Real Diaper Week: Day 5

Since Booty Buns Cloth Diapers decided to co-host the Great Cloth Diaper Change 2012, so many cool things have happened! I am so grateful to take part in such an amazing experience & help educated people about cloth diapering.

Real Diaper Week is the week right before the big event {April 21, 2012}. Everyday between April 16 & 21 there will be a new topic to blog about to help get our readers pumped for the record breaking event. If you want to blog during the Real Diaper Week, click here & add your blog to the linky, then pick a topic {or all of them} and start writing!

If you are in Orange County & would like to join us, please email Rose at {rose (at) rosieposiebaby (dot) com} with your name, your baby's name & baby's height. Even if you don't live in Orange County, CA you can still participate! Click here & search for a host near you. Just type in your zip code & look for some where to join in.

Today's Topic is:

 Real Simple Real Diapers Reuse –  Reuse, traveling with cloth, cloth diapering at night

In our family the places we most frequently travel are to church, Trader Joes & the park. Cloth diapering for these outings is relatively simple.

If you can pack disposable diapers for a trip to church, the store, the park or a friend's house; then, you can pack cloth diapers for those outings! 


Things You'll Need To Use Cloth Diapers When Traveling:

* Cloth Diapers
* Cloth Wipes
* Wet Bag
* Wipes Wet Bag
* Baby Powder
* Changing pad or blanket

Try to figure how long you'll be gone, then pack your diaper bag accordingly. We like to pack 1 cloth diaper for every 1 1/2-2 hours & 1 wipe per diaper + 1 for every 2 in case there is a BM. So, if we are going to be gone for 3 hours we pack 2 cloth diapers & 3 cloth wipes.

Some parents prefer to keep a wipe solution in a spray bottle or peri-bottle.  At our house, we have a container that is set aside just for wipe solution {see here for a really easy solution you can make at home}. When we're getting ready to go, we soak the wipes, then ring them out so they are just damp & zip them up in the wipes wet bag.


When a diaper change is needed, we lay out the changing pad & change the diaper. We use an ample amount of pure cornstarch baby powder to help keep our little one dry. The soiled diaper & the wipe used to clean up are both tossed in the wet bag.

That's it!


To Travel Overnight {or longer} With Cloth:
You will need:
* Cloth Diapers
* Cloth Wipes
* Wet Bag
* Wipes Wet Bag
* Baby Powder
* Changing pad or blanket

* Storage Tote with Snapping Lid {15-20 quarts should be fine}


First you'll need to decide how long you'll be gone. If you're going to be gone 2 days or longer you may need to bring your whole stash {or at least 20 cloth diapers from it}. You will also need to bring cloth diaper soap so you can wash while you're visiting. If you'll be gone for just one night, plan on bringing 10-12 cloth diapers. If your child is older {like 2+} you may only need to bring 6-8 cloth diapers.

If you're visiting family or friends on your long trip, be sure to tell them that you use cloth diapers. Tell them that you will be bringing a plastic tote with a snapping lid to keep any odors contained. All of our family knows that we use cloth; so, we just remind them that all the solids get flushed. If any gets on the lining we also scrub it so it gets flushed as well. We like to remind them that when the diapers get thrown in the wash, its no different than when a child pees the bed and the sheets need to be washed.


Other than that, using cloth diapers on trips is no different that using them at home. If you're trip is long, just make sure to take breaks every couple of hours to change diapers & stretch!


*** If you are traveling somewhere that you will be in a hotel room {like the beach in Bora Bora} & want use cloth while you're there, you probably aren't going to be able to cloth diaper like normal with full access to your family's washing machine. I thought, if I ever had to travel somewhere that I wouldn't be near a washing machine for a few days, this is what I would do:

I would bring enough pre-folds to get me through 2-4 days of diaper changes {or however long I was going to be gone} and use the pocket diapers as an all in two style diaper. That way I'd only have to change the shell every 3-4 changes & I could hand wash the pockets & pre-folds if I had to & hang them over the shower to dry. I would also ask the hotel manger before hand if I could have access to the washing machine for the diapers. I would tell him or her the same thing I tell my family about how by the time the diapers reach the washing machine they are no different than when a set of peed sheets when they reach it.


Using cloth diapers at night is also really simple. If your baby is still little, diapering at night is pretty much the same as diapering during the day. As your baby grows into a toddler, you may find that more absorbancy is needed at night. Our daughter is 17 months old and we just started using 2 inserts in our diapers at night for her. Some parents like to use different types of insert fibers for night time {like like hemp or bamboo instead of micro-fiber} while others swear by using wool longies, and then there are others like us who just add an extra insert and are fine. As your child grows you will find what works best for you.

The most important thing to remember in all of this is that you're doing great! Things will become more organic for you as you go along & this is not a race or competition. You will get it down & before you know it, you may be teaching your friends and family how to use cloth diapers!!