Hook & Loop Care

It’s no secret that I’m partial to hook & loop/aplix. It’s actually a necessity with my alligator boy. But hook & loop doesn’t hold up to wear and tear like snaps. There are a few things you can do to help keep your hook & loop diapers stay strong. The most important thing you can do is to make sure the hook & loop is firmly put together on the laundry tabs before putting it in your diaper pail. Don’t put it together all wonky-like. Any hook left unattached has the potential to snag on other diapers in the wash, which will then pull apart from the loop. So not only will your hook & loop show wear faster, but they will also “eat” at your other diapers. Making sure the hook is secure on the laundry tab also prevents lint build up. This can be a pain to clean out, and keeps your hook & loop from being very “sticky”.  Another thing you can do to keep your hook & loop from wearing too quickly is to line dry. This keeps it from tumbling and potentially snagging other diapers while in the dryer. Line drying in general will also help in keeping your diapers from wearing too quickly. The lint you clean out from the lint trap is fiber from your clothes. Having a good size stash also keeps your diapers from wearing too quickly. You may only change 8 diapers a day, but constant washing, drying, and wearing is hard on the hook & loop closures and your diapers as well. {Minimum stash size is 24, if you're wondering.} Basic diaper maintenance and care in addition to using the laundry tabs properly will give your hook & loop a longer life. Yay!

Thirsties Duo Wraps, Fitteds, & Diapers have excellent laundry tabs that work well to keep the hook & loop “sticky”. I have Thirsties in rotation that have been used for over a year and still work great. GroVia has laundry tabs plus a loop to tuck the hook part and keep it hooked. This is a major improvement over the older GroBaby shells. I used to use a lingerie bag with my GroBaby shells inside to keep them from attaching to everything else. It made diaper chains obsolete. I highly recommend a lingerie bag if you’re having issues with your hook & loop diapers making diaper chains in the wash. It will help minimize wear and tear on your entire stash. And a lingerie bag is a must when washing your Bummis Swimmi. It’ll keep your suits from catching on the hook & loop. {Learned that lesson the hard way. Bummer.} At this time I don’t have any use for the lingerie bag for my diapers, but I do use it for BW’s bibs. No more snagged shirts & shorts when I do the boys’ laundry. My sister gave me that idea, and I remember she used a bag to wash tiny baby socks to keep the washer from eating them. So many uses for more than your lingerie.



Thirsties Duo Wrap with Aplix



Thirsties Duo Diaper with Aplix



GroVia OS Shell with Hook & Loop



I have little desire to convert to Team Snaps. Hook & loop is the best choice for me. Even though BW tries to take off his diaper when he’s pantless, he’s mischievous busy like that, it makes diaper changes so much easier for me. A little extra effort to make my diapers stand up to constant wear and tear if definitely worth it. And if I’ve totally turned you off to hook & loop, no worries. I agree with you that snaps are awesome. We don’t do naps & nights without them. I may love the ease that hook & loop gives me when changing a diaper, but I’m not a fool to think that BW would never make a poo masterpiece if given the chance. If you’re a snap lover, Thirsties makes their entire line in snaps {the Duo Diaper in snaps is their newest addition}, GroVia Shells, Newborn, and All-In-Ones come in snaps, BabyKicks 3g & Fitteds are only in snaps, and of course the entire FuzziBunz line is snaps. And if you’re a fan of hook & loop, Thirsties entire line and GroVia Shells come in hook & loop. The choice is yours. Feel free to mix and match to suit your diapering needs.

GroVia AIO Review

I can’t say enough nice things about GroVia’s OS AIOs. They really put a lot of thought into the design of this diaper. As with any AIOs, they are the easiest diaper to use. No stuffing. No Folding. Always ready to use. The most common problem with AIOs is washing and drying. It’s often difficult to get a good cleaning with a cover attach, and drying takes a long time because of the layers of absorbency. This is not the case with the GroVia AIO, because only one end of the soaker is attached to the cover. But wait, there’s more! There is a second soaker pad that snaps to the sewn on soaker pad. This second pad allows for more absorbency while still allowing the AIO to wash thoroughly and dry quickly. A second soaker means that it can also be removed to customize the absorbency. {Think potty learning}.

This diaper is amazingly trim on BW {now 16 ½ mo. 23 lbs}, and surprisingly CW {3 ½ yrs, 38 lbs} can still squeeze in it. It does look small on CW {he refused a picture unfortunately}, but he claimed it felt fine while he ran like a maniac around the house. At naps, BW often wears his AIO with both soaker pads plus a stay dry booster {if he binged on milk at lunch} or with the extra booster unsnapped with a stay dry booster on top. This AIO is awesome since it can be customized to fit the absorbency needs of your little one.

 I mentioned earlier that it is trim; well it’s even more so with the second soaker pad unsnapped. The side snaps of the AIO with the stretchy tabs are going to make it easy for BW to pull it down when he’s ready. This is how we’re going to roll come potty training time. The stretch in the tabs also helps to make a nice fit with this diaper. Often with diapers that snap you have to give up a snug fit at times since you’re limited by the location of the snaps. The give in the tabs compensate for that to give a great fit even when your little one is in between snap sizes on other diapers!

Simplicity is key with any stash. I’ve discussed this in previous posts. It’s best to stick with a system or two. It really makes laundry day easy, and hassle-free diaper changes for any and all caregivers. AIOs can really simplify your laundry since there is no folding or stuffing. {Full disclaimer: The second soaker pad often comes unsnapped in the wash, but it’s crazy easy to snap it back on without any effort.} Say you already have a stash with a system or two of diapers, adding GroVia AIOs won’t add any extra work. The beauty of an AIO is that they’re always ready to go. {Well, as long as they’re washed that is.} So give GroVia’s OS AIO a try…a full stash or add a few in the mix. Either way, you can’t go wrong!  



My Cowboy Small. xoxoxxx



The Big Conversion

I recently had my GroBaby shells converted from hook & loop to snaps. I think it is great to have the option to start off with hook & loop diapers and extend their use by converting to snaps. If you think about it, when diapering a newborn and younger baby hook & loop is often easier and quicker. As baby grows, little hands become busy and have the ability to undo the hook & loop closures. Changing the diaper to snaps will help extend the life of your diapers. So now that these shells have been all converted, I’m passing them on to my sis. I know I just said that snaps aren’t the easiest {in my opinion} when diapering a newborn, but my little guy is almost out grown the GroBaby shells. Now that they have more life to them, it’d be wasteful not to keep using them. {Isn’t that a big part of what cloth diapering is all about…less waste?!} BW is moving on to larger GroVia shells {btw they also fit CW at 38 lbs}, and so my GroBaby stash is now moving on to EB.  Baby EB is growing like a weed! He’ll probably be the perfect size for them by the time they arrive. Before I send them off to my sis, I thought I’d post a few before and after pics of my shells. 

Before





After



Lookin’ good & ready for a new home! Once baby EB is wearing them, Nina will be sure to post a pic of her cutie. I can’t wait to see him wearing them.

On a side note, GroVia is a great company that offers excellent customer service. I received a call both when my shells arrived & when they shipped them back to me. It’s nice to hear a friendly voice {even if it was only on my voicemail since I missed both calls}. GroVia snap conversions are only available through their site. If you are in need of any of their other products, I am a proud GroVia retailer!

And to show you the difference between my old GroBaby shells and the new GroVia shells, I thought I'd post a couple of pics. Not only was the rise made larger, but the hook & loop has nice laundry tabs. This is to keep them from being worn while washing and to keep from diaper chains from occuring. {I used a zippered lingere bag to put my GroBaby shells in while washing to keep them from attaching to everything.}



A nice size difference that has been improved to make these shells really fit your baby for a long time!!



On a side note, GroVia is a great company that offers excellent customer service. I received a call both when my shells arrived & when they shipped them back to me. It’s nice to hear a friendly voice {even if it was only on my voicemail since I missed both calls}. GroVia snap conversions are only available through their site. If you are in need of any of their other products, I am a proud GroVia retailer!

I heart Snaps

So I don’t think I have given snap diapers a fair shake, especially since I have professed an undying love for hook & loop closures. Shame on me. I have recently changed up my stash as I have sent my GroBaby shells in to be converted from hook & loop to snaps. {This will be blogged about when they return.} While they’re gone, it has come to my attention that I have a lot of diapers that have snaps. And I like them. *gasp*

My FuzziBunz diapers still look like new after a little over a year of use. I’m sure you’re thinking, yeah right. But it is true. The snaps don’t show any wear like diapers with hook & loop do. Also, the PUL looks like new as well. I’ve used the several FuzziBunz that I own just about every day. Most often they are used for naps and outings and on occasion nights with hemp inserts. They do rotate so as to keep them from wearing, but I honestly don’t see any wear and tear on them like other diapers {that are fully functional, just a little tired looking}. FuzziBunz diapers come with a 1 year warranty on the snaps, PUL, elastic, and sewing/workmanship defects. But wait there’s more! FuzziBunz {one size} includes extra elastic so that even after the warranty is up you can add more life to your diaper.  They claim that their snaps will last 3+ years, and based on my first year of use I believe it!

And now that it is getting hot here in Tucson, BW sports a t-shirt and diaper around the house. Snaps don’t snag on the carpet and busy, little hands can’t undo them. When putting BW in his crib for naps sans shorts, I’m not worried that he can take of his diaper and make a poo masterpiece. I have heard horror stories about poo masterpieces from my mom about my brother. {Sorry, bro.} He was wearing a disposable, and had obviously mastered the art {haha} of taking off his diaper. I’m not worried about this when I put BW in a diaper with snaps.

Isn’t BW a pain in the rear to change? Yes. How do I manage to put on a diaper with snaps? I don’t know. I like to think of it as mommy strength. I could lift a car if I had to. But since I have never had to lift a car, I think I’ll stick with what I know I can do. I do wrestle him a bit when putting on snaps, but it’s worth it knowing that he can’t take the diaper off.

FuzziBunz one size {OS} diapers have 3 snaps, and the perfect size have 2 snaps. I use both kinds, OS for BW and perfect size for CW at night. CW has outgrown the OS diapers, but that’s no surprise. He’s outgrown just about every OS diaper. Large and extra-large perfect size diapers fit him well for nights. I lined up all the perfect size diapers so you can see the size differences. Unfortunately, I didn’t do all the possible sizes for the OS diaper. You would have been bored by the pictures. The OS has 8+ button settings and the waist adjusts to 4+ button settings. If you’d like to do the math to find out how many sizes you can come up with, knock yourself out. I’m content to say that is A LOT of adjustments. While it isn’t as easy to adjust the sizing as a diaper that has a snap down rise, once it is sized it’s not like you are adjusting it constantly. You can get a very nice custom fit with the OS diaper. And there is no need for guessing sizes as FuzziBunz has a size chart. Using the size chart makes it easy to customize it to fit your baby.

So I confess. I love my FuzziBunz. The colors are great. The fit is great. And for the month of May, the value of the OS FuzziBunz is unbeatable. Buy 5 and get the 6th one FREE. Since I was a math teacher in a former life, I’ll break it down for you. Instead of 19.95 a dipe, it comes to 16.63 a dipe. Make the deal even sweeter by buying a 2 pack that comes with free matching Leggies. You can find all FuzziBunz products at one place at Green Baby Elephant's store.



Two major events have occurred in my family. The first being I have a new, precious nephew *swoon*, and the second is that BW has decided to walk more than 2 steps. I like to think that his walking is based on the fact that he knows he is no longer the baby of the family now that he has a baby cousin. I’m not used to BW walking around, and it makes me a little sad that he’s literally stepping into toddlerhood. *sniff*


If you're happy and you know it...


~~Tonya~~

Another First Time Cloth Diaper Experience

I have been using cloth diapers for over a year now and I really enjoy the process.  I love using products that are better for my baby, I love that I'm not contributing to unnecessary waste, and I'm glad that I can save money by not buying disposable diapers every few weeks.

 

My journey to choosing cloth has been quite an adventure.  I started investigating the idea of cloth diapers when my first child was under 2 years old.  But at that time I decided it wasn't an investment I wanted to make since he was older and close to potty training.  At that time the only information I had about cloth diapers was what I found on Amazon.com.  I had no idea that there was a larger community for cloth diapers, and at that point I put the idea on hold.

 

Then my daughter was born in October of 2009.  I started with disposables but did quite a bit more research about cloth and I discovered a multitude of online communities that provided a plethora of information about various types & brands of cloth diapers.  It was a bit overwhelming.  I researched for 2 months before making my first purchase, which was 2 diaper covers & a set of 6 prefolds.  I started out basic to see if I would enjoy the process. 

 

I fell in love with cloth and began to increase my stash of diapers, using pocket diapers, fitteds & covers, and all-in-ones.  My husband was surprisingly supportive since he realized we wouldn't be spending $20-$30 every few weeks on diapers that would ultimately be thrown in the trash.  Literally throwing our money away.

 

Now that my daughter is 18 months old, my cloth diaper needs have evolved with her.  We now primarily use snap diapers since she is quite skilled at undoing the velcro.  I also work outside of the home part time and my parents watch my kids while I am gone.  They have found cloth diapers to be much easier than they thought, and my mom loves using them on my daughter.  It really is FUN.

 

My journey with cloth diapers will continue until my daughter is potty trained, and then I will most likely sell my stash of diapers to other parents.  That's another perk of using cloth diapers: there is resale value.  You can't say that about disposables.

~~Karen~~

BabyKicks 3g

I came across BabyKicks when I was looking for a nighttime solution for BW.  BabyKicks makes great hemp inserts, and I tried and fell in love with their joey-bunz inserts.  They quickly became a go-to nighttime insert in a pocket diaper, but that is a whole different story that I will come back to in the future.  I just wanted to create a backstory for how I found such a great diaper company. 

So with all my cloth diaper research, I started to read great things about BabyKicks’ redesigned pocket diaper.  It was called the Bumboo pocket and now is known as the 3g.  I had to try it.  The hemp inserts I use are great, so I assumed the 3g had to be awesome.  I was so right!  This is probably one of the thinnest and most absorbent pocket diapers I have come across.  This is due to the joey bunz hemp insert that comes with it.  The first time BW wore a 3g was at a MOPS meeting.  A mommy friend, knowing that I cloth diaper, asked me if I was using a disposable since BW’s rear wasn’t so..uh..large.  I laughed, and immediately pulled down at the back of his pants to show off his new dipe.  She was impressed.  Now, I should mention that I don’t mind a cute, fluffy rear, but I can see how it can be off putting for some. 

Let’s talk about the unique aspects of this diaper.  First off, it’s a one-size diaper.  It seems like every diaper now-a-days is one-sized.  Honestly, most one-sized diapers don’t fit newborns and larger toddlers as they are potty training.  Don’t get me wrong here, I’m not knocking on one-sized diapers.  They are great and have huge money saving capabilities, it’s just that oftentimes they aren’t as one-size fits all for all babies.  With that said, the BabyKicks 3g quite possibly a true one-size diaper.  They have reverse snaps and a unique fold to create a newborn diaper, and with the rise snaps fully undone BabyKicks claims to fit up to 40lbs. 

There are two different types of fleece that make up this diaper.  I never knew that there was different fleece, so when Gina from BabyKicks was explaining it to me, I was amazed and impressed.  The inner fleece, like I mentioned, is absorbent, so the baby will feel wet.  This absorbency is great when using the newborn fold and also comes in handy while potty training since the joey-bunz insert doesn’t have to be used for either stage.  The fleece on the tabs and the leg gussets repel moisture.  Too good to be true?! No way! The super soft fleece gussets don’t leak at all.  This may just be too unbelievable for you, which is fine by me. Buy one ASAP and see for yourself!!

The sizing of this diaper goes from newborn to potty training, literally.  Starting with the unique newborn fold and ending with the great side snaps, which come in handy for your little one to pull up on the diaper similar to that of a training pant.  When used as a training pant, you may also use the 3g without an insert since the inner layer has some absorbency.  This will make them extremely thin! You may also go without an insert at the newborn size since the absorbency of the fleece may be enough for the first few days or so.  Now that’s a trim newborn diaper! The sizes between newborn to toddler are made by using the rise snaps.  There are 3 rise snaps, which is also unusual for a one size diaper.  Often there are 2 rise snaps, to create a total of 3 sizes for a one-size diaper.  The BabyKicks 3g has 5 rise settings! Now that’s just crazy {in a good way}!

Now, you’re probably thinking this diaper is pretty pimp. And you are right.  But before you buy, which I’m sure you’re going to want to since this is an awesome diaper, I want to fully disclose my experience with the 3g.  First, I have N.E.V.E.R. had a leak with this diaper.  I have used it with the one-size insert that comes with it and a second joey-bunz insert in it at night for my 3 year old, CW.  Never a leak!  And I must say, still a very trim night diaper with 2 inserts. I have also used this with BW without a leak.  CW loves this diaper so much, that he refused to believe that he had outgrown it.  One night I tried snapping it on, and no amount of him sucking in his adorable little belly helped.  He is simply too big now. That was a sad night in this house.  Fortunately, he is fully potty trained except for nights, so I don’t have to rely on using this as an everyday diaper.  Another thing that is noticeable in all the comparison pics with my Poppy (red) diaper and the new Azul (blue) diaper is that the inside is pilly.  This is purely aesthetics, and the pilly inside doesn’t take away from any comfort.  Remember that CW would request this diaper every night!  The one-size joey-bunz inserts do shrink.  Any cotton and hemp {this happens to be a blend} will shrink.  The insert fits  great inside the 3g.  An added bonus to the one-size joey-bunz insert is the sewn on lines to help you know where to fold it to correlate with the rise snaps.  Genius. 

The opening of the pocket, which is in the front, is a little small.  This is done for two reasons.  First to keep the diaper looking trim, and second to avoid pulling out the insert through the poo in the back of the diaper.  Luckily, my arms are skinny and I stuff all the pockets in this house.  I can’t imagine having the hubs match up all the pockets and the matching inserts. *Yikes* So problem solved by doing it myself.  Actually, problem solved, by doing all the diaper laundry myself, but that’s a whole other can of worms.

You can try your luck at winning a 3g for your little one by entering a giveaway that is sponsored by Green Baby Elephant at www.ispy4shoppers.blogspot.com.  Contest ends Friday, April 8, 2011. 

 

~~Tonya~~

Alligator Death Roll

Changing a diaper has turned into an Olympic sport.   It’s a difficult wrestling match and only a trained athlete can accomplish the task.  I like to call it the “Alligator Death Roll” competition.  Is it dangerous?  Yes it is. Is it exhausting? Yes it is.  Can you win? Yes you can!!  Let me explain the rules.  Baby arches his back and rolls to the side.  Baby can’t be flat on his back.  Baby also has the ability to swat away wipes, hands, and clean diapers.  Also, baby’s hands can be used to grab their own soiled parts. *gag*  The diaper changer has to avoid all of the obstacles, while baby is trying to complete the alligator death roll and crawl away to safety. 

Now that the rules of the game have been explained let’s try to come up with a winning strategy.  For starters, a novel toy can be placed in the baby’s hands.  More often than not this hasn’t been working in this house. Darn. Strategy #2: whip off baby’s pants and throw them over his face while quickly changing the diaper.  For this strategy, I’m going for the classic blinding the alligator baby to create confusion, but it comes off as playing a lousy game of peek-a-boo.  Often this works if I am fast enough at changing the diaper. Strategy #3: change the darn diaper while baby is on the move.  This is by far the most difficult way to change baby, but desperate times call for desperate measures.  It’s not easy to attach a diaper while baby is in full on alligator death roll maneuver!   

 

A secret weapon should be mentioned.  It is hook and loop or aplix.  While it may not have the durability of snaps, there is a definite need for a H/L diaper when wrestling changing an alligator baby.  It’s always good to have a mix of both H/L and snap diapers in your stash for this very reason.  I for one am not a fan of changing a baby while in the midst of an alligator death roll while out in public or in the middle of the night.  For those occasions, I almost always reach for a diaper with H/L while wrestling changing  my alligator baby.