Mamatoga Guest Blogger: Jenn from Earthy Crunchy Mama on Cloth Diapering!

When I was approached to guest blog over on Mamatoga I was thrilled!  I love to share my “earthy crunchy” knowledge with local parents! I am a mom of 2 beautiful boys, who made the decision to live a more natural life style after my older son was born with a spinal deformity.  That choice has grown into a passion for my family and we started Earthy Crunchy Mama.  One of the choices we made to live a healthier life was to switch to cloth diapers.Cloth diapers, once the norm in our society, have become somewhat of a niche diapering choice.  The decrease in use of cloth diapers, along with the arrival of modern cloth diapers has come with a loss of common knowledge regarding how to cloth diaper your baby, especially with modern diapers.   With a lack of local resourses, many parents are too intimidated in try cloth, have false information about them, or don’t know they have changed from the days of pre-folds, diaper pins and rubber pants. When you are about to have a baby in addition to all of the other choices you need to make such as whether or not to have a medicated birth, circumcise, or to breast feed - you also need to make a decision about what type of diapers you are going to use. Because most doctors, midwives, pediatricians, birthing classes and baby care classes fail to address cloth diapers most parents are left to fend for themselves in regards to this decision.

 

To help you make that decision here is why 1 in 10 parents decide to cloth diaper:

 

1. It’s Cheaper Over 2 years disposable diapers (including wipes, and diaper disposable) cost between$1150 – $1536.  You can diaper the same baby in cloth for as little as $505 for your first baby. The savings don’t end there, because you will be able to reuse most of your diapers and supplies for additional kids!

 

2. It’s Eco-Friendly Disposable diapers make up 50% of a diapering families’ household waste!  Nation wide  25.2 BILLION diapers end up in US landfills every year!  Imagine how much less trash you will have every week if you don’t have to toss your diapers?

 

3. It’s Healthier Disposable diapers contain all sorts of chemicals which are constantly in contact with your baby. The chemicals include known carcinogens & hormone disruptors.  Cloth diapers, on the other hand are chemical free, and you no longer even need to use bleach!

 

4. It’s Easy The days of diaper pins are long gone! Now cloth diapers come in 1 simple piece which snaps or velcros on your baby very much like disposable diapers.Caring for them is simple too! All it takes is an extra 2-3 loads of laundry a week. Don’t have time for extra laundry, check out a local diaper service.

 

5. Cloth is Cute There is a print or pattern to meet anyone’s tastes! Many cloth diapering parents skip pants all together, to show off their baby’s cute cloth covered bum!

 

6. It’s Hip! Check out the celebrities who chose cloth: Alyson Hannigan, Gwyneth Paltrow, Michelle Williams, Julia Roberts, Brooke Sheilds, Melissa Joan Hart, Tori Spelling, Katie Homes, Sheryl Crow, Matthew McConaughey, Dave Mathews, Matt Damon, Sean Combs, Lucy Lawless, Madonna, John Trevolta and LOTS more!

For a more detailed post visit our site here and always feel free to contact me at jenn@earthycrunchymama.com!

 

Also stay tuned to Mamatoga for more on cloth diapering and how easy it can be to make the switch!