Cloth Diapers

So as I am slowly attaining a "chemical-free" home, I got interested in cloth diapers. I have a few reasons for wanting to make the switch:

1. Save Money: We spend a ridiculous amount of money on diapers every month. Close to $150 a month.
2. Long-Term Health: I have read several articles on the things that are in disposable diapers and the potential long term risks to your children for using them. Some studies suggest that disposable diaper usage can be linked to reproductive problems in children later on down the road! Yikes!
3. Short-Term Health: Usually when you use cloth diapers you have less diaper rash and irritated skin.

SOoOoo after much research and advice from friends and family, I decided to go with the Charlie Banana  diapers! They are made with organic material, and have a disposable insert option (which I have not tried).I have only been using them for 1/2 week so I can't give a very good review yet... but I will share how it's going so far!

• Hand washing: Yes, I am hand washing all the diapers at the end of the day. Call me old fashioned, but I am NOT wanting to spend $3 a day to wash all these diapers. I would rather spend 15 minutes at the end of my day scrubbing. 

Here is how I do it: I have a bucket with baking soda and laundry soap in it. After each wet diaper, I rinse out most of the pee in the tub and put it into the bucket to soak. After each soiled diaper I plop the poop into the toilet and rise off as much poop as I can, then place it in the bucket. At the end of the day I fill the tub with some soap and hot water and let the diapers soak a little more, then scrub them all, rinse them and hang them to dry over night. Twice a week I will put them all in the washer machine for a good wash. 

• Leaking?: Negative! :) Cloth diapers seem to be MUCH better at this then disposables! My Target brand disposable diapers would leak almost all the time. Poop staying in the diaper? Forget about it! But with my cloth diapers I haven't had a problem with this at all (unless I didn't adjust the tightness of the diaper well enough, which is my fault). 
• On the Go: I just need to carry many plastic bags in my diaper bag and try to change poopy diapers in the bathroom so I can plop the poop into the toilet before bagging. 

It's OBVIOUSLY a lot more work to do cloth (especially if you don't have your own washing machine... but I think the benefits FAR outweigh the cons. Besides the Bible says that we are to be "busy at home" or "homemakers" and what better way to bless my children and husband then to save us money and affect their health? 

I love it. I love pretty much all things old fashioned. Baking my own bread. Making every meal from scratch. Juicing my own fruit/veggie juice. Heck, if I could sew, I would make my own cloth diapers!