Diaper update

Yes, I'm still cloth diapering and I enjoy it! Duffy on the other hand, not so much. He doesn't mind the wet diapers but the poopy ones, he acts like it's nuclear waste!!

It's pretty funny actually - when I got started on it, I talked about it with a couple of friends and since then, they are both cloth diapering their new babies. It's a hot topic at our Monday bible study - what we are buying, how its going, laundry, which websites we like (I'm a big fan of Cotton Babies because they carry almost everything I need and have free shipping!!). All in all, I'm a fan. Even though Harper is probably our last child, I'm glad I chose to do it! I don't even mind the extra laundry!!

A little rant

Ok, I don't rant about stuff very often on my blog, but I'm really frustrated. I try to buy 'green' products as often as possible. I'll tell you about the products I do like and would love to hear what you love to use. And what you don't!

I love Mrs. Meyer's (anything in the Basil scent, thank you!!)

7th Generations bathroom cleaner is great - it cleans well and smells great.

I use Baby-Ganics Stain, Stain Go Away on tough diaper stains and Country Save to wash diapers (it's a local, WA company too) and am in love with BioKleen's Bac-Out for tough odors -LOVE IT!

And I really like the Ecos laundry detergent and Kirkland Environmentally Friendly detergents for all our clothes. Everything comes out clean and smelling good (not perfumey at all!!)

But what I'm seriously annoyed about is dishwasher detergent. I had been using the Costco liquid and it cleans great but is full of who knows what. I was really excited when Costco started carrying the Ecos brand dishwasher detergent. I bought some and was excited to use it - why, I'm not really sure! I have been sooooo disappointed! My dishes, especially my silverware, come out of the DW looking dirty and with dried-on stuff, etc. on them! I swear I have to wash several things each time! It came in a 2 bottle pack and at first, I thought I could manage washing a few things once in awhile, if I was doing my part to help the environment. By the time I got into the 2nd bottle, I'm so irritated that I'm thinking of going back to the Costco brand! At least my dishes come out clean - EVERY TIME! Come on - I don't have time to do the dishes twice! It's not like I put them in dirty either - I'm one of those that rinses and scrubs things before they go in!!

I want to know what "green" products you love and hate - I'm on a quest!!

Adventures in Cloth Diapering

So, a few weeks ago, I started thinking about cloth diapering. I've actually been thinking about if for a long while, since Teagan was a baby, but just didn't get that into it. When I started researching it this time around, I really got into it - it is something I can do to save some money (though, at first, as you are buying diapers and getting used to the laundry, it may not seem like it!); it's leaving a smaller footprint on our environment and it's not like Harper is in daycare - the only people changing her diapers are me and Duffy!

I've gotten some mixed reactions from people in my mom's generation (and some from my generation too!) - why would I think of doing this with the ease and convenience of disposables? It was a lot of work when I did it, why would you want to do all that extra work? It's so messy, disposables are so much easier. Am I crazy? First of all, cloth diapering has come a long way from when I wore them some 32 years ago - there are no pins if you don't want them; there are a ton of options as to the type of diapers you can use; some of the systems even come with disposable inserts! And I don't do any toilet swishing! I use a dry pail and wash everything every other day! And yes, maybe I am a little bit crazy, but then, aren't we all???

I'm not so die-hard that I don't see the benefits of disposables. Traveling is a perfect example! I am primarily going with the Flip system because the covers are totally awesome! The stay dry inserts work fabulously and they come with a disposable insert option that is reasonably priced and works great! So, I'll keep you posted on our adventure. For now, it seems to be going good!!