Is Your Partner Skeptical About Cloth Diapering?

Nothing bonds a couple like welcoming a new little soul into the world together, but, not all couples see eye to eye when it comes to cloth diapering. If your partner isn't convinced, here are a few pointers to help move the discussion along from one of our cloth diaper experts and Kanga Care Guest Bloggers, Marie-Etta Collins of CheerfulHomemaker.com!

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I was pregnant with my son when the topic of cloth diapers came up. We were planning for me to stay at home and were looking for ways to save money. I was not familiar with cloth diapers but was pleasantly surprised to see how modern and simple they looked. I was sold. There was only one little problem, my husband was not on board.

Like a lot of people, my husband had his reservations:

• Would this really save us money? 
• Were they really as easy to use as disposables? 
• And most importantly: What about the poop?

Here are some common misconceptions about cloth diapers:

MYTH: Cloth diapers are more difficult to use than disposables.

FACT: Modern cloth diapers are just as simple to use as disposable diapers.

Cloth diapers have come a long way since the days of plastic pants and diaper pins. These days, the variety of styles available boggles the mind! You can use everything from prefolds and covers to all-in-ones, like this super easy to use Lil Joey pictured above. If you go with something like a Rumparooz pocket diaper or all-in-one, changing your baby's diaper is as easy as disposables!

The wash and care of cloth diapers is simple, too. Since they don't have any weird-smelling chemicals like disposables, since solid waste is flushed and since you don't have to wait a week for the trash to be picked up, cloth diapering ensures that odor is not an issue. If you do have odor issues, just toss them in the wash; problem solved! Anyone who has a newborn knows that doing a load of laundry is significantly easier than getting everyone out of the house to go buy more disposables!

My in-laws used cloth diapers on my husband and his sister. All he knew about were prefold diapers and plastic pants. He was flabbergasted when I showed him images of modern cloth diapers. All his life he had heard that cloth diapers were disgusting and a pain to use and here was proof that he was wrong.

MYTH: Cloth Diapers are expensive.

FACT: Cloth diapers offer significant savings over their disposable counterparts.

At first glance, seeing each cloth diaper's individual cost each can seem a bit daunting. After all, you need quite a few; 24 is the recommended number. Spending $500+ at once for diapers can be a bit overwhelming. If you use disposables, you will spend well over $1600 by the time you potty train your child, meaning, per child in cloth, you can save over $1000. If you use your cloth diapers for more than one child, the savings are increased.

We talked about using cloth diapers early on and were able to buy a few diapers at a time. While I was still working, I would take a little out of each paycheck and put it toward purchasing cloth diapers. Whenever I came across a great deal, I would use the money to make the purchase. By the time our son was born, we had a full stash of diapers. By purchasing a few at a time, we never had to use a huge chunk of our paycheck for them.

You can also create a registry or ask your family and friends to help you buy your cloth diaper stash instead of buying you dozens of receiving blankets and cute outfits that will only git for a couple weeks, anyway!

MYTH: You have to touch poop.

FACT: Poop happens.

If you spend any time changing diapers, it's likely that you will get poop on yourself at some point. This is a simple fact of parenting. It does not matter if you are using cloth diapers or disposables. Having experience with both kinds of diapers, I actually get poop on myself much less often with cloth diapers. Also, blow outs are almost non-existent with cloth diapers, whereas they are a fairly common occurrence for kids in disposables. For more on this pressing topic, see our post, "What About the Poop?!"

Cleaning the solid waste off of diapers does not have to be messy either. Many companies sell sprayers (pictured above) that attach directly to your toilet. This allows you to direct the mess into the toilet where it belongs without having to stick your hand into the bowl.

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In the end, I was able to convince my husband to give cloth diapers a shot after telling him about all of the money we would save. That, and the promise that he would never have to wash diapers. It took him a while to warm up to the idea, but now he tells people how great they are!

If your partner has objections, sit down and talk with them. Visit a cloth diaper boutique that offers Cloth Diaper 101 classes. Make a list of pros and cons about each kind of diaper and find the right one for you. Ask friends with experience what it is really like to use cloth diapers.

Was your partner skeptical about cloth diapering? Do you have a story of converting a cloth diaper skeptic into a cloth diaper evangelist? We want to hear about it! Share your story in the comments below!

How to Ruin a Cloth Diaper

By Kanga Care Guest Blogger: Elizabeth "Bert" Anderson, of First Time Mom

I have a confession. I, Miss Cloth Diaper Blogger, have ruined my cloth diapers. No, it wasn’t a manufacturing error; it was my own stupid fault. I am consoling myself with the fact that I know I'm not the only cloth diaper expert to destroy their own cloth diapers...

I read the instructions, I saw that I needed to “tumble dry low.” However, I assumed that that was more of a suggestion than anything else. Let me tell you: it’s not a suggestion. For one entire year I dried my pocket diapers for not one cycle, not two, but for three cycles! Not the best choice but I wanted to ensure the inserts had a chance to dry! Well, after one year of this unrecommended method, the laminate (that shiny, waterproof lining on the inside of the pocket) started to crack. I first noticed this problem when my son’s diapers started leaking in weird places like the very back of the bum, not even close to a leg where leaking is more common.

Lesson learned? Yes.

Now before we get started, a little note: Anyone who has ever seen a Kanga Care diaper in person can attest to their quality. Those things are built to last! But even they can be destroyed! Follow their care instructions and your Kanga Care diapers should last and last and look great. If you ever need help, you can contact customer service and they will be happy to help you!

This article isn't about Kanga Care diapers in particular, but they have been mercilessly destroyed by many of us, so, it does include them. So now that I've got that off my chest, let's talk about all the ways you can destroy your diapers!

There are lots of ways to ruin your diapers (including Rumparooz or ANY brand!):  

• Over-drying / drying on high heat. As I shared with you earlier, most cloth diaper care instructions say to tumble dry on low or no heat. This is to protect the waterproofing laminate within the cover, all-in-one, etc. Exposing the laminate to frequent high heat causes cracks in the laminate lining and can also melt the lining. One of my reader's said that her diaper literally melted inside her dryer. Imagine the clean up for that one! 

• Using the sanitize setting on your washing machine. Kanga Care uses TPU (waterproof material) instead of PUL. TPU uses a heat bonding process (instead of a chemical solvent) so the high heat on the sanitize cycle actually loosens the laminate from the fabric. Note: it is okay to use the sanitize cycle on inserts, but not on anything waterproof!
• Bleach! The harshness of bleach can really do a number on the elastic and waterproof lining of your cloth diapers. One mom told us that she accidentally left some prefold diapers in a bleach water solution for 36 hours! The prefolds just fell apart with use. So if a bleach water solution can do that to cotton imagine the damage it can do to the elastic and laminate! Bleach is unnecessary if you're using a recommended detergent anyway!  

• Washing machine agitator damage. The picture does not do it justice but look at the serious damage done to these inserts! A loose agitator on a washing machine was the culprit. The mom who sent us the picture bought these pre-owned diapers in “good condition.”  There were a few snags on the inserts but the more she washed it, the more ripped up it got! Make sure your machines are in top condition!

• Overwashing. As a general rule of thumb, a cloth diaper stash should be no less than 24 cloth diapers. A friend of mine learned this one the hard way. She bought 14 diapers hoping to save some money. With so few diapers, they had to be washed every day and within a year the hook and loop closures were destroyed, the pockets had delaminated and the elastic was useless. You wouldn't wash a bra every day for a year and expect it to survive! You wouldn't even wash a pair of jeans every day for a year and expect it to be the same pair of jeans after 300+ washes. Diapers aren't invincible either! Invest in great diapers and enough of them!
• Using non-compatible detergent. Not all detergents or diapers are equal! Make sure you read the care instructions for your particular brand of diapers. Detergents that have additives such as fabric softeners, borax, bleach, or any “free and clear” formulas are not cloth diaper friendly and can shorten the life of your cloth diapers. Through years of gathered data, Kanga Care has found that their products are most compatible with original Tide Ultra, Gain or powdered Ecover. If you choose to use a detergent not listed, then look for the following: 
• a) Detergents that contain enzymes (yes, really!) 
• b) Detergents free from fabric softeners, borax, bleach, and again any of the “free and clear” formulas 

• Diaper cream! A fellow cloth diapering mom I know took her daughter to daycare in a cloth diaper (big applause for the daycare for accepting cloth!). The daycare provider thought she was helping by applying zinc cream with each diaper change. Without using a liner to protect the diapers, she effectively waterproofed them. It took weeks of scrubbing and stripping to get the cream out, and the diapers never looked the same. 
  If you’ve made this mistake here’s what you’ll want to do to return your diaper to its waterproof state: 
• Hot wash of clean diapers using a squirt or two of original (blue) Dawn soap. Run the cycle until there are no bubbles visible. This should return your diapers to their pre-diaper rash cream state unscathed (fingers crossed!). If you've tried this and you're still having trouble, get in touch with Kanga Care for some expert cloth diaper help! 
  
• Oh poop! Most of us have at least one child in diapers, if not two. Therefore, it’s safe to say, we get less sleep than most people and tend to do dumb things we wouldn't do if we were allowed a decent night's sleep. One mom told us that she accidentally, without even thinking, tossed a diaper into her dryer with poop still in it! Not only did she have to clean the poop out of her dryer, but it was literally baked onto her diapers. (*gag*) After lots of washes, time spent in the sun and some (not recommended) stain remover, the diaper sort of looks the same. Plop the poop into the toilet immediately my friends. Again I say, plop! 
• Frequently line drying. Remember Newton’s law of gravity? Well, what goes up must come down! Hanging a diaper, heavy with water, tugs on the elastic and over time will stretch them out. If you don't want to tumble-dry low, then lay your diapers flat to dry.

• Machine-washing wool covers. Say it with me: Hand-wash wool. Wool doesn't go in ANY machine: washer or dryer! One of Kanga Care's own employees has banned her husband from washing the diapers after he accidentally shrunk FOUR hand-knit wool covers. Wool is super easy to care for: just toss them in the bath with your little one if they start to smell funky. The baby shampoo should be sufficient to clean the cover. Gently press the water out of the wool and lay them flat to dry overnight. That's all! 

• Too much sun! The sun is excellent at reducing stains as well as also acting as a natural disinfectant on your diapers, however, that same awesome strength from the UV rays can also damage the fibers on your diapers. We suggest using indirect sunlight when sunning your diapers because it’s gentler on the fibers and the UV rays that are present from sunlight can still do their job. Limit the time you let those diapers sun, too. 1 - 2 hours should do the trick.

• Fabric softener is a no-no! We get it. That soft and snuggly bear tells you that everything that touches your baby should be as soft as he is! But that little bear will waterproof your diapers! If you've done this, you can try stripping them with the Dawn method above and cross your fingers it works.
• Unusual drying methods... Once, a customer sent her diapers in to Kanga Care for snap repair. When they opened the package, they were astonished: the snaps had literally melted all over the place, stuck into the fibers of the diaper. The customer told them that her husband had laid the diapers on their wood stove to dry. Unfortunately, that is not covered by that snap warranty...
• Opening diapers with a little too much gusto. Often, when a customer needs a snap fixed, they need the same snap fixed on half of their stash. If you notice the same snap popping off on all your diapers, or if the Aplix is coming unstitched, then it might be a good idea to be a little more gentle when you change a diaper. (There's a reason Kanga Care gets the most snap repair claims with stay at home daddies...)

• Hungry dryers. Sometimes snaps can get chipped in dryers, or get stuck in a crack in your dryer, which then scrapes it off like this. To avoid this heartbreak, try snapping just one snap from each tab down so that they aren't flying around in the dryer. Since this isn't a manufacturer's error, it's technically not covered by the warranty, but Kanga Care is usually pretty awesome about snaps. Just don't tell them that you are positive that it wasn't your dryer that caused this... 

• Stain removers. It seems like a good idea at the time. After all, your diapers are stained and you have stain remover. But don't underestimate the power of products like Bac-Out! I mean they do remove some major stains, right? One cloth diaper mom told me that she used Bac-Out on every diaper. Over time, the laminate became cracked and the diapers leaked profusely. It’s okay to use Bac-Out and other products like it on your inserts but keep it away from anything waterproof! 
• Woops! Fluff in the garbage. This one sadly goes to a fellow cloth diaper blogger friend of mine, Polly. Polly told me that she accidentally threw a cloth diaper away! *Gasp!* I’m sure we can all relate. She was exhausted, had just moved and when she saw the diaper she absentmindedly pitched it in the trash. Guess we need a little more sleep, huh?

Now, if you're considering cloth diapering, don't let this spook you. Cloth diapering is super easy. It's just another load of wash! If you'd like a quick 101 of how to take care of your diapers to ensure that they will last and last, you can do so here!

Clearly, there are a lot of ways to ruin your diapers and most of us have done this at some point... Tell us how you did it in the comments below! 

Cloth diapering on the road?! It's possible. Here's how!

By Kanga Care Guest Blogger: Vanessa Tomchik, of  GreenPathBaby.com

Once again, the holidays are here and for many of us this is a season of sharing, giving and quality time with the family or friends. Not all of us however, are lucky (or unlucky) enough to live close to our relatives! This means that whenever the holidays roll around, so do our suitcases, making Christmastime the busiest season for travelers. Whether you're flying across the country or taking a roadtrip, this is a comprehensive guide to traveling with cloth diapers! Here is a handy check-list of tried and true products that you will want to bring on your trip to make your traveling experience great:

1. Diaper Covers:

Pocket diapers are great for everyday use and are perhaps the most popular type of modern cloth diapers, but remember, they tend to be bulky and take up a lot of space! If you are flying, most air carriers now charge a (large) fee for checked luggage. Save yourself some luggage space and money. Pack about 16-20 covers, split them up evenly between your carry-on luggage and your checked bag, that way, if your luggage gets lost you can still have a small stash to take with you. Diaper covers also can be used multiple times. You can reuse the cover as long as no poop gets on it and you wipe it down before placing a clean insert over it.

What we love: Rumparooz newborn or one-size aplix diaper cover. These covers are the best! They have an extra layer of protection with the double gussets and are so easy to use. These take almost no space at all in your suitcase-they are so trim! 

2. Bamboo Inserts:

Good ol' thirsty bamboo inserts are an absolute MUST to have around anyway, but they are indispensable for traveling. They are trim and super absorbent and make a great no-fuss addition to your existing stash. While traveling, these are fantastic because you can lay them flat on the bottom of your suitcase without taking up too much space. The laundering is also easier, with bamboo, you don't really have to worry about the insert holding stink because it's naturally antimicrobial! Just make sure that you have properly prepped your bamboo insert BEFORE you travel! (For maximum absorbency wash and dry 7-8 times).

What we love: Rumparooz Bamboo 6R Soaker. The softest, thirstiest insert out there. They come with an attachable newborn insert, which is a great addition to the regular insert for nighttime diapering or if you have a long flight. With the inserts attached to one another you have a total 7 layers of absorbency. Wow!

3. Flushable Liners:

A lifesaver when you're on the go! The bulk of the mess stays on the liner, making it easy to flush the waste down the toilet. Great if your baby has the “peanut butter” poop consistency. 

4. Washable Liners:

Washable liners are great to have if your baby’s bum needs a little diaper cream every now and then! You can use this as a barrier between your cloth diapers and diaper rash cream to keep your diapers (and your baby) in perfect condition.

What we love: Kanga Care Washable Diaper Liners. Made with the same cloud-soft microchamois in a Rumparooz and great for babies!

5. Two Great Wetbags:

We are not talking a regular run-of-the-mill bargain basement wetbag...this has to be a great wetbag. You do NOT want to take the chance of anything leaking on your clean clothes, diapers, or worst yet, your suitcase. A larger sized wetbag, one that fits at least 10-15 diapers is ideal for travel because it is not too large to carry around, but it is large enough to accommodate lots of diapers! This way, you don't constantly have to take time out to empty the bag. Bring two, so that you always have a clean wetbag waiting while you are doing laundry or on the go.

What we love: The Kanga Care wetbag has two features that are really excellent for traveling. The 3-D design means the wetbag folds really small but fits up to 15 diapers and 15 inserts. The other great feature is the barrier-seam sealing. No odor, no leakage. This feature alone is worth its weight in gold for travelers.

6. Detergent:

Pack pre-measured ziplock bags of your favorite cloth diaper safe detergent. (Remember: Kanga Care recommends original Tide Ultra, powdered Ecover or Gain.) Depending on your stash, you might need a special kind of detergent packed. Prepare the individual sandwich baggies with a single load portion of your detergent, one for every other day you plan to stay. For example, if you stay at your relatives' for 6 days, pack 3 pre-measured baggies of your cloth diaper detergent. Don't expect your relatives to have the type of detergent you need for your diapers!

7. Backpack Style Diaper Bag:

I live and die by my Petunia Pickle Bottom Boxy Backpack. Ok, that was a mouthful, but it's true. It fits all of my diapers, wipes, blankies and snacks. It also has an awesome feature, which is a built-in changing pad. I have used this bag to change my baby in the weirdest places! The pad folds back into the bag when you're done. It is ultra convenient. The fact that this bag can be worn as a backpack is also lifesaver, I can wear baby in the front and the Diaper Bag on the back. I might look like a mom-donkey, but hey, my hands are free!

8. A Baby Carrier/Wrap:

On my last cross-country trip, I wore my baby everywhere! What a difference it makes to have your hands free to get something to drink or chase around an older sibling. Wearing baby is also a great way to keep him/her calm during take-off or landing, and to keep baby close to your heart!

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Now, some of you will read this and think, “Hey, where are the disposable cloth diaper inserts? Those are great for traveling right?” Sure, they might be convenient, but please read up on the brand you're considering if you do decide to use these because they are not all the same! Among other non-biodegradable elements like plastic and elastic, they contain SAPs (super absorbent polymers) which have been linked to Toxic Shock Syndrome and were removed from tampons more than three decades ago. It pays to do a little research!

Final tips:

If you are staying at a hotel, call ahead and find out what type of laundry facilities they have or what type of services they offer. The front desk may be able to move you to a room closer to those facilities. Some higher-end hotels will pick-up the laundry for you and wash it for a fee.

If you are staying with relatives, the same advice applies there; call ahead to check if it's ok to use their washing machine for cloth diapers (some people are touchy about that). And don’t forget to check what kind of machine they have. If they have an HE machine, you might have to do extra cycles to get the diapers really clean and bring HE safe detergent.

Remember, the point of any trip is to have fun! So don't spend time worrying about laundry! Use these tips to plan ahead so that when you’re on the road, you can focus on what is really important: spending time with your family and gorging yourself on yummy foods.

Do you have any other tips you want to share? Tell us below!

DEADLINE EXTENDED! Win a FREE Limited Edition Rumparooz One Size Pocket Diaper and a $100, $50 or $25 Kanga Care Gift Card!!

DEADLINE EXTENDED!

Send Rumparooz your Birthday wishes for a chance to win a FREE limited edition Rumparooz One Size Pocket Diaper and a $100, $50, or $25 Kanga Care Gift Card!

Here’s how to enter:

• Make an awesome video that you think will get the most LIKES on YouTube!
• Get creative! Sing us Happy Birthday, do a little dance, show us your hidden talent etc! Just please make sure we can see and hear you clearly!
• The top three most "liked" YouTube videos will win a Limited Edition Rar (pictured above) and it get even better:
• First Place wins $100 Kanga Care gift card!
• Second Place wins $50 Kanga Care gift card!
• Third Place wins $25 Kanga Care gift card!
• In order to qualify:
• Your video must include “Happy Birthday Rumparooz!”
• Your video must include: “I heart Rar!” (Like a lion roar!)
• Keep it friendly! No submissions with swear words or brand-bashing of other cloth diaper brands, please!
• Make it original! No copyright infringement, please.
• One video per person.
• Your video must be no longer than two minutes in length or larger than 150Mb in size.
• Make sure your file is in one of these formats:
• MPEG-4 (.mp4, .m4v)
• MPEG-2
• AVI
• QuickTime Movie (.mov)
• WMV
• Before you send in your video, please fill out this quick form
• Go to: Dropbox.com and download it if you don’t already have it
• Use our handy photo tutorial if you need help with Dropbox.
• Use Dropbox.com to share your file with Julie @ Rumparooz (dot) com.
• You can submit videos from Friday, February 17th - Friday, March 9th. (Extended!!)
• How the voting works:
• We will upload all submissions to our Rumparooz YouTube channel
• Voting will begin Friday, March 16th and close on Friday March 30th!
• Winners will be announced on Saturday, March 31st!
• The top three videos with the highest number of YouTube (not Facebook) “LIKES” will win a FREE Limited Edition One Size Rumparooz diaper! (Shipping charges may apply for international contestants.)
• Please note: Facebook "likes" do not go towards the total number of votes your video receives so make sure you let your fans know!

Have fun and good luck! We can't wait to see what you come up with!

How Do You Store Your Dirty Cloth Diapers?

Put yourself in the moment; you’re at the changing table with your baby and you are changing your first cloth diaper (a Rump•a•rooz® of course) when you realize that the Genie that once magically made the disposable diapers disappear will no longer work for storing your dirty cloth diapers.

We all know by now that Mr. Genie doesn’t actually work any magic and those disposable diapers end up buried in a landfill and left to pollute our precious planet. But what do you do with your Rump•a•rooz® after you’ve removed them from your baby? Mr. Genie certainly won’t work for this.

Coming in a few short weeks Kanga Care has the perfect answer to your storage dilemma – the new Kanga Care Wet Bags and Pail Liners – available in all of the fabulous Rump•a•rooz® solid colors and prints to match your favorite cloth diaper.

Wet Bags – A wet bag is a water-proof bag with a zipper that will keep your dirty diapers safe and keep the smell sealed inside. You can store the wet bag in your nursery, bathroom, or take it with you on trips. It comes complete with a door knob friendly hanger that allows the wet bag to become part of your room décor. The wet bag holds about 15 cloth diapers and inserts.

Pail Liners – A pail liner is made of the same water-proof material as the wet bags but is made to fit inside of a diaper pail (or kitchen type trash can) and have a drawstring closure. You can place a pail and liner next to a changing table, in a closet, or in your laundry area. The pail liner would be a great accessory for traveling or if you have to do laundry at a laundry mat. Size: 26" tall, 16: diameter, 54" around

What makes Kanga Care wet bags and pail liners different from other brands?

• New barrier seam sealing technology that physically seals the seam away from moisture without using any glue or ironing.
  
• Wet bags come with color matching zippers and snaps (lifetime warranty).
  
• Wet bags and liners are both made with environmentally safe TPU just like the Rump•a•rooz® cloth diapers. TPU will biodegrade when composted and will break down in 4.5-5 years.
  
• They match your favorite Rump•a•rooz® solid color and prints.

Other ways you can use your Kanga Care wet bags and pail liners include storing mama (or family) cloth in bathrooms, storing dirty kitchen rags, storing other dirty clothes, storing wet swimwear and towels from the beach or pool, and storing wet gloves and hats from a day in the snow. How else do you use your wet bags?