My Mind Spinning Around Disposable, Flushable, and Cloth Diapers

I've been thinking a lot lately about the $$$ we spend on diapers. (Well, currently we are working off of the stash of size 3's from the diaper shower Connie & Jeannette hosted for us, but you know what I mean. :-)

I've also been thinking about the environment (isn't everyone, at least to some degree, these days?) and the massive number (in the thousands) of Charlotte's diapers that will end up in landfills before she's potty trained. Estimate 6 diapers/day x 365 days x 2 years = 4,380, certainly a low estimate. That is just ONE child. Current statistics say that a disposable diaper takes 500 years to decompose. (But who comes up with these statistics, anyway?)

So, now I spend my evenings (see, its 11:30) contemplating cloth diapering. Now, your basic cloth diaper just sounds like a crazy mess, risking a screaming baby that I've just poked with a "safety" pin. I've basically gathered that a traditionally cloth diapered baby would look something like this:


Then you'd use a waterproof cover over the cloth to keep everything in. (My rudimentary understanding, of course.) I think there are some covers where you can do the folds but forgo the pins. All in all, not so exciting.

But NOW you can buy all-in-one cloth diapers. No folding, no stuffing, just use and wash. Check these out at Bum Genius. Borrowed from the page:


These just LOOK as easy to use as a "sposie." (Things must be going south fast as I pick up terminology used in the cloth diapering world...) Tempting, very tempting. Except for the washing part. Don't I (we) do enough laundry around here already?

But what if we do go this route? Do you do all in ones or do you stuff? I have seen some photos of very cute cloth diapers, but have no clue where to get those. Do you get some of each? While perusing various message boards and websites, I noticed a wide variety of washing instructions - detailed, using baking soda and vinegar in various wash cycles and rinses.

Why does it have to feel so overwhelming when really it should be so easy?

Whole Foods also sells gDiapers that use flushable/biodegradable inserts. These look fairly simple as well:


When Charlotte starts solids, I hope to shift to more organic fruits and veggies to make her meals, so I'll shop there more soon, making procuring these fairly simple.

Did I befuddle everyone's minds as much as I've befuddled my own?

I need sleep.