Travis and I are using cloth diapers for our baby.
Why?
- Because Americans throw away 50 million diapers a day. And it takes one diaper 500 years to decompose!
- Also because we can end up saving over a $1,000 in diapers, especially when you note that we will be using our cloth diapers on 2 or 3 children.
- And because we are trying to live more simply. This mentality was instilled in us by our parents. Speaking only for my upbringing, I was raised by parents who gardened, recycled, composted, hunted, only spent money they had and kept the house at a little cool in the winter and a little warm in the summer. My mom used cloth diapers on all 3 of her kids and never thought it was that hard.
- I also feel a call by my Catholic faith to be more responsible for the Earth. I hope to be a good steward of all that God has given me.
Will we give up and switch over once we see how hard it is?
I doubt it.
- Cloth diapers of today are not exactly what I wore 25 years ago. The standard prefolds my mom used (and then turned into dust clothes) are still used, but many cloth diapers look like disposable. The shower-cap-like rubber pants I wore have been replaced by fabrics like flannel and wool and covers that are more breathable than those of yesteryear.
- Since I'll be stay at home mom-ing it, there will be time for laundry and hanging diapers out to dry.
But isn't this just a trend now that it's hip to go green?
- No, it's not. As I pointed out above, this is something that was nurtured by our backgrounds and it's something I've considered for a long time.
- And I do want to point out the following: disposable diapers are horrible for the environment because of how they fill out landfills. However, cloth diapers can put a strain on the environment due to energy costs to launder. Our energy efficient washer and dryer should help with this, though, as will my efforts to dry the diapers on a clothesline.
Here are some links that you may find interesting about diapering:
Cloth diapers are eco-friendly: http://www.ecobaby.com/cloth.htm
Flushable diapers: http://www.gdiapers.com/home
Pros and cons for disposable and cloth: http://www.thenewparentsguide.com/diapers.htm
2 comments:
Your are so awesome Bonnie! I totally agree.
I agree too. I plan to use them as well. They are pretty cool these days and yes, I dust with my the cloth that used to cover my hiney!! :)
I have been challenged lately to keep things simple as well. I feel really proud of myself tht I haven't bought any "things" lately and I am not tempted to go to Target and buy stuff. I just want to keep it low key. I don't know how and why we have this mentality of "needing" so much.
Anyway, you are a fantastic mom already and you have only just begun!!
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