I see London, I see France

I see Jamie's underpants!So several of you asked how cloth diapering is going after seeing my little guys adorable fluffy butt yesterday! Well I have just one word....fantastic!

We used disposables in the hospital and off and on that first week until his umbilical cord fell off (not all of the cloth sat low enough not to rub so we had to wait to use some). To say I couldn't stand disposables would be the understatement of the century. One morning we went through 4 outfit changes because of leaks. As much as I like trying on all of Jamie's cute outfits, enough was enough and it's been all cloth all the time ever since. We haven't had a single blowout or poo-splosion and only a few leaks, usually due to user error or WAY too much time between diaper changes. Our son is a super soaker so frequent changes are a must! At least we know his kidney's are in fine working order!

The biggest question I get is how do you wash them? Easy. Every other day I throw the diapers in the washing machine. Do a quick cold wash., one long hot wash with some powdered Tide and oxyclean followed by two rinses. I haven't touched a single poopy diaper other than to take it off and put it in the diaper pail. No toilet dunking or rinsing. Not yet at least. Apparently when they start eating solid foods things get a bit more.....interesting, but we'll worry about that later. Once they're clean I hang them out to dry on my old school clothesline. (My grandma would be proud) The sun works wonders on bleaching out any leftover stains, which honestly are pretty few and far between. I'm gonna be pretty bummed when winter rolls around and I have to use the dryer more. There's nothing cuter than peering out my kitchen window and seeing all those tiny little diapers blowing in the breeze!

I have a pretty varied stash since I heard different brands work better for different babies depending on their build. I'm glad I didn't get all of one kind because the ones I thought I'd love the most ended up being my least favorite. Go figure. Jamie is still wearing all of his itty bitty newborn ones, I tried one of his "big boy" diapers on the other day and it was still pretty big. I think we'll have to hit the 10-12 pound mark before we can graduate to those. Here's a rundown on what we've tried so far.

(Pictured is a Bum Genius One Size Diaper. Tried it on last night with great success! We've officially moved into our big boy diapers!)

Kissaluvs Size 0 Fitted: Love these! The elastic around the back and legs are bullet proof. Not a leak of any kind with these. Didn't think I'd like the snaps but once you know what "size" he's on it's a no brainer, even at 3 AM. They aren't the most absorbent, especially with my heavy wetter, but combined with a Thirsties Duo Wrap cover it keeps it all in. The hubs doesn't like to mess with the snaps or the cover though, so I'm the one who uses these the most.

Bum Genius Bamboo Fitted (size XS and S): Love these too. Unlike the Kissaluvs they have velcro closure making them more daddy friendly. You still need a cover since they aren't waterproof on their own, but pair it with a Thirsties Wrap and you're good to go. These have been discontinued but you can find them pretty reasonably priced on the used diaper market. My biggest complaint with these, like the Kissaluvs is absorbency. It doesn't take much for him to soak these and though we haven't had leaks, I don't always like how damp his skin feels when I change him so I usually try to rotate with a more stay dry diaper. Overall, even though I've liked them and they work well, I don't think we will use fitteds once we move out of the newborn stage.

Rumparooz Lil Joey: 2 thumbs down on this one. Luckily I only had two. I had high hopes for these, they are an all in one (no cover needed) and looked super absorbent....but every time I tried it he leaked out the legs. I just don't think they were the right shape for his skinny little body and since they were snap closure you couldn't get a customized fit like you could with the velcro.

Happy Heiny Mini Pocket: This one was ok. It is a pocket diaper meaning you have to stuff the liner into the cover. Since they're so small it's hard to get the liner in there...I don't know, maybe I just have giant man hands. Otherwise it was pretty decent, but I only have one and that was enough for me. Not my favorite.

Bum Genius All in One (size XS): These are our favorites. Hands down. It's an all in one so there's no liners to stuff and no covers to use. You just velcro it on and go making it a great diaper for daddy! It's also the trimmest of all the ones we have and even with our little super soaker holds a TON. It's become my go to night time diaper and I'm always amazed in the morning how dry he is and how heavy and full the diaper is! I may even buy a few in the next size up to have as less bulky option under some of his clothes.

So that's our cloth diapering experience in a nutshell. At least 1 month in! I'll post again later once we've moved into the long-term, one size option and let you know my thoughts on those. I already have 3 brands to try out! I'm also on a mission to find a good hybrid system with a disposable insert option for travelling. If you couldn't tell, I've become slightly addicted with all things cloth! Who can blame me though....there's nothing cuter than a colorful, fluffy bum!