Part-time Cloth diapering a big baby

I knew I wanted to use cloth diapers years before I had a baby.  I’m frugal by nature and love getting a great deal.  Cloth diapers are better for the environment in the long term, but none of my research described people who want to do it part-time.   I wanted to write this blog to encourage families to use cloth diapers even if it’s only for the weekend. However, I also wanted to give the perspective of what it’s like cloth diapering an above-average child.  My son was twenty-seven pounds at a year old, and I have not seen a blog about outgrowing many one-size cloth diapers.  I hope to answer as many questions as possible about cloth diapering part-time.

Before I begin, let me answer the big question. “What about poop?” I am a loyal diaper liner user.  Even with using a diaper liner, the cost of cloth diapers is cheaper than disposable ones.  You will read in most blogs about people using a sprayer.  My husband and I don’t have the skills to mess with the plumbing in our house.  We used the outside hose occasionally to get rid of poop that went through the diaper liner.   However, the biggest advantage to having cloth diapers for me was no blowouts! When fitted correctly, diapers have no blowouts.

How does the part-time work?  Part-time for me meant cloth diapering Friday night to Sunday or Monday night.  I also used cloth diapers every day during breaks. Spring Break and the summer were easy to use cloth diapers every single day. My mother and husband were not on board with cloth diapering and used disposable when they had my son.  However, after nine months, my mother and husband were willing to at least put dirty cloth diapers away in the hamper.   Cloth diapers shouldn’t be left for more than two days in the hamper, so no matter your schedule it should be planned to wash them within 48 hours.

Do you really save money by cloth diapering? Yes, I pay the water bill, and watering the grass has been the only thing to change the price significantly. You will be using your washer more when you have a baby, one more load that doesn’t use a dryer isn’t going to make a big difference.  Also,  my son had two months where he absolutely hated being wet and needed constant changing. I’m also currently cloth diapering my second son. The upfront cost is an issue, but pocket diapers are extremely affordable.

This is my personal upfront cost breakdown.  I purchased from 2021-2022 so prices will vary, but the cost of disposable diapers has gone up.

September 2021- I purchased a wet bag, a disposable bio soaker pad, two organic cotton soaker 2 packs, and three hybrid diaper shells for $108.

October 2021- I went to my sweet pickles.com and purchased Grovia booster 2 pack, 2 hybrid diaper shells, two soaker pads 2 pack for $67.30

April 2022- I began searching for overnight cloth diapers. I purchased a fitted cloth diaper for $20.99, Grovia booster $12.97, Sweet Bottoms Dream diaper ( my second favorite overnight diaper) and Smart Bottoms overnight insert $12.00 from Amazon.

May 2022- Diaper cover for 8.59 and mighty bubbles doe $14.95

June 2022- I bought a swim diaper and booster from Grovia for $30.

What do I need to get started? 

• You need a pail and a wet bag.  I personally love Dekor because it works for disposable or cloth diapers.  There is absolutely no stink coming out of it for cloth or disposable. You can also use a trash can.  You can get a great price on Amazon Warehouse.

• You need a drying rack. This one from Ikea fits perfectly in my small laundry room and is easy to move outside or to the garage.

• I highly suggest putting cloth diapers on your baby registry.  This will cut down the upfront costs.

• Get used cloth diapers! Many groups are on Facebook, and some companies will sell used cloth diapers. If you don’t want to do used, I would suggest buying 8 cloth diapers to see how you can handle it. 

How did the newborn cloth diaper stage go?  I’m lucky to have not purchased any newborn cloth diapers. One of my friends purchased two from my Amazon baby registry, and another friend gave me several from a buy-nothing group she was a part of.  If you know you are only having one child or most likely having a baby who will be over 7 pounds at birth, I would completely skip buying newborn cloth diapers if being frugal is your main reason for cloth diapering.  My son didn’t fit many of the newborn cloth diapers after a month.  However, my second child was much smaller and able to fit in them longer.

What types worked for having a bigger baby? If I only had to choose one diaper, it would be Grovia’s big one diaper. It was the best overnight diaper I tried and fit my oldest until he was a year old. I wish I had invested in researching smaller cloth diaper companies that made diapers up to 45 pounds. I did end up purchasing some from Texas Tushies, and I wish I had known about them before I started my cloth diaper journey

What would I do differently?

I wouldn’t have bought so many diapers that only went up to 35 pounds. I noticed the thickness of cloth diapers made car seats a nightmare. I didn’t want to adjust the straps when I was in cloth. 

If I were to buy pocket diapers, I would not buy Velcro because they are too easy to rip off once a baby gets bigger.

I would only buy Grovia one diaper because it would be nice not to worry about leaks.

* If you have any questions about cloth diapers, please let me know. I have encouraged one of my friends to try cloth diapers, and I hope many more consider cloth diapering part-time.