Monday

newborns and diapers

I'm a cloth diaper-er myself. I think soft cotton diapers - preferably organic - just feel nicer on baby bottoms. Plus, I find disposables gross and don't like throwing them all in the landfill (yeah, yeah, I know some people think the environmental impact of washing cloth diapers is worse than throwing away thousands of plastic diapers over the same period, but I find that nuts). Plus, disposable diapers are unbelievably expensive. But mostly, I just know that if I were a baby, I'd prefer cotton to plastic. More comfy.

Anyway, I used cloth a lot with H, a whole lot with J, and almost exclusively with E. By the time E. came a long, I'd discovered these MOTHEREASE ALL-IN-ONE numbers, which are every bit as easy to get on and off as disposables. I still have most of them from Elliot (passed on to my sister who has now handed them back off to me).

But one thing I've never found is a cloth diaper and wrap or an all in one diaper that's truly tiny enough for a newborn. Even the newborn ones seem big until the baby hits ten pounds or so (all my babies have been pretty small). But I'm thinking that I am probably out of the loop on this and that somewhere out there nowadays - since 1998 when I last diapered a newborn - someone has managed to create a cloth diaper that is actually teensy enough for a newborn babe. So if you know of one, please comment below.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

my son was a preemie, and a friend sent me some size 0 -- i think they were kissaluvs (sp?) -- that worked on him. and he wasn't even 5 lbs dripping wet.

mamamarta

Katharine O'Moore-Klopf said...

Ooh, I loved Motherease diapers! My last baby was the one on whom I used cloth diapers, and they were wonderful. We saved so much money by not using disposables.

Sorry I can't help with brand names for tiny diapers. My last baby was huge.

Cary said...

We used Fuzzi Bunz but did not need their Preemie (4-10lb) size.

There are also now a ton of WAHM's making diapers and selling online. You could undoubtedly order a custom batch in any size or color. Diaper Hyena is a good source of seller information.

Anonymous said...

have you noticed the same reaction from disposable users as non-breastfeeders to breast feeders?

some disposable users take it as an insult.

Anonymous said...

Try Snugglebees. www.snugglebees.com

Anonymous said...

i've heard a somewhat convincing argument that if you use a diaper service, the environmental impact of cloth is about the same as disposables. you have to factor in all the gas that's used to drop off and collect the diapers, plus the bleach used to sanitize them.

i could never figure out, though, how washing my own in my high efficency washer with no bleach, and hanging them to dry in the sun (nature's bleach!), could compare to a landfill full of sposies.

mamamarta

Anonymous said...

When my brother's baby was still in utero, my mom emailed to ask his girlfriend if she knew what kind of diapers she would be using, of course meaning cloth or disposable. Her reply, "I don't know, I guess I'll start out with little bitty ones and then I'll just gradually use bigger and bigger ones." It has been the funniest thing to me!!

Ms. Booty Homemaker said...

Kissaluvs size 0. You can use them up to 15 pounds and they also have this darling little snap down for the umbilical stump. Use 'em w/ a Bummis whisper wrap size small. Or a Bumkins. I had a big baby, though I'm told this combo also works for the littler ones.

I'm a big fan of the basic prefold and one of the above covers or a fleece or wool longie for the itty bitties.

Anonymous said...

Try

www.kushies.com

They start at (0-4lbs) and go up.

Go to the catalog tab and then go to diapering.

(Check out the nursing section, as well.)

Anonymous said...

Or you could always just get basic prefolds at Kmart or Wal-Mart and fold them to fit. I may be the last person left on earth who actually uses pre-folds, pins, and plastic pants, but I can't afford the fancy diapers and this has worked just fine for five babies.

Anonymous said...

I know Motherease One-Size can be folded to fit newborns.

Anonymous said...

ran across this wandering around on the internet.....
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/?qid=20061012161403AA1nzB6&fr=hp

Anonymous said...

Our last baby, #7 on the list, has been toilet trained since the summer, however it was always standard flat folds in our house with rubber pants and pins. No exception. The best darn cloth diapering method still.