Cloth Diapers - Newborn Stash

***Warning: Long and boring if you don't give a shit about cloth diapers ***

Seth and I decided that we want to use (or at least try) cloth diapering. I've had a few friends do it and thought it seemed like a great idea, so as soon as Seth starting asking questions about it I started taking the idea more seriously. After spending butt loads of time researching and reading reviews, we decided it was worth a shot. I guess our main reason is that it can save us a lot of money especially if we use CDs for more than one child. The environmental benefits are a nice bonus too.

I wanted to share our plans in case anyone else is or is planning to use cloth diapers (I know you're out there Packer!). For the newborn stage, we're going to be using mostly cotton prefolds and fitted diapers. Prefolds are just the classic old-fashioned diaper that people often use for burp cloths. There are a bunch of ways you can fold them, they're easy to care for and they're one of the most affordable options. Fitteds are just like prefolds, except they're already folded and sewn into the shape of a diaper so they're less work. Those are a little more expensive (but still a great deal, depending on brand and material) so I have less of those. I figured they would be good for middle of the night changes. Both prefolds and fitteds need a waterproof cover so we have a bunch of those in a range of sizes.

After the baby is large enough to fit in the one-size (adjustable to fit from infant to toddler) diapers, I'm hoping to use the all-in-two (AI2) Best Bottoms system. These diapers seem so awesome to me - you just snap the absorbent insert into the waterproof cover. When it's time to change the diaper, you just change the insert as long as the cover isn't soiled. I like this option because it's more affordable (you get several changes for the price of an all-in-one single-use diaper) and I think it will be convenient for when we're out of the house since the inserts fold up nice and small and we won't need to bring a new cover for every change.

So here's what I have for now (left to right, top to bottom):

18 Newborn Prefolds (orange edge - Nicki's Diapers)
12 Small Prefolds (yellow edge - Green Mountain Diapers)
~45 cloth wipes
6 Small Hemp inserts for Best Bottoms covers
2 All-in-ones (white and elephant - Imagine)
4 Best Bottoms one-size covers with snaps
12 Newborn Fitteds (orange - GMD)
6 Small Fitteds (yellow - GMD)
3 Thirsties Newborn covers with aplix/velcro
3 Thirsties Size 1 covers with snaps (up to 17 lbs. I think)

(Not pictured: Two hanging wet bags, two small wet bags for diaper bag, fleece liners for stay-dry feeling, CJ's Butter samples...I forget what else)

If we like the Best Bottoms system, we'll stock up on the large size inserts once Baby grows out of everything else. I bought those two AIOs just to see if we like them, but I have a feeling we won't. They're super cute, but super bulky. I imagine they'll take a long ass time to dry too. I also think I'd like to invest in a few more fitted diapers in a larger or adjustable size for when the baby is sleeping for longer periods of time overnight. The prefolds can be used inside a fitted for extra absorbency at night which is nice.

So I'm pretty pumped about our plans for now. I think we have a lot of great options and I'm really hoping that it's not that challenging. The biggest issues that I anticipate are 1) finding diapers that fit our baby well and 2) making sure I figure out a good wash plan with our washer and water type. Hopefully it doesn't take me too long to get the hang of this!

If you are cloth diapering or if you plan, I'd love to hear your ideas and/or advice!