Overland Park. It is called Happybottomus- they are expensive, but they have all the brands and you could go and get some ideas

ALSO I disagree with the person who said that it is just as expensive to wash diapers. I line dry mine, and I also throw my diapers in with a normal wash. I had 21 diapers, I RARELY used all of those. I am VERY FRUGAL, and I do a load every 2-3 days. Washing a few diapers does NOT cost the roughly $20+ dollars a month it costs to buy them. Also you can use a wet wash cloth instead of a wipe. Throw those into the laundry too

I'll tell you what I use and you can take it from there course it all comes down to preference...
Flip diapers and inserts, Bum Genius diaper covers (velcro)for prefolds and then Thirsties covers (w/snaps) for toddler prefolds. You don't need pins or snappies. These are adjustable by size.
At night I use a flip and two inserts that are not Flip brand. They are the Soft Bums brand...one is a long one and one is an infant one and I just stick them in there. Ya, it'll look like a bubble butt, but it's so cute. I trust this more than a regular disposable on really wet nights.

Dirty diapers. I have a spray bottle filled half w/water and the other half w/BacOut. Spray the dirty diaper and throw the wet diapers into a plastic pail (acutally an old kitty litter pail). Do not cover with a lid otherwise you'll fester a "lovely" ammonia smell.
Poopy Diapers...use a diaper liner that just sits in the cloth diaper. Will make most of the poopy stuff manageable (drop in toilet and flush all). You will have the poop explosions and those just go straight to the wash because I personally don't want to deal with that. Some have a spray attached to their toilet to spray stuff off.

Wash/Clean diapers: I use the Dugger homemade laundry detergent but there is Rock n Green available. Also once every two months I strip the diapers by washing in the homemade laundry detergent and added a tbsp of blue dawn dishwashing soap.
I got half of my diaper stash from craigslist and the other half from a local cloth diaper store since I was just feeling my way into cloth diapering. Employees at the cloth diaper store provided wonderful advise as well.

This is what I found for MO. Don't give up!

http://directory.diaperjungle.com/directory/search-all.ph...

Sounds like One Size diapers would be the way to go. That's what I have. When I had 2 in diapers, both my 2.5 y/o and my 2 m/o could wear the same dipes.

I did not like gDiapers, but I know many do (my brother is using them on their new baby). For a hybrid system (like the g's) I like Flip, and have heard great things about GroVia. I haven't used Rumparooz or Fuzzibunz but a friend of mine loves them both. There are so many types and brands of cloth diapers, and everyone has their favorites. I suggest trying 1-2 of different types and or brands to find out what you like and what fits your kids, then invest in more.

As far as detergent, no you will not spend more on that! I use 1/3 of the recommended amount of Tide original powder for 1 load of diapers (I wash every 3 days, but you can wash every 2...just depends on how many diapers you have). I've also started using less detergent on all my laundry (I figure if a small amount can clean poopy dipes it can clean the clothes!).

I use the Target brand baby washcloths and water for wipes. LOVE them, and it's super cheap:)

And sadly, you will probably have to order online. Target, Walmart, and BRU sell them online, but I've never seen them in their stores. I have seen gDiapers in BuyBuyBaby and BRU, though (but again, I don't personally like those). You could try searching for local cloth diaper stores online. I actaully have found 9 local stores to me (although most are online only, but they are willing to do pick up to save on shipping). A great online store with free shipping is www.momsmilkboutique.com

PM me if you have any other questions, I'll be happy to help! We have saved sooooo much money since switching to cloth. It's so nice to not have to think about buying diapers at the store:) And I know you're not local to me, but I have a CD group on facebook that has a bunch of info and links in the discussions tab that you might find helpful. http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#!/pages/DFW-Clo...

If you are trying to diaper two different size kids with the same diapers, I would definitely recommend a one-size diaper that you can adjust for each child. My faves are the bumGenius 4.0's with snaps. Velcro is easier to get a good fit, but my 20-month-old daughter will remove any diapers fastened with velcro. In my experience, the bumGenius diapers are virtually leak-proof. I use them with the large insert it comes with during the day, and at night I stuff them with a prefold. I should say a very good quality prefold from Green Mountain Diapers (greenmountaindiapers.com). I also like the Flip system with the stay-dry insert (I haven't tried the organic), but I prefer bumGenius. A cheaper way to go would be to use prefolds & covers such as Econobum. I'm not sure where you're located (I'm in Springfield, MO), but you will likely have to order online. I usually order from Kelly's Closet (www.kellyscloset.com). Cotton Babies (the makers of bumGenius, Flip & Econobum - www.cottonbabies.com) is based in St. Louis, they have two retail stores there. They have free shipping on all of their orders.
Btw, I tried FuzziBunz (perfect size and one size) and they did not work for my daughter. We had tons of leaks through the leg openings. If I fastened the diapers tight enough to avoid leaks she would have awful red marks on her legs. Rumparooz are nice diapers, but they don't have a very high rise. My daughter is almost 28 lbs (chubby) and the diaper is all the way unsnapped at the rise (the largest rise setting) and she's on the second to the last set of snaps at the waist. She's just about to outgrow it at 20 months.
There are soooo many options for cloth diapers out there! You should get on Kelly's Closet website & just look around. Their customer service is great too, so if you have any questions, you can always ask them! If you're on facebook you can find them under diapershops.com.

I can only tell you that you will increase your laundry cost by doing this. The laundry soap can double, the hot water will increase your gas and or elec bill, etc...the cost will be the same, you'll still be paying the same amount of money, just paying it on utilities instead of diapers but you'll just be working harder.

Plus, no one says you have to buy wipes. We haven't bought wipes in years and have 2 in pull ups, even in diapers we hardly ever bought wipes after the kids got big enough to get in the shower. I wipe the most of it off into the toilet and then they get a shower to get clean.

I say really work on getting the potty training done for daytime and use pull ups at night to keep the sheets dry. Pull ups are about $15.00 for a months worth at Walmart. We buy the ones that have Buzz Lightyear on them and the kids do not leak out of the night time ones. The girls have the Disney Princesses on them.