What I wish I knew then......

I am participating in the cloth diaper blogging carnival about 'what I wish I knew then that I know now'. You are welcome to participate as well. This is the place to share your story. If you haven’t done so already, it isn’t too late. Go ahead and write your story on your blog, and come back here. Use McLinky to add your link, and grab the code to add everyone else’s links to your page.


I love using cloth diapers! There is no doubt about it, cloth diapers have become a big part of our lives. I only wish is that I knew about them sooner and used them with my first 2 babies. I truly had no idea, whatsoever, that cloth diapers still existed. I didn't know anyone that used cloth for many, many months. I was on my own (everyone thought I was crazy), trying to figure out all the in's and out's of cloth diapering, and boy was it overwhelming.

I started using cloth on my 3rd baby when she was around 14-16 months old. I had found cloth diapers on EBay after going there to search for cheaper disposable diapers. I bought a few WAHM made diapers that were horrible and so I swore off cloth all together. A few months later I got sucked into the cuteness of cloth again and decided to give it one more try.


This time I did my research. I read everything that I could on the internet-google became my best friend! My eyes were opened to a whole new world. Who would have known that this huge cloth diapering world even existed? Most of my friends and family still don't understand how great the cloth diapering movement really is. After much googling I found a few more diapers to try, they were awesome, I was hooked. It has been full speed ahead since then.

Halle, (baby #3) potty trained herself (thank you cloth diapers) the month before her little sister Claire, was born. Claire has been in cloth since the moment they fit her (trust me, I checked the fit a few times a day-lol). Claire is now 14 months and I figure that we have about 1 more year to enjoy her little fluffy bum. Even though we are done having babies, I have almost considered another baby just so I could continue having a little fluffy bum....almost-lol. Luckily, my brother and his wife are due to have a baby in November and want to cloth diaper-so I can focus all my fluffy love on them...heehee!


Claire 11 months sporting a Rocky Mountain Diaper.

For more fun Carnival Cloth Diaper posts click here. (blogger is not letting put the carnival links on here for some reason?)

Duo Wrap Giveaway!

We love our best selling Thirsties covers and the Duo Wrap is just icing on the cake. We are thrilled to be giving away a Duo Wrap to one of our Facebook Fans..this giveaway is being hosted on our Fan Page (link on sidebar)....Please stop by for your chance to win!

Cheers!!

Tiny Bubbles Blog Giveaway! Ended

The Natural Baby Company is giving away their new Tiny Bubbles Laundry Detergent. Rules for entering are found below!! I haven't tried this detergent yet but I am hearing great things about it. I will be carrying it in my store soon, but for now here is your chance to try it for free!



Tiny Bubbles
The detergent of choice for cloth diapers and baby apparel.

* Dye & Fragrance Free
* Completely Biodegradable
* Completely Phosphate-Free
* No Optical Brighteners or Fillers
* Gentle for Sensitive Skin
* Low Residue Formula
* Ultra-Concentrated
* Low Cost-Per-Wash
* Recyclable

Safe to use with Gro Baby™ and all other cloth diapers brands. Not tested on animals. No animal by products. ($0.22 per Load)

Phosphate Free - Phosphate detergents are a major cause of pollution in our lakes and streams. Even biodegradable phosphate detergents are harmful to water life. Tiny Bubbles contains no phosphates and is completely biodegradable.

60 Loads - Front Load Washer
Net Wt. 60 Oz. (3.75lbs)

U.S. EPA Designed for the Environment
The Design for the Environment (DfE) Program works in partnership with a broad range of stakeholders to reduce risk to people and the environment by preventing pollution.

Ingredients
Sodium carbonate, Sodium sulfate, Sodium percarbonate, Sodium alkyl aryl sulfonate, Linear alcohol ethoxylate.

Use
Front Load Machines – 1 scoop
Top Load Machines – 2 scoops
Hand Laundry – 1 to 2 teaspoons/basin


To enter this giveaway:
1)Blog about Tiny Bubbles, and MUST include this link http://www.thenaturalbabyco.com/tiny-bubbles-p-732.html

2)MUST be a new blog post on an ESTABLISHED BLOG to be eligible.

3)Email your blog link, name, and address (U.S. addresses only) to customerservice@thenaturalbabyco.com

Contest ends July 20th! U.S. shipping address only.

Leave a comment if you blog about it! I would love to know who is participating :D!

Support Miracle Diapers! Join the Pledge Party!

Miracle Diapers was founded in Oregon in January of 2005 to fill a need. There were many families who wanted to cloth diaper their children for health, economical, and environmental reasons but could not due to financial restrictions. Because of the overwhelming response, Miracle Diapers decided to to open two more chapters by the end of that year. Now, under new management, Miracle Diapers is in their fourth year of service and looks forward to expanding even further, and with our help they can.

"In order to make the permanent move to a new office with attached warehouse, Miracle Diapers, Inc. needs to raise approximately $3000.00 to pay for a year in advance (this will get us the most bang for our buck!) If we are unable to make this move, we will more than likely have to close operations for the summer months due to unbearable working conditions as we are unable to afford to keep our inventory stored for so much money per month."

Here is the link to Miracle Diapers.
Please take a moment to check out this great non-profit organization and help if you can!

FuzziBunz Giveaway! Giveaway Closed and winner announced!

Congratulations Dani V. you were selected our winner (by random.org) of the 3 pack! Thanks for your little bit of wisdom ...
"Diaper wisdom:
Diaper sprayers are way better than dunking your diapers in the toilet. AIO's take forever to dry but are easiest to put on the baby.
One size diapers are best on the budget and if you have more than one kid in diapers. Covers with double gussets hold newborn poo in much better."

I have enjoyed reading all the cloth diaper wisdom and questions. I will be posting all the questions soon for a Q&A session...you are all invited to join in :D.




In collaboration with FuzziBunz we are giving away a 3 pack of Perfect Size Diapers on our blog and a single Perfect Size Diaper (in your choice of in-stock size/color) on our Facebook fan page, so make sure to enter at both sites!

FuzziBunz® boasts, "A better diaper for a better planet". Stay-at-home-mom, Tereson Dupuy, invented FuzziBunz in January 1999 in response to her infant son's chronic diaper rash and her overall dissatisfaction with all available diapers. Tereson stitched the first FuzziBunz in her home and a short time later, the FuzziBunz diapering movement was born. FuzziBunz® are made to stay strong for years and years – saving you money and hassle!

FuzziBunz® diapers are the workhorse of all reusable diapering systems. Made with only the finest and most innovative materials, the stylish three-layered patented FuzziBunz® design works hard to keep your babies' bottoms dry and rash-free… always! I trust and use FuzziBunz in and out of the house. They fit great and are easy to use. I have found that the inner fleece layers stays nice and soft, even when hung out to dry. The colors are beautiful, I especially love the purple daisy print and always get a comment on how cute it is!

Here is your chance to win a 3 pack to get you started in your cloth diaper journey or to add to your current stash. Either way, you can't go wrong, FuzziBunz are here to stay!



To Enter the 3 pack Perfect Size giveaway:

(Leave a separate comment for each entry)
1)leave me a comment giving me a piece of your cloth diaper wisdom or if you have never tried cloth before and there is some burning question you have, ask here.
2)Follow my blog or become a fan on facebook (or both). If you already do these things, leave a comment saying so.
3)Tweet or blog about the giveaway and leave a link to it.

*The blog winner and the facebook winner will be drawn by Random.org on June 30th at 9pm and announced soon after.

Thanks for participating and Good Luck!!

Yay Gro Baby!

I am so happy to report that our shipment of Gro Baby One Size Diapers are on their way! We will be stocked and ready to ship pre-orders by next week!

I have been using the Gro Baby's for a few weeks now and I am really starting to feel the Gro Baby love. I like to pack them with me when I am out and about because they take up less room in my bag.

Have any of you tried the Gro Baby Diaper system? What do you think?

Are Huggies Pure and Natural really Pure and Natural?

I have to admit that when I saw Huggies was coming out with a "Pure and Natural" disposable diaper, I was almost excited. I had a big family vacation coming up and had been trying to figure out how to take my cloth stash along. Cautiously, I thought this might be the answer. Sure they cost and arm and a leg, but they would make my travels easier-and having 4 kids, the oldest being 7, easier is always good.
Well, one day I found a link to try the Huggies Pure and Natural for FREE-I signed up and got my 3 sample diapers in the mail. I was pleasantly surprised to see the outside of the package stating "organic cotton" and "hypoallergenic". I hurried to open my package and dug right in. The kit included 3 diapers and a thick, quart sized, zip top bag decorated with a blue sky and clouds (I think it was maybe a disposable version of a Wet Bag?).
The product description insert quickly brought me back to reality as I read that the 'liner includes renewable materials', it has a 'soft outer cover with organic cotton' and 'less inks'. I was disappointed to find that these diapers were not what I was hoping they would be. Sure it is nice that they are using organic cotton, but it would have been nicer had the organic material been next to my baby's bottom inside of the diaper, not on the outside. I am also happy that it includes renewable materials, but what does that really mean, how much renewable materials does it include? At the very least I am pleased that Kimberly-Clark is 'trying' to be more green, but they still have a way to go.

So...What tips do you have on traveling with cloth diapers? Have you had to fly with them (how did you pack them)? Have you taken cloth camping? Did your MIL let you wash them at her house when you visited? Do you have any experiences that you would like to share?