Skip to main content

A dad's conversation about cloth diapering

I'm participating in Fluff Talk Thursdays again and this week's topic is: a dad's perspective on cloth diapering. My husband had already had a little back-and-forth on facebook with one of our friends about his take on using cloth, so with both of their OKs, I am re-posting that here. I have edited to change names to aliases for my husband and daughter. Silas gave permission for his name to be used. Speaking of aliases, a friend recently pointed out that I should explain that my husband's is really not an insult at all, but is just a private joke. He actually chose it for himself — I think he is above average in nearly every way.

Here is a photo of my husband changing Sweet Pea's diaper when she was only one week old.


Silas and his wife don't have any kids yet, but are planning on it. After reading my original cloth diaper post, Silas wrote to Average asking,

Silas: ....Question for you, how does the cloth diaper thing work for you (ease of use, laundering, and cost) as a dad?

Average: I am a believer in cloth diapers. Not maybe an evangelist like Rose claims to be, but at least a disciple. Changing a poopy diaper is changing a poopy diaper. This way at least we aren't just throwing a bunch of stuff away. Plus, we never run out of diapers, there hasn't once been a 2am trip to the market because we ran out of diapers. The laundry aspect is pretty easy right now with Rose at home, she does most of it. The only thing that is more difficult is spraying the poo off the diaper, but I hooked up a sink sprayer on the toilet so even that is pretty painless. We just have to scrub the toilet a little more often. As far as ease of use goes, I have almost no experience with disposables but putting a diaper on is putting a diaper on. Sure some of the ones we use are two pieces and require an extra step, but it's like a 3 second step, so it's not really an issue for me. The cost is the best part, I think of it like grocery shopping and cooking at home as compared to fast food. The upfront cost is more, but the product is cheaper and healthier. Then, when Sweet Pea outgrows the diapers we can pass them down to our friends or sell them. Like I said I'm a believer. Also when Rose and I were on our honeymoon in Belize we went swimming at this really awesome waterfall area, except there were several dirty diapers on the ground. I was super grossed out and it actually got me thinking about cloth diapering way before we thought about having kids.

Silas: Nice, I never thought about the running out thing, that's a good point. The cost thing is what got me interested in the first place, like you said the up front cost is more, but in the end you are paying less. My dad still has some old cloth diapers around, he swears they are the best polishing cloths around. As far as laundering goes is there ever an issue with the washing machine smelling, or leaving any remnants? I know it sounds a little naive but I am about as clueless as can be with this. I am so glad Erica was a nanny for infants, at least she has some idea of what we're getting ourselves into. Thanks for all the info.

Average: No remnants, I was worried about that too, we usually rinse them first with some vinegar, that kills the smell and rinses out clean, then we add the rest of the load and run it like usual.

So there you have it, one dad who is totally for cloth diapers. He even changes them, and does some laundry as well. Oh, and can't you just tell that Silas is going to be an awesome dad?! I mean, how many dads are learning about baby care stuff before they even get pregnant? I am really impressed with him, and excited for more of my friends to have kids!

Comments

  1. Ah sweet! You have a great husband just like me. :-) Aren't we blessed???

    What great advice he gave his friend as well.

    ReplyDelete
  2. It's interesting to hear the guys side of the CD!

    ReplyDelete
  3. One thing's for sure. He's way above average when it comes to answering questions. Awesome post!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm thinking Silas is going to be an amazing father... which I'm obviously happy about since he'll be my baby-daddy ;) Rose, I was very anti-cloth diapers before Silas started reading what you wrote about them. Not because I don't think it's a good idea, but because I'm lazy and Silas is lazy, and I could see it becoming a point of contention. But you're slowly changing my mind... and you've already won over Si ;)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Woollybottoms Giveaway

I am hosting my first giveaway! I have been wanting to do this for a while, and I'm so pleased to have it finally planned. The item I chose to give is a new pair of Woollybottoms - wool pants for babies. The retail value of these is $29.00. I have been really into the wool pants thing lately, as you may have noticed from my recent posts (about Nifty Knickers , and my baby blue longies ) so this seems like a good fit. Wool pants can be used as a cloth diaper cover, or just as snuggly warm pants for the winter or for bedtime. These ones are "footies" so they should keep your baby toasty! The pair I am giving to one lucky winner is light blue with fish fabric for the footie part. Maybe a little more boyish than girlie, but Stella would definitely wear these if we got to keep them. They are size medium, and have the following measurements: 8" waist (elastic) 9" rise 18" length Here they are: To enter, simply comment below and let me know why you wan

Summer 2020 - Life in a Pandemic

I'm in my final week of summer before work as a middle school teacher begins again. This time of year I'm always in a reflective mood.  I look back and feel so lucky to have had this time with my kids. We went camping, biking, boating, golfing, and hiking. We celebrated my sister's wedding, we did projects together, watched movies, and just hung out at home. It really was everything that summer is meant to be. There were many events and plans that we canceled due to Covid, but we did all the most important things. We missed friends, but I also reveled in the togetherness with my little family unit. Today, I spent time registering for fall childcare and activities. It's less than usual, but still I can see the pace of our lives picking up. As we move into a season of more busy-ness, more work, and likely more stress, this poem sums up the feelings I'm experiencing.... Vacation End by Leslie Pinckney Hill From the charm of radiant faces, From the days we took to dream

Review: Yo Gabba Gabba! Live! There's a Party in My City!

Attending a live show is always a treat. The Yo Gabba Gabba! Live! There's a Party in My City! show last Monday was no exception. We arrived only about ten minutes early, and it felt a little weird to walk into a venue where I normally attend serious plays and musical performances, full of children, toddlers, and babies, many in costume. I had been to see The Color Purple there two days before, and it was quite a different atmosphere! Unsure how Sweet Pea would react to the show before we went, I was a bit overwhelmed at first and so was she, but after the first few acts she settled in to enjoy it and danced along to the music at times. Overall, it was a fun experience for us all and a happy memory to look back on as our first live performance as a family. The show producers, or planners, or whatever they are, included a few extras for the audience that really added to the experience for the kids. There was confetti that shot out over the crowd, a huge balloon d