Guest Blogger: Working Moms CAN Cloth Diaper!

When my husband and I first told people that we were going to switch from disposable diapers to cloth diapers, most people responded with, “You’re going to do what?!” We were told that we wouldn’t last a month and that it was dirty, hard and too time consuming. At the time, I was staying home with our daughter who was 7 months old. Once we got a washing routine down, diaper laundry was easy and, in a weird way, relaxing. We continued this way for about 8 months. At that time, I got a job offer and we moved two hours away. I went from being home to working 40 hours a week. Those same people who told me we wouldn’t last a month just knew that I would definitely quit cloth diapering when I went back to work. I was also told that it was impossible to find a daycare that would use cloth diapers. Luckily, I went back to work at a daycare center and my daughter went with me. I was hesitant to ask the director about bringing cloth diapers because of everything I’d heard. When I did ask she responded with, “That’s not a problem at all! We actually have two other kids who use cloth diapers as well.” What a relief that was! All we had to do was bring in a wet bag and make sure we took the dirty diapers home with us at the end of the day. Easy! The laundry routine when I was staying home vs. working was no different. We continued to do diaper laundry every two days. I would throw the dirty diapers in as soon as we got home to rinse and then I’d start supper. Before we ate supper, I’d start washing them. I’d rinse them again before we put our daughter to bed and throw them in the dryer before we went to bed. In the morning all I had to was stuff the few that we’d need for daycare and throw them in the diaper bag. It took no more time than when I was staying home. When we had to eventually switch our daughter to another daycare I was worried again about finding a daycare that would be okay with the cloth diapers. I’ll tell you that not a single daycare we called said they would have an issue with them. My advice when it comes to finding a daycare who will take the cloth diapers is to take in some easy to use pockets or AIO’s and SHOW them! I really think when people hear “cloth diapers” they think only of prefolds, pins and rubber pants. Everyone we showed exclaimed over how cute they were and that they were great! Don’t let anyone tell you that working full-time and cloth diapering just won’t work. It will! Heather (who was also our very first Mom of the Month!) lives in Nebraska and has a 2 1/2 year old daughter, Madelyn.