I used cloth for running errands and going to church.
I had to switch Peach to 6-9 month clothes and the twins to 24 month clothes to be able to fit their pants over their cloth-diapered tushies.
I have used a disposable diaper every night for each of them. That totals $9.18 for 17 days x 3 diapers. And now that I type that up, I realize it would've been cheaper to just wash their bedding if they wet out (which was the worry).
I have not made my usual homemade disposable baby wipes.
Instead I have made homemade baby wipe solution to use with flannel wipes.
For approximately 22 wipes, some two-ply, some single ply, I added the following mixture:
2 tsp. baby oil
2 tsp. baby bath
1-2 drops of tea tree oil
and 2 cups of water heated to boiling in the microwave
Then I put them in one of three containers I normally put my disposable homemade wipes in, and have used them with much appreciation. There's no poking your finger through a flannel wipe when tackling a particularly poopy mess!
How much money have I saved by NOT using disposable diapers during the day? $61.20 for 17 days. I could save $1314 in a year doing this-- more if I stop using the nighttime one. lol
Another benefit, my laundry has not fallen behind in the 17 days using cloth diapers. Usually, I'm behind on laundry.
I have a nicely organized laundry room counter with my cloth diaper set-up. Diapers ready and folded by size: Twin size and Peach size, the container of wipes, and a spot also on the counter to do the changing.
Having three in diapers means having a full-load of diapers to do daily. This means the diaper pail isn't sitting around stinking up the bathroom, laundry room, or house for more than a day before being washed.
My hope? I hope that cloth diapering the twins so exclusively will result in earlier potty-training than the typical for my boys (which is 3 1/2 fully trained). If anything, I'm saving some good money. Cloth diapering works for us!
7 comments:
This is AWESOME!!! I loved cloth diapers, but I have just one child. (I want to mention, though, that I worked 25-30 hours a week when he was a baby. People tell me, "I can't use cloth because I work." Yes, you can!) It's amazing how much money you can save, how easy it is to keep up with the laundry, and how superior cloth wipes are to disposable ones!
Speaking of superiority, you may find that cloth is better than disposable overnight if you have the right covers; that's the key to leak prevention. We added extra layers to the diaper at night and almost never had leaks. We liked Dappi pull-on nylon covers, which happen to be low-priced as well as effective!
'Becca- I thoroughly enjoyed your article. Thanks for linking it. What an encouragement you are! And thanks for the handy recommendation of Dappi covers. I will check them out myself!
could you perhaps do a cloth diaper 101 blog. I am considering it but have NO CLUE on what I'm doing. Some topics to cover could be:
info about various covers
what do you do with the diaper after it's been 'used' ;o)
how to properly clean the diapers
benifits of re-useable wipes and how to clean/care for them
love the blog and all the great ideas you have
Nicole- Starting to cloth diaper can be VERY overwhelming when it comes to what products/brands to purchase. As far as the basics and necessities of what you need and how to wash (including wipes), I could do that. Then I could refer to other blogs for their reviews on different products/brands. How does that sound? ;)
Hi Nikki! I found you at a linkup this week. I am a cloth-diaper-aholic! I sent you some link love today because I love how you broke down your savings. http://www.themombot.com/2011/05/27/friday-link-love
I cover cloth diapering as well on my blog (Cloth Diapering 101: http://www.themombot.com/going-green/2011/05/12/cloth-diapering-101-why-how), and am preparing to start a whole series on it for newbies since it can be so overwhelming.
Hope to connect with you some more on this topic :)
Amy @ www.themombot.com
I didn't have the luxury of using disposable diapers for most of the twenty plus years we had someone in diapers! Kudos for going the laundry route - it really does save lots of money - and a boon for the environment too - - too bad it's more work for the mom!
Amy @ www.themombot.com-- I love your posts! I will most likely direct people there that are looking for cloth diapering how-to's. And thanks for the link!
Julie V. -- It surprises me, now that I've added it to my routine, how little extra work it is. And the bonus of ALL the laundry being kept up makes everyone happy! :)
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