What kind of diapers do you use? Are you happy with the choice you made?

I use disposable diapers. I wanted to try cloth but
my husband wanted no part of it. In the end I'm glad we used disposable. I was more attracted to economics of them. But I breastfeed and make my own baby food so the cost of diapers is justifiable.

I have been a single parent since two of my three kids (now teens) were in diapers. One day my kids asked me how many diapers I had changed in my life time. I came up with a very conservative estimate of just over 5,000 (including the oldest child). Their mother wanted to try going the cloth diaper route. The result: piles of unused cloth diapers that were incredibly expensive and now are used for soaking up big spills, like paint. But I think most working parents come to the same conclusion.

My friend is on her third child and decided to go with cloth diapers this time around. She uses a service that picks up the dirty diapers and delivers clean cloth diapers each week. It sounds like a great alternative. Here is the link to the service: http://www.babyschoicediapers.com

I use cloth and am very happy with my choice. It definitely is a bigger upfront cost, but I haven't spent more than $100 on any and all diapering supplies since my son was born and he'll be 3 in June. I don't use a service and do all the laundry myself. Perhaps it does use more water in the cleaning process (although I've got an Eco washing machine that uses a ridiculously little amount of water) but I think that's really the least of the many evils concerning diapering. I've certainly had moments (like when I'm changing his THIRD poopy diaper in a day) when I've wished I could just toss it in the trash can and not deal, but that's just life. The benefits outweigh the hardships.

We have been using the gDiaper system for 2 1/2 years now with our 2 youngest. We have had zero issues with them. We use the cloth inserts during the day and the flush-able inserts at night or when we go out. We are very pleased with the system and could not imagine going back to the old diapers now.

We chose cloth diapers for both of our children. When my husband and I examined the facts behind cloth vs. landfill diapers, the choice was more than clear. We wash at home.. this just takes minutes every other day or two. ***The manufacture and use of disposable diapers amounts to 2.3 times more water wasted than cloth (SEE http://www.realdiaperassociation.org/diaperfacts.php).*** The amount of water used to clean cloth diapers in equivalent to having a potty trained child in the home.
Why else did we choose cloth?....
Cost: The average parent will spend $2,000-$3,000 to diaper just one child in disposables. A newborn will go through approximately 100 diapers per week. An older tot uses about 50-60 diapers per week. With stats stating 1 in 3 families are struggling to provide diapers for their children, these numbers are no laughing matter.
The average cost to diaper in cloth? Approximately $100-$800 (depending on brand and system choice) from birth to potty training! Cloth diapers can save the average family THOUSANDS. When buying gently used the price drops dramatically, as does the impact to our Earth. Cloth dipes can often be reused on multiple children. Many families can then resell gently loved fluff and regain up to 60% of their expense. You can’t say that about a disposable!
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Cont..
Environment: The 7,500 to 9,500 disposable diapers a child uses between birth and potty training don’t just disappear. This adds up to 1 TON of diaper waste per CHILD per year. It is the top contributor to household waste and takes up to 500 years to decompose. Tons of wood, petroleum, water and chlorine are used for production of “disposables”. Out of sight, out of mind may be convenient for the moment; ultimately, we all suffer the collective consequence. The end result? Our landfills will be entirely overflowed, our soil and water saturated with toxic chemicals, and our Earth irreversibly polluted.

Health: Disposables can contain dioxin (a carcinogen), sodium polyacrylate (found to cause toxic shock syndrome when FORMERLY used in tampons), and Tributyl-tin (TBT) (a hormonal causing pollutant). Not a pretty concoction to stick on delicate baby 24/7. Cloth diapers are made of natural fibers. What parent wouldn’t feel great having cotton, hemp, or bamboo wrapped around their precious bundle? Independent studies have shown the skyrocketing increase in diaper rash over past decades. In 1955 prevalence was at 7% and by 1991 up to 78%!! (http://www.diaperpin.com/clothdiapers/article_diaperdrama2.asp)

I use cloth and I think it's great. I don't find it time consuming at all and no I am not a stay at home mom. I think it is super easy. I use a Miele HE washer set on the regular cycle so I don't believe its using that much extra water or energy to run 2 extra loads a week. I didn't even notice an increase in our water or electric bill. I line dry everything. I used disposables for a week on vacation and will never use them again. They were so disgusting. The smell terrible even straight out of the box and poop always leaked out of them. I seriously don't know how people use them.

I have two in cloth and i chose cloth because i couldnt imagine putting that many disposables into landfills...it made me queezy. i use ragababes, happy heinys, bum cheeks, chelory's and charlie bananas. i enjoy cloth diapering...i like how cute the diapers are. the colors and prints are seriously cute! I would save money if i found the diaper that is perfect for me but i have a feeling with as many as i have tried i havent saved $:( but it has been a fun ride! i wouldnt change it for anything!

I work full time outside of the house and have a 40 min commute each way. I don't find diaper laundry a big deal what-so-ever. I wash every 2 days but have a stash big enough that I don't have to fold/prep them more than once or twice a week, which I do while sitting on the floor while my baby is playing. Laundry takes a total of maybe 5-10 mins, including time to hang them to dry. Diaper laundry to me is so much easier than having to worry about buying disposables. I truly believe CDing is a personal choice though and the laundry may overwhelm other working mamas. I just wanted to provide a counter arguement to the comment "Staying on top of diaper laundry, which, obviously, is not washed with anything else, is a huge chore, especially with a full-time job outside the home." :)

I work full time as well and have a 2 hour commute each way, so I spend about 12 hours a day (often times more) away from home. I do diaper laundry every 2-3 days (I just don't like them sitting for too long), and I don't find it to be time consuming or a pain at all. Sometimes I get mad if I forget I put a load in, and have to stay up to switch them to the dryer/hang to dry so they don't sit overnight and get stinky, but it's a small price to pay. And hey, I have a 6 month old.. I don't sleep all night anyway! :) I'm happy we chose cloth! Stuffing isn't too bad either. I do it while watching tv or just throw it in randomly while I'm cooking dinner/talking on the phone or watching the baby play!

I hope that people who are on the fence about trying read through the positive comments here, because I think it's very helpful to hear from people from both ends of the spectrum!

I think I finally get what Patch is all about. Nothing wrong with it, but a bit misleading. At least I finally know. Patch is about baby poop and diapers.