Throughout my cloth diapering career our family has experienced circumstances and phases that have dictated our ability to use (or not to use) cloth diapers. There have been seasons of all cloth all the time, seasons of disposable dependence, and seasons of both (cloth at home and disposables on the go).
I read Jenn's recent post about families struggling to buy disposable diapers and sometimes choosing between buying diapers and food. Providing Econobum to needy families is really exciting. It got me thinking. I know that using cloth diapers saves money. I know that an Econobum Full Kit costs less than $50. I know that Econobum is easy to use and wash. What I didn't know was about the ease of transition for a family switching from disposables to Econobum. So, on Thanksgiving weekend I set out to compare the use of 1 Econobum Full Kit to our typical use of disposables during the busy Holiday season.
My husband works full time; I work full time from home and we have six awesome children. Our house is always bustling (read noisy and probably messy). Our extended family is large and active. Beginning with Thanksgiving and ending with New Years Day we spend weekends going from one celebration to the next. During the weekdays in between our house is in recovery mode.
I am now in the third week of my self-induced Econobum Challenge. I have added 2 Flip Stay Dry Inserts for overnight use because my son has very sensitive skin. I am washing a small load of cloth diapers every morning. I had anticipated that this might be a problem and leave me with no diapers if I got behind on laundry. But something quite the opposite has happened. The daily routine actually has left me victorious in the taming of the laundry volcano! Another unexpected positive has been the lack of diaper pail (or trash can) stink. Econobum has accompanied us on several all-day outings. I was even able to change a diaper on my lap in the front seat of the car while out Christmas shopping. I have been pleasantly surprised with the absorbency of the pre-fold and the cover has contained some serious power poopies.
So far, I would say that Econobum has stood up to the convenience factor of disposables. But alas, there are still a few weeks left in this delightfully busy Christmas season so we will see what I have to report nearer to the end of my Econobum Challenge.
How does your family handle diapering during busy, hectic, or stressful times?
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