Editing Baby Clothes

We just got these cute big kid pajamas and I noticed that the elastic on the sleeves was too tight!  That seems to be a common problem for baby clothes.  So, I cut it off and hemmed the sleeves.

 A shirt of mine had the same problem, so I fixed it the same way, good thing the sleeves were longish to start with.

Adventures in EC

Elimination Communication, aka Infant Potty Training, aka Natural Infant Hygiene is basically what it sounds like, communicating with baby about when they need to pee or poop and helping them to go. This idea really appeals to me, and I find it interesting that in the past EC was a common practice although it wasn't called that, but now many people find the idea strange as if it would be a disservice to the child.

Here are a few EC resources:
Diaper Free Baby
Free to EC
Tribal Baby

Many of the parents writing about EC made it sound so easy, having success from day one.  I have not been so lucky. I first heard of EC shortly after our baby was born and decided to start trying around 12 weeks.  I've had a few catches here and there, not every day.  Many of my catches are onto a prefold on the changing pad.  A few days ago I was encouraged by catching a poop this way.  It was way less messy than usual.  I can usually get at least a good cue in during the day and baby will often pee while laying on the prefold.  I think she understands that that is a good place to go and is confused when I cue her other places like the bathroom or on the brand new little potty.

Cloth Diaper Review: BumGenius Organic AIO

Another Diaper that I got early on is the BumGenius Organic One Size All In One.  I like the super easy factor of this diaper.  There is nothing to stuff.  The layers of organic cotton are attached to the cover.  You just put it on the Kiddo.  I like this for when someone else is watching baby, not that I save them for that.

 Here's the inside.  I like that it is nice soft and clean, organic cotton next to baby's skin.  Baby can feel the wetness with this diaper which helps the association of peeing and feeling wet.

 It has the same snap pattern as other BumGenius diapers.  The fit is the same as their pockets too.  They fit my chunky thigh babe well and I don't have to do any tricks with the snaps.

Pros:
No unstuffing or stuffing!!!

Cons:
Takes a long time to dry, seriously

The Rundown
Size: 7-35
Style:  AIO
Closure: Snaps on front
Rise Adjustment: Snaps on the front
Where is it made?  USA or Egypt
Price for 1:  $24.95

The End of the Cloth Wipe Challenge

My cloth wipe challenge officially ended on the 24th.  I didn't think much of it ending, as I like using cloth wipes.  I like not creating more trash.  I like saving even more money than with cloth diapers alone.  I like not having to separate the sposie wipes out of my wet bag when we get home (or find them in with the clean diapers from the wash).  I like knowing exactly what is going on my baby's skin.

I will admit to using a sposie wipe that my husband handed me while we were out, but whenever I reached for the wipes, I reached for cloth.  Yes, I finally did buy more cloth wipes.  I haven't finished my second spray bottle of homemade solution so I haven't tried any other recipes but I still plan to try more as we run out of solution.

The challenge is a success as I will happily continue using cloth wipes and our giant box o sposie wipes should last way longer than the first.

Cloth Diaper Review: FuzziBunz One Size

FuzziBunz One Size are a stay dry pocket style diaper.  They have a unique size adjustment that uses elastic with buttons for both the legs and the back.  The adjustable back is something that I haven't seen on other diapers and would like to see more often.

 Here is a close up of the leg elastic.  It takes some trying on the baby, but once you have it adjusted you can leave it there until you need a bigger size.  I like how customizable the sizing is on this diaper.  It makes it easy to fit my baby with cubby legs, but not a cubby tummy.

Here is the pocket and insert.  The tag says to shake the insert out, but I find it usually requires pulling out due to it being a tight fit for the insert in the pocket, but the open pocket makes it easier to remove the insert than an envelope style pocket.
The diaper comes with extra elastic and 2 inserts.


Pros:
Detailed size adjustment


Cons:
Harder to stuff because the insert is large for the pocket size


The Rundown
Size: 7-35
Style:  Pocket
Closure: Snaps on front
Rise Adjustment: Elastic in the sides has buttons to adjust the size
Where is it made?  Turkey
Price for 1:  $19.95

Traveling with Cloth Diapers

Another article I wrote is up on The Cloth Diaper Whisperer.  It is about our adventures of traveling with baby and cloth diapers.  There is always some suspense when submitting posts there, hoping they will like it, not knowing if/when it will post.  Did you think it was funny?   That's what I was going for.

Cloth Diaper Review: Bottombumpers One Size Side Snapping AIO

Bottombumpers are a tongue style AIO or Snap In One style as the insert snaps in place and can be removed.  They also have sized diapers.

The lining is organic cotton and the soaker/ insert is organic cotton and bamboo velour so this diaper is very soft next to baby's skin.  The drying time is good for a cotton AIO and the tongue style soaker really helps with that.  A smaller extra insert is sold seperately.

So far I've used this diaper once at night (with the extra insert) and did not have any leaks!  Yay!

Here is the rise size adjustment.  I like the color coding and their website has weight guides for the different colors.

This diaper seems like it would fit a baby with skinnier thighs a bit better than it fits my girl with chunky thighs. I snap the top row of snaps one smaller than the bottom row to compensate for this and it has been working well.

Pros:
No unstuffing
Relatively quick drying

Cons:
May look confusing to a newbie

The Rundown
Size: 8-25+ pounds
Style: Tongue/ AIO
Closure: Snaps on side
Rise Adjustment: Snaps on inside back, under the insert
Where is it made? USA
Price for 1: $22.95

Cloth Diaper Review: Smartipants

 Smartipants diapers are the staple of our diaper stash.  I needed more diapers quick and both the sleeve style and price appealed to me.  There are two columns of snaps on the front for the rise adjustment and one row of snaps on the front for the closure.  The tabs can be crossed for extra small settings.

The insert is microfiber and it goes in a sleeve instead of the usual pocket.  The sleeve lets the insert agitate out in the wash, which is awesome!

Pros:
Easy size adjustment
Good fit
No unstuffing

Cons:
Does not come with an extra insert for night.

The Rundown
Size: 7-35 pounds
Style: Sleeve/ AI2
Closure: Snaps on front
Rise Adjustment: Snaps on front
Where is it made? USA
Price for 1: $14.95

Why Review Diapers?

Some of you may wonder why am I reviewing diapers when there are so many other blogs that already review diapers.

Well, I enjoy talking about diapers and trying new kinds of diapers.  I've become a bit of a diaper geek.  Part of this blog is to share information, and part is to describe my journey.  Hopefully you will find the reviews useful and if not you can skip to the next post.  :p

Cloth Diaper Review: BumGenius 4.0 Stay Dry Pocket Diaper

The first one size diaper I bought was the BumGenius Pocket Diaper.  It has 3 sets of snaps for the rise adjustment and 2 rows of snaps on the waist.  There is a microfiber insert and it came with a smaller infant insert to use first when baby is tiny or to add some absorbency.  I use both inserts for overnight.

It fits my baby really well.  She has chunky thighs and a not chunky waist, so this is a problem for some diapers.  It has an envelope style opening for the insert and the larger insert has snaps to adjust the length.  Stains come out easily, mostly in the wash, and a little time in the sun gets the rest out.  They dry quickly for this style of diaper.

Pros:
Easy size adjustment
Good fit

Cons:
Requires unstuffing

The Rundown
Size: 7-35+ pounds
Style: Pocket/ AI2
Closure: Snaps or Aplix (velcro) on front
Rise Adjustment: Snaps on front
Where is it made? USA and Egypt
Price for 1: $17.95

Cloth Wipe Challenge Day 12

We traveled over the weekend and using the cloth wipes and spray bottle has been working really well.  I've been spraying the wipe more than the bum as it seems neater, especially when changing baby on something other than the changing pad that I really don't want to get mess on, like the seat of my car.  I'm still on that first bottle of wipe solution too, but will be making more soon.

Anyway, I really need to get more wipes.  I procrastinated.  I was thinking about making my own or where to buy and just hadn't yet.  Well, there were some rather messy changes today, and we ran out of wipes.  I really didn't want to give in and use the sposie wipes.  I used a flat.  It got the job done very well.  How's that for commitment?  Now I should really go buy some wipes...

Baby Gear: Bouncy Seat

A bouncy seat is something that I wasn't planning on buying, but received as a gift.  I'm more of a baby gear minimalist.  I'd rather have a few really nice pricier, but high quality things than a whole bunch of cheap stuff.  I just had other things higher on my priority list.
I've found the bouncy seat to be pretty useful.  It's a good spot to set baby and now that she's older she sometimes plays with the hanging toys.  It's pretty portable and fits into our routine.  The bouncy seat has helped me take many showers as I can bring it into the bathroom and set baby where she can hear me.  It has helped me eat some meals if I'm quick about it.  My baby would prefer to be held constantly no doubt, but I think the small incline on it makes it more tolerable than the bed or floor.