Husband Evolution II

´When I started this adventure, he would just play dumb. Since I had prefolds and medium covers, that looked huge on my tiny 6 week older,  He just made remarks about it and didn't even consider paying any attention to the fact that his brand new washing machine was getting illegal substances.

One day he confessed it was a total mystery  He didn't know what happened with the soiled diapers, all he new was that they were disappearing and, like magic, appearing again in the couch, ready for usage again and again.

Once he decided to change one, he appeared in the bathroom with a cover and a very wet piece of cotton in the inside,

H:  what do I do with this?
M: just toss it in the bag
H: what bag?
M: the wet bag that is hanging just besides your face
H: That thing? I was wondering what that bag was for
M: well, now you know, that's where the dirty diapers go
H: Could you move it from there? it's been hitting my head
M: you hadn't said anything before, that thing has been there for over 10 days

When the adventure started, I confess I was grossed out by the idea of leaving the diapers like that and tossing them in the washer. Therefore, since the liners didn't work and everything was getting through them, I decided to use my shower head as a sprayer (we have a convenient 8 ft hose) and got rid of most of the yellow matter before tossing in the wet bag.

H: why is there water all over the toilet?
M: I thought I had cleaned everything, nevermind, won't happen again.

OK, second choice, use a bucket. we'll hose in the bathtub and place the bucket on top of the bath chair.

H: my bath chair is getting moldy and the padding is losing strenght, there are marks of a bucket on it
M: Nevermind, I only use it for 30 seconds

OK, third choice, put the bucket in the floor of the bathtub (not good for my back)

H: Why is there poop all over the bathtub? 
M: What are you talking about, everything went into the bucket

GRRRRRRRR!

So, I gave up and started tossing the soiled diapers into the machine and, you know something? they come out clean, and the machine looks sparkling after washing them. It just all goes out. So, for now and until Tiny Guy starts eating solids, no more hosing diapers for him.

Now, for the other kid, once I started using the prefolds on him, I went back to the toilet, raise the cover and  spray down. Takes 30 seconds to get rid of the solids, and so far no complaints.

Night Clothdiapventures

Usually, when you do the switch, one of the downsides is the changing, which should happen more often than with the super duper stay dry lined full of SAP counterparts. Lots of moms keep thinking how are they going to change the diaper every 2 hours during the night, and opt to use disposables then and there.

Since the idea of cloth is opening options and not closing them, it is perfectly valid to go that route. For a while, I did that with my toddler, making the switch gradually (plus I could wait for the explosion before cottoning him for the rest of the day).
But when one of the reasons for the switch is the leaking and when you can't stand the smell, you try harder to find a way to cloth diaper at night. Is it possible? well, not for everybody, but it is for this family.

I started with prefolds, with the "runny poop" fold (closed and extrafolded at the front and opened at the back) and put an extra microfiber insert behind. It did hold on, and although I had to change it immediately when waking up, it is still one of my faves. I do use the trifolded prefolds for my toddler, mainly because he's so behind in potty training and I want him to feel wet. They work great, no leaks so far. But for Tiny Guy...

Why did I choose something else? two reasons: the wet factor and the bulky factor.

The wet factor Prefolds are amazing. They are almost the most versatile diaper out there. They absorb like crazy, don't smell, don't repell, don't leak... then why are they not my absolute go-to choice? Well, as soon as pee gets into them, you have a wet baby. It is true that they can hold on to several of those, but for a person used to the dryness of disposables, the fact that the baby is wet means he is unconfortable and you need to change it. During the day you may think it is a good idea, but so far, I have not met a mother that wakes up automatically every time the baby pees and changes the diaper just to go back to sleep immediately. Since I don't want my little guy to stay most of the night wet, I decided to go to a stay-dry option. The bulky factor Let's face it, prefolds are bulky. Sometimes it looks like a whole tank between their legs, and, if it was all he's using, that wouldn't be such a problem, but when it's cold and you need to put on jammies, the prefold won't allow me to close them. No, I won't spend even more money on wool leg warmers, already spent more than I can afford in "cuties". I think on the whole idea to be something you can put on your baby without having a dog's barrel under your legs.

So, my next choice was, at that time, the only two Swaddlebees Econappi that I could afford ($30   bucks a pop!). The liner of the pockets is cotton velour, a stay dry option. It took me a while to figure them out, but found out that the best combo for my 2 month old was the small insert doubbled by the microfiber doubler.

It is still a little bulkier in the front, specially since I have to fold the doubler right there, but it is trimmer than the prefold and it lasts longer. I even have had explosions first time in the morning and they've held up everything. I think, if I only had one choice for all my diapers, it would definitely be that one. The problem is that, since I could only buy 2, they are used at night and I can't enjoy them during the day, plus they take forever to dry, so you would need to spend some $500 at least to really be using them exclusively. ehhhh no thanks, so much for savings, I can't.

Over these 2 months of adventures, I tried using Fuzzibunz Elite and Grovia AIO's for Tiny Guy. The first one has a very fine stay dry option, but leaks and made me have to go to the laundromat to clean my blanket in one of the 2 explosions that have occured since the switch, and the seconds are cotton as well, no stay dry option. Both of these types have worked pretty well during the day.

This option for night is my own personal experience and I've never seen it in any other blog or review, or even as a suggestion. This has a very simple explanation. Each person can only buy certain amount of brands and each baby is different. Each mom and each dad have to work with what they have available, therefore, my recommendation is very simple: try to work it out with what you already have, make combos, see which one works better on top or bottom. It is not as hard as some moms put it, and you don't necessarily need fitteds and wool.

The Ugly Pocketling

When having to rush out the door with a car service waiting for you, need to pack and don't have any extra luggage space due to airlines' new policy of "bring what you can in a carry on and increase exponentially the boarding and leaving time", you always leave something behind.

Curiously enough, we didn't leave anything we needed. Had enough clothes to last us for the trip, brought all the presents and made sure none of the bags got lost at any place during the journey.

But once we were back, I noticed a duck-like color pocket diaper in my night table compartment. I didn't pay attention at the beginning, thinking it was a diaper ready for use, but once I took a glimpse of it and saw if it could be put on Tiny Guy on the next change, I noticed it wasn't exactly light and clean.

It was all hard and scrunchy, and the insert, looked so sad and lonely, all wrinkled and yellowish. This is what happens when you leave a synthetic fabric diaper without washing for a week.

FYI, the ugly pocketling is a Fuzzibunz Elite. I usually take extreme care of my natural fiber diapers, but have found out that the non natural are actually, well, fuzzier. They have an incredible advantage over naturals when it comes to drying time and prize, but they are more subject to repelling and stinking than their counterparts.

Anyway, the pocketling went into the dirty diaper bag and got washed with the whole bunch. My washing routine includes a prewash, a hot detergent one and a rinse, followed by an individual hosing with my absolutely priceless high pressure shower hose.

So far, I didn't notice any difference with the other Fuzzibunz that took a bath today, but I've been so excited about a brand new set  that was waiting for me when we arrived, that I haven't used any of them yet (and they're still drying in the rack). But I'm planning on placing the ugly pocketling in the dirty bag for another 2 wash cycles, just to be sure. I'll be posting with the results.

Adventures in sposieland

Between the time I made my last laundry and the moment we came back home it was one week exactly. I calculated one bag for each kid and packed diaper bag and suitcases with them.

I started suffering with the smell almost immediately, and washing diapers that I wouldn 't use for the next 7 days or so wasn't fun or motivating, but it had to be done.

During the trip it wasn't so bad. Of course there was an explosion the very next day that we arrived at our destination and I was fully unprepared to deal with stains. My uncle had to give me some bar soap and I had to leave the baby clothes over 24 hours soaking in the hotel's sink. Besides that, I had a few pee leaks and another explosion that ended up in the bed's sheets (he wasn't wearing clothes at that moment).

And, I know it will sound vague, but I missed how they looked in their diaper outfits. Disposables never will look fancy or trendy, it's like going to a party dressed in china paper. Makes me feel like they are in the hospital and have to get rid of everything they touch.

I tried to look at my options, and if there's a way we can stay in a hotel and CD at the same time. I looked up some diaper services, but the idea of having prefolds from 5 days ago in a bag grossed me out, plus the cost was twice as much as the 2 bags of disposables I got for my boys. I know I could have brought the diapers in the diaper bag, which passes in the plane for free, so that's not a problem, but I don't have any intention of having to bring detergent and having to deal with repelling issues due to the different water. I also thought about disposable inserts, but they're more expensive than the sposies (unless you buy one of those ultra expensive brands) and last but not least: flats! ehhhh, if my mother had seen a flat diaper then she would have had a nervius breakdown, I keep telling her that modern diapers are not what she used when I was a kid and bringing a flat, well, would have presented me as a liar, plus I have very wimpy hands and handwashing hurts them a lot, and the job is badly done. Add to it the lack of space to air dry in a hotel room.

I know I can just give pretexts, but I did enjoy the week off from laundry. It made me appreciate what I have even more and be realistic about how much CD I can do. Remember something, even if you use one single CD a day, within 2 years, it's more than 700 half-pounders that the landfill won't have to deal with, more than 700 possible explosions avoided and more than 1400 hours of breathing the baby's butt is getting.

To Sling or not To Sling?

This post is not about cloth diapers, due to me being on CD brake and travelling.

I'm not a babywearing fan, I actually can't stand the word "babywearing". But, when having a second baby and a very active toddler and living in a small appartment, reality hits you and the need for a carrier becomes mandatory.

I only have a hand me down black Maya sling, black, woven. It took me some time to actually learn how to position it properly, and it is way trickier than regular carriers, but, at the same time, it is very versatile. After finally getting understandint how to use it, it hasn't been as painful and has grown a little on me (can't deny the fact that Tiny Guy likes being on it when I'm moving).

Having said that, and that I never ever use it inside the house, well, I realized it was the best thing to bring on the plane, I already had enough stuff to push to also bring a gigantic stroller as well. I have to say it was a lifesaver, it allowed me to eat during the flight, hold my toddler when he had to be restrained and even chase him around.

I also have to say that, when you are pushing a rollator with a boy on top, a diaper bag in the inner basket and are pulling a carry on suitcase, you feel you're the queen of the world if having an infant on your chest on top of all that.

The trip was way more smooth during the first flight than I had expected, thanks to my love-hate relationship with that pice of fabric. But then, when we were fastening seatbelts for the second flight, a male attendant passed and mandated me to take the baby off the sling for the take-off. He said that device was not allowed during them or landings. WHAAAAAATTTTT?

Of course, my poor husband had to stay there and hear my low volume fist rant and complaint. I just couldn't understand how it was safer for my baby to be held only by my arms, when he could be held by my arms and a tight piece of clothing, and, as you could guess, that takeoff was a nightmare. I was trying to help my husband keep Little Guy in place, who wasn't happy with the whole ordeal, and trying to hold Tiny Guy with my remaining hand, who, by the way, ended up falling asleep in the sling position..without a sling. On top of that, I had left him only in a onezie because he was suffering from hot weather and now he was getting cold.

Finally, once we were on air, I was able, not before waking him up, to place him in his little haven. Of course, since nobody told me to get him out of there, he landed on it and didn't get out until we reached the car and he was placed in an infant car-seat.

Anyway, I turned to my friend Google for some answers and this is what I came up with:

• The safest place for an infant to be in a plane is an infant seat, buckled up to the plane seat, however, that would involve being extremely lucky to find the seat besides you empty or having to buy an extra ticket.
• If option number one is not feasable, the next safest place is the parent's lap, due to the forces that may occur with troubbled landings and take-offs. Baby can get smashed if attached to parent's chest instead of flying around and having a little chance of survival. Having said that, the odds of that happening are so low, that the airlines don't even force parents to do the seat thing in the first place.
• Baby carriers are not designed to support those forces and can rip off, so parent can't be confident that it will do the job of a seatbelt. Again, the odds of something like that occuring are extremely rare.
• United Airlines (I didn't check other ones) prohibits the use of baby carriers inside the aircraft accoding to their written policies, however, they don't enforce it. They will, sometimes, ask you to not use it during takeoff and landing.

In my experience, I did see the sling as a safe place to have the baby during sudden turbulence, which doesn't reach the speed of downfalls and was glad baby was all tight. 

Fast forward 5 days...

I'm back home, with lots of adventures to tell, we are all safe and happy and Tiny Guy is happily wearing his CD's again (and so is Little Guy).

Back for a week

Here I am, back in the old times when I used to change the diaper and toss it. We're going away for Christmas and this is a situation disposables were created for.

I had to do the switch in the middle of the day so that I could wash and leave all my stash clean. I haven't really suffered with Tiny Guy, but oh Dolly! my big one is reminding me every second why I took that decision  So far, he pooped once, I had to toss that thing in the garbage and although most went in the toilet, odor occurs even with the little lines left. After that, I put a new one in. I think it lasted dry some 15 minutes and it started smelling right away, my boy is so stinky I can hardly hug him.

On top of that, he has taken it off about 10 times, leaving it in such condition you can hardly fasten it (yep, it's a pull.up with something velcro-like to adjust the legs)

I had gotten used to just change him and now I feel just as horrible as before, I want to hold onto that thing until he goes to bed and put a new one then.

I know, some cloth diaper advocates are going to call me a coward to switch back for a trip, but I'm not writing here to please them. I' writing about reality and in my complicated life, there's no place or time to do laundry in 6 days, or even space in the plane. This is not about travelling with them, but about having to go back for a few days.

It feels like it was another era, another time, another house. All of a sudden, tons of garbage cumulate within a few hours, and my house stinks again. We'll see how it goes during the trip, have to bring tons of baby clothes it seems.

My Biggest Challenge

There's something that can get on me regarding cloth diapering. Or, at least, did today. I can handle doing laundry every day (my washing machine can't handle more than 8 lbs and between 2 little ones, that volume is reached in less than 48 hrs), doing a manual extra rinse, hosing stools down the toilet, occasional leaks and the extra work of trifolding the prefolds and stuffing the pockets.

That is comparable to trying to get the stools down the toilet unsuccessfully, baby cloth laundry 4 times a day, standing half an hour in a registry to buy diapers because there's a hurricane coming, walking to the dumpster 2 times a day, having to see Shrek and Diego and all types of weird character's faces all day long and the constant headache due to the smell.

What got on me today is this:

Little guy inside his brother's bed playing with my smartphone

I went out to work and he protested by taking all the diapers left already for his daddy to use in his little brother and peed in two of them, and unstuffed the pockets afterwards. He constantly gets the inserts that are drying in the rac and starts playing swords with them, takes his covers off and throws them who knows where and, well, I'm still looking for the flushable liners. On top of that, he had managed to get 3 days of solid waste while I was out and his daddy had left me 2 beautiful souvenirs in the bathroom to hose. What a lovely boy!

My only consolation is the fact that, just before we did the switch, he was spreading around his pull-ups as well and cleaning the floor with them.... So, in the end, going back to the old times wouldn't release me from my Botticelli angel's face little demon.