my new favorite money-saver...

If someone would have asked me as I was preparing for Miriam's arrival what I thought about cloth diapering, I probably would have made a face and kindly explained that we would be sticking to disposable diapers. Thankyouverymuch. And that's just what we did... for two years. We were actually quite blessed to receive about nine to ten months worth of diapers as gifts, so I didn't really think twice about cloth diapering. When we finally needed to start buying our own diapers, I would read baby blogs and find the best deal on diapers for the week and then pair it with a store coupon and manufacturer's coupon and occasionally get a store gift card with my purchase. It really didn't bother me too much because I felt like I was doing my best to get a really good deal on diapers. I also occasionally used store brands -but only when I didn't have coupons or there really wasn't anything else on sale. I found out rather quickly that store brand diapers were cheaper for a reason.

Then, I met Amber... a young mom like myself who had a daughter that shares a birthday with Miriam. She also happens to run her own cloth diapering business right out of her home about 2-3 miles from our house! I was still rather skeptical about cloth diapers when she first told me about her business, but I kept it in the back of my mind. I also didn't really think it was the best timing to switch Miriam to cloth diapers when she was already two and we were working on potty training. However, when we found out about the arrival of our new little one, I decided I wanted to give cloth diapering a shot this time around. So, last October, we took the plunge into this foreign world of cloth diapers... and won't ever turn back!

I started out by purchasing a dozen all-in-one pocket diapers for Miriam. I thought this was the best thing to get for her until she was done potty training because I can also use them for our baby when she is born. They have a slick little elastic band on the sides that tightens to fit a baby's size. Amber sells a variety of pocket diapers, but we decided to go with FuzziBunz. So far, we've been very impressed. It took us a little bit to find the right size for Miriam (to prevent any leaks), but overall we've really liked them. And, the best part is... we've already almost "paid" for our diapers by what we would have spent on store brand diapers in the mean time (and pocket diapers are usually the most expensive kind of diapers)!

Just last week, I finished off my purchases of diapers for when baby comes. In addition to the pocket diapers we use for Miriam (that will also be used for baby), we will be using prefolds with a cover. I can't comment on how those work quite yet as I haven't used them, but I think with a little practice, we'll catch on. We also purchased a handy dandy diaper sprayer that can attach to our toilet and help deal with some of the more disasterous diapers that come our way.

Overall, I am really excited about cloth diapers! I never thought I'd be saying that. I was afraid of doing too much laundry, dealing with awful messes and being stuck when I go out and about. The laundry isn't bad at all. It's so easy to throw the diapers in; usually it's just an extra load every other day or so. The messes? Mmmmm... sometimes not so fun, but we deal with it. It's actually not as bad as I thought. And going out and about... sometimes I still do stick to my good 'ol disposables. I do need disposables for our church nursery and sometimes also pack a few if we're running errands. We also have a few "wet bags" which can easily hold a dirty cloth diaper if necessary. Both options work great.

So, that's my take on cloth diapering... it's so much easier than I thought and such a huge money saver. Plus, it really helps that I have a friend so close by that I can buy everything I need from! She also has a wonderful website for my non-Wisconsin friends that use cloth diapers. It just goes to show you that you never know how something will work until you just try it!