7 Cloth Diapering Myths

7 Myths Cloth Diapering Myths

As my love for cloth diapering grew the more comfortable I was talking about it. Sadly, in my conversations I found major myths were hindering families from using cloth diapers. 

So I think it's time to squash these myths once and for all!!! 

Myth 1- 

Washing cloth diapers will takes hours to do and I already don't have time for laundry. 

Reality-

Washing cloth diapers take no real extra time. It's literally one load of laundry. The simple fact is we all have laundry to do its a part of life and it has to be done. Wash routines for cloth diapers are not all that elaborate, and depending on the size of the load it should really only take you about an hour or two! 

Myth 2- 

My house will smell like ammonia and or poop!

Reality-

Your house will not smell! In fact anyone who uses a diaper pail knows those pails can get pretty smelly. When you cloth diaper you will use a sealed wet bag to hold your soiled diapers in, and put poop where it goes, in the toilet!!!

Myth 3-

I don't want to use those diapers and pins with plastic covers my grandma used.

Reality- 

Cloth diapers have changed in a major way in the last 15-20 years. You can go "old school" if you like and use those type of cloth diapers, however their are now tons of easy to use affordable options for every family! This includes a hybrid cloth diaper. (This is a diaper that is cloth on the outside but uses a chemical free, biodegradable absorbent layer that just goes right in the toilet!) 

Myth 4-

Cloth diapers will leak.

Reality-

Babies come in all shapes and sizes and so do cloth diapers. If you get the right cut, with the right fit for your baby, and use the correct system for your family you should have no issues with leaks! 

Myth 5- 

Cloth diapers cost way to much money! 

Reality- 

It might seem that way because you have to get your cloth diaper stash (about 20-30 diapers) all at once in the beginning. Remember you will use these diapers more than once and possibly with more than one child. So looking at the bigger picture you will be spending a lot less than buying pack after pack of "one use only" disposables. Let's not forget gas savings, because when you cloth diaper you don't have to make special trips just to buy diapers. "Ain't nobody got time for that!"

Myth 6-

It will give my baby a rash.

Reality-

Most rashes come about because of a combination of things such as; chemicals, non-breathable material, moistness, and baby chemistry. When you cloth diaper you eliminate just about all those factors! In fact when you use natural materials like wool you are adding a helping factor. (Wool is slightly antibacterial.)

Myth 7-

I will have to change my baby's diaper more often. 

Reality-

How often you change your baby is up to you and well your baby too. Some babies are heavy wetters and need to be changed every couple of hours while some are not and you can go a few hours without a diaper change. This rings true for disposables and for cloth diapers. 

Myths squashed!

I really hope I cleared up some of the myths and the stigma surrounding the cloth diapering world! Give it a try! Who knows you just might love it!!! We sure do!!! So much so I could just sing about it!!!

(Picture from DrMomma.org) Check out this peaceful parenting blog. 

Thoughtfully,

ecoCouture Baby

7 Things a New Mother Should Know

7 things every new mother should know! 

Per request of a soon to be new mother an ecoCouture Baby fan wanted to know, how it will be having a newborn?

So here is a list of 7 things that you should always keep in mind. 

1- You Are a NEW Mother 

Yup that's right you are new at this, so don't expect to have all the answers or to even really be prepared. Every baby is different with different needs. Also every family is different with different ways of parenting. You know the old joke our parents use to say "you didn't come home with an instruction manual." Well, it's true you didn't and well babies don't. You kind of just figure it out along the way. And above all if your doing your best then you are being the best mother! Which brings me to number 2.

2- Do You Boo

Everyone and I mean EVERYONE will give their two cents and advise on what works for them or what worked for their baby. But ultimately do you. My advice however, is to be open. Open to hear new things, and try new things. How do you know if it will work unless you give it a whirl. Bringing us to number 3!

3- Not All Negative Tales Are Truly Negative

What I mean by this is, if someone had a bad experience with a product or method that does not mean you will. In fact in my own experience I have found many times one persons bad perspective was brilliantly a God send for me. 

3- Brestfeeding is HARD

Anyone who has ever breastfed will probably agree it takes FULL COMMITMENT and DEDICATION. It's not easy, at first it hurts, your more hungry and thirsty. It takes up all your time. You have to make sure you wear breastfeeding clothes like always. You will be feeding around the clock, and yes you are on a 24 hour breastfeeding schedule. Now with all that being said you need support. Tell people who will be around you that this is something you are wanting to do and it's important to you and the baby that you are supported. Example for me it was just to much for me to breastfeed and wash and dry all the pump stuff too, all while taking care of my baby. So my husband did that among other things. Ask for support because you will need it. Also, know their are some who no matter how much they want to breastfed they just don't produce enough milk. Don't give up give a good try for a month while supplementing and if you can't at lease you tried and their is no shame in that!

4- Don't Stress About The Mess

You will find by day 7 or 8 your whole house will be turned inside out ,heck you might be turned inside out. But its ok your main focus is your baby, and it should be. However, find time to take a bath or shower because something so simple will make you feel like a million bucks. But keep in mind things that take you 30 minutes to do now (like change a diaper and outfit) will soon take you 5 minutes. So don't worry you will get back to normalcy!  

5-Give Yourself a Break

Everyone knows you are new at this, including your baby. So if he/she cry they don't hate you your not a horrible mother.(your hormones can make you feel that way)  You are just a NEW one. And soon enough you will be able to figure out what every sound and cry means and tend to their needs with out even thinking twice. With that being said...

6- Keep Track, Take Notes, Lots of Pictures

Yes, keep a log of when baby peed, poo'd, burped, ate, slept and for how long. You will not be able to remember your brain will be tired so write it all down for reference. It's not forever but do it till you feel confident and know your babies quarks, needs, and wants. Take notes on your baby when they first looked at you, smiled ect again with sleep deprivation don't rely on your once iron clad memory.  Also, take lots of pictures a day I mean lots, like 100s. You will be so happy you did when you get to their first birthday and can look back on the days that are just a blur by then. And finally...

7- Enjoy That Baby

Make sure among all the chaos that you stop and enjoy your baby. Kiss, hug, snuggle, and love on that baby! Enjoy the moment. Stop and recognize the milestones, look at the little differences of your baby everyday. Why rush them to grow up. Enjoy the age and stage they are at now, this is such a short time in their life and you should enjoy every moment of it. You will have your favorite stage of course, but every stage is different and important and should be recognized and enjoyed. 

I hope this eases some new mothers minds and helps them gain confidence in there mothering abilities! 

Thoughtfully, 

ecoCouture Baby

Say yes to the CLOTH!

Say yes to the CLOTH! 

5 Basic Reasons To Switch to Cloth Diapers

I often get asked, "why did you choose to use cloth diapers on your son?" Simple, I did use disposables for a quick minute but after a few acid type rash burns my son had we made the switch. So now the real question is why not?

1- MONEY

Plain and simple it's a real money saver. Now at first it might not seem like your saving money while you are try

building up your stash and cloth diaper accessories. I promise you are!

Let's look at the big picture shall we!

The Breakdown

The average baby are in diapers till about 2-3 years of age. Now the first year on average babies go through about 8 diapers a day, that's 2,920 diapers just in the first year alone. As the baby gets older the number of diapers a day on average drops slightly to about 6 diapers a day based on a potty trained child by 3 that another 4,380 diapers for a grand total of 7,300 diapers. Now all you have to do is take that number and figure what you spend on disposables. You will be shocked!

2- ECO-FRIENDLY

 Not sure if you heard but we all need to be proactive and save on Mother Earth. Not just for us but for our children and our children's children. Let's dig deeper into why though.. 

How about, it takes 500 years for ONE disposable diaper to breakdown in our landfills. Huh!?! For reals? 

Yes 500, so pretty much never. 

3- HORRIBLE NASTY CHEMICALS 

Yes that right chemicals. I dare you to cut open a disposable diaper and look inside better yet smell inside. Ahhh... Smell that, that's Polyacrylic acid this is the absorbent chemical used in disposables.  Moving on to dyes used to add color to disposables have been shown to cause allergic reactions resulting in rashes. Also dioxin, comes from bleaching wood chips. So just remember skin is porous and soaks up what is on it. (More chemicals listed below)

4- REUSE THEM♻️

Yup that's right if properly taken care of you can use a stash of cloth diapers again. 

"Say whaaaat!" Yes again with another future baby! So the cost will be close to nothing for the 2nd & 3rd time around! 

5- THE COUTURE FACTOR

I mean come on, how cute are those little fluffy bums you see on your news feed or Instagram. So darling right? So much fun and a bit addicting! So worth the extra load of laundry I think! 

Now don't get me wrong I understand for some, crossing over and saying yes to the cloth might not be for you and your family and that's okay but I encourage you to find disposables that are a little bit more eco-friendly and less chemicals than the typical brands. 

However, if you do decide to give it a go just know your wallet, baby's bum and Mother Earth will be happy you did! 

Thoughtfully, 

ecoCouture Baby

Journey Into Cloth Diapering

Journey into Cloth Diapering

Part 1

What do you think of when you hear "cloth diapers?" I'm sure it's not what you think! 

Now as I stated in my last post the idea to go with cloth diapers was pretty much made for me. However, I was still reluctant to it. I heard nothing but old facts, and horror stories, and let's just say navigating through the internet to try to find current information can be a bit overwhelming especially if you have no clue where to even began. But I knew I had to do it, I had to jump right into the deep in of the cloth diapering world to give my baby's bum serious refuge  from  disposables. 

I will be the first to tell you my first mistake was asking my elders for help,(not so good) not because they were not wise but because their perspective was outdated and things had changed drastically over the last 10,20,30,40,50+ years. 

SO DON'T DO THAT! "Hey, don't do that!"

My second mistake was letting everyone who was negative and judgmental voice their two cents in my decision this included society (who by the way just don't get and probably never will) get in my head. 

My third mistake was assuming their was only one type of cloth diapers available. Again, so very wrong. (So many brands, cuts, styles, prints,ect. something for everyone!) 

Um, yeah I will not sugar coat it "going cloth" is a journey, one that takes patience, support and knowledge. However, once you figure it out you will be asking yourself why did I wait so long. Remember diapers are not forever, so you only get a short while to dress up those fluffy bums. Take it from me with potty training around the corner I feel a sort of sadness that soon I won't be getting fluff mail anymore or dressing up my handsome in just a hipster tee and matching diaper to run around it.

So, take the plunge, dive right in! 

(Cute T-Shirt from Spray-pal.com) 

For cloth diaper YouTube videos, more information and to contact me please visit. www.ecocouturebaby.com 

Remember to follow me so you don't miss out on latest info, ebooks, and future giveaways! 

Thoughtfully, 

ecoCouture Baby 

How surviving the NICU changed me

I thought I would start this blog with a trip back in time,19 months back to be exact. I found myself coming into my own as a new mother in the most unlikely of places, the NICU. 

There I gained life experience that only a select few can attest to. I saw my whole pregnancy flash before my eyes while I stood over a clear box that was keeping my tiny 2 pound 6oz son alive. 

With no explanation, still to this day I gave birth to a 29 week old baby. Yup, a 29 weeker that's 11 weeks premature. In the moments they whisked him away I knew who I was would not be the same, a change in me happened. All the ideals of who I was and what kind of mother I would be went right out the window, along with the last 3 months of my pregnancy. I just was not ready, and felt like I failed in someway. 

However, I did not have fear. I never really was afraid that we would loose him i guess that's the optimistic in me. I knew that my son was a fighter, a strong being, a force to be reckon with. A mother just knows. 

Mostly, I wondered how I would care for this tiny person?

 Luckily, I have a wonderful husband and a amazing support system. However, you can't help but feel somewhat alone and isolated. I knew for my child to get strong and thrive I had to be strong and thrive. So I focused my energy on being a mother to my son even though he was in the NICU. Being his advocate because he could not be his own. 

Things were introduced to me that I had not even really began to think about (I still had time right....ha yeah sure I did.) Like kangaroo care, a form of babywearing.

This is where I not only fall in love with the closeness and bonding this provided but I was able to see the real science behind the medical benefits and watched how by doing this it helped my baby grow.

I knew I wanted to breastfed, but did not really gather the concept of how important breastfeeding is for the health and wellbeing of your child. They don't call it liquid gold for nothing! These few things opened a gateway into eco-style of parenting not only for myself but for my husband too. 

Do you remember that TIME magazine back in early 2012? It was about attachment parenting. Well I do and I will be the first to tell you that I was like "no way will my kid breastfed for that long, ya right never will we co-sleep!" Well never say never! Now come to find later we would not only co-sleep we would bed-share as well! Honestly, my husband and I have to just laugh at ourselves because of how silly we were thinking we knew it all before the baby even came to be in this world.

When baby came home our journey was far from over into eco-parenting, we found that our aka "Mr. Hollywood" aka "Linus" (baby's nicknames) was very sensitive skinned and was getting full on acid burns from disposable diapers. Que in cloth diapers!! Full on ecoCouture Baby!! 

Although my husband was not 100% on board at first he knew we had no options and quickly loved the $$$$ savings and clear baby bottom. Well, let's just say for me it was love at first fluffy butt!

So, at this point their was no denying it I crossed over into the natural world and I fully embraced it!     

Don't get me wrong I'm not a hardcore 'Attachment Parent' extremist, more power to you if you are! However I think for sure I fall within the guidelines (if any) in the community. I don't know are their guidelines? Maybe not, huh? I wonder if their are guidelines? Well, guidelines or not I do feel apart of that community but still have my own identity! 

Thoughtfully, 

ecoCouture Baby