The EcoChic

Why is it that you appreciate the comforts of home so much more when you are away?  We’ve been out of town for 5 days now and I miss my bed, my pillow, my cat! 

Luckily the family and I got to visit Disney again on Sat/Sun before I had to attend a training class in Orlando this week.  They came back home Monday and I got home tonight.  This trip was a little different than normal…

We traveled with our cloth diapers!!!  That’s right, we took our stash with us to a hotel for more than a day!  Here is what I had planned (followed by how it worked out!):  1) Friday night I washed our stash and put Lil’ B in her GroBaby diaper with BioSoaker, and 2) packed a combination of BioSoakers and Bum Genius.  I was hoping to make it easier on my husband so he wouldn’t have to do a ton of wash as soon as he got home on Monday. 

Unfortunately my plan didn’t work out as planned BUT it worked…Lil’ B pooped in her GroBaby Friday night and got some debris on the cover so I couldn’t take the only GroBaby cover I had with us!!!  But I wanted to try the BioSoakers in other diaper covers to see how well they worked so I wasn’t too scared.  I packed about 15 Bum Genius too; just in case something went wrong!  (Old faithful has never done me wrong!)  

We drove to Orlando and spent the first part of the day watching our GA Bulldawgs play football at a local sports bar then we went to check in to the hotel.  Since Lil’ B was in red I put her in her Happy Heiny which is red along with a BioSoaker and the system worked well.  Unfortunately after the second change the BioSoaker has bunched up and the HH cover was damp.  I didn’t really care too much since I had plenty of BG covers and we were headed to the Magic Kingdom anyways (change in clothes was needed to stay warm!).

I packed my diaper bag with a few of each…a few BioSoakers and a few BGs…you never know what’s going to happen, right?  At the first diaper change I noticed a slight problem…the BioSoaker sticky pad was not removing from the BG cover!  OMG…my precious BGs!!  Not only were they not removing from the BGs the fecula backing split open and the inside of the diaper was exposed…luckily it didn’t make a huge mess.  Since I already ‘messed’ with this BG cover I stuck another BioSoaker on it for the next few hours.  The damage was already done at that point.  This continued the rest of the evening until we got back to the hotel again. 

I then removed the BioSoakers from our rotation for the weekend and went back to regular BGs with the inserts (we use the 3.0 one size pockets).  The next day at Epcot I packed 4 BGs in the diaper bag and we were off.  I have to say it felt much more ‘normal’ to me to use the BGs as intended.  My bag was a little more full with the stash but so much easier.  Thankfully we didn’t have any poop-plosions while at Epcot to deal with though!!!!  That was my worst fear was having to carry that around all day with me! (UCK!!)

Hubby went home on Monday afternoon and had just enough BGs to make it home with.  Luckily I left a few behind so he has some at home to use too.  Then it happened…

My hubby had to wash his first load of cloth diapers EVER!  Now…my hubby is an awesome husband and father but I try to keep control over some aspects of cloth diapering so he won’t complain…one of those is the wash!  Not only do I not want to hear about all the water used for washing the diapers…I also don’t want anyone else to be responsible for washing our stash wrong.  Honestly you really can’t mess them up and he has heard me talk about the wash routine so much I don’t know what I was worried about.  I left him verbal directions and gave him a choice of detergents (RockinGreen Soap or EcoNuts…his choice!!).  He called me after he finished the wash to make sure he did it right…funny that he didn’t call me before though!  Everything sounded like it went well.  I got home a little while ago and the diapers are all neatly stacked in Lil’ Bs room, fully stuffed, ready to use again.  Thanks babe for all that you do…

In the morning I will inspect the BG that was potentially damaged in the BioSoaker incident and let you all know the outcome.  The worst case scenario is that the cover will have a sticky residue in two places…at least it’s only one cover and I can pass along the warning to all of you.  If you are going to be using the BioSoakers use them with the GroBaby shell only…or accept the outcome!  I love our GroBaby system and will write up my formal review tomorrow…the good and the bad! 

The other thing that was different this trip was the absence of my ancient Medela electric pump…which croaked last Thursday!  It’s seriously over 6 yrs old and I’m surprised it still works at all.  Because I didn’t want to play around with it and attempt to fix it I purchased a manual pump on Friday.  With Lil’ B being 9 months now I don’t really see the need for investing in another electric pump…this is my last baby and I don’t have much time left on our breastfeeding journey.  I only needed to use the pump Monday afternoon through this afternoon…a full 2 days…how bad could it be?

…did I really just ask that question?  It’s soooo NOT fun to use a manual pump!  I’m so spoiled with my electric pump that I was not ready to pump for 40 minutes and still not get all the milk out!  And think about it…all that pumping hurts your arms after a while…I guess that’s what it’s like to be a guy! (((LOL!)))  Anyways, today was the worst day because I didn’t want to pump at all since it was taking so long.  I got home around 7pm and I was about to explode!  Lil’ B ate a few small snacks but didn’t really empty the milk factory yet.  Is it wrong that I want to wake her up again when I’m done writing?  I guess tomorrow I will take apart Mr. Medela and see if I can’t fix the electric pump so I will stop cussing at this stupid manual pump! 

And on that note…I’m going to go check my email, Twitter, and Facebook one more time and log off for the evening.  Sleep tight!  (Of course most of you will be reading this until the morning so Good Morning!!!)

In honor of the Cloth Diaper Carnival Part Deux I thought I would share my wash routine.  As you probably know by now there is no exact science and no perfect way to wash your cloth diapers.  I would imagine that each of the participants in this carnival will have a slightly different routine. 

For me I try not to stress out too much about my routine.  I have a (few) system that works and I try not to mess it up.  My wash routine begins after each diaper change.  I still haven’t invested in a diaper sprayer so I rinse my diapers briefly in the sink (or toilet if really nasty) so that my diaper pail doesn’t stink up the bathroom.  I then wring them out and place them in my diaper pail.  My diaper pail is actually a plastic tub that sits next to the toilet.  I do this with each and every diaper until wash day.  (Except for when I’m really busy or tired and I just toss it in the pail without rinsing…but I try to rinse them within the day.)  Oh yeah, and don’t forget that if you are using Bum Genius diapers that you need to attach the Velcro to the laundry tabs at this stage.

After about two days I start running out of diapers so the wash cycle begins.  I run one cold water rinse cycle without any detergent to remove the pee and poop.  Next I add the detergent and start a hot/cold wash cycle.  I don’t have too many diapers so they never fill up the drum but I run the load as if it were a full load to allow for plenty of agitation. 

Detergent!  This is one of those tricky areas.  I have been using Arm & Hammer Essentials but I’ve tried a few other detergents that I really like better.  I just tried the Rockin’ Green soap that is formulated specifically for cloth diapers and I’ve tried EcoNuts.  Both worked about the same and I like them for different reasons.  The Rockin’ Green is made from a WAHM in her very own kitchen and it smells FABULOUS!  EcoNuts (full review coming soon) is a seed from a plant that acts as a surfactant.  I highly recommend trying both and judging for yourself.  They all removed most of the stains with no problems.  (Don’t forget to enter the Rockin’ Green giveaway!  See previous post!)

Stains!  That’s right…we all have them…poo stains!  I have the luxury of living in the sunny state of Florida where the sun shines almost every day!  The sun is the BEST way to beat stains and smells!  At the end of the wash cycle I like to take all the inserts and covers and place them outside on our hammock to dry in the sun naturally.  The result is CLEAN, WHITE, ODORLESS cloth diapers!

Lil’ B is almost 8 months old and has been breastfeeding since birth.  She’s only been eating solids for 2 months so I’m sure that I will face more problems along the way.  The most important part to remember is to keep looking for answers.  Someone out there has experienced your problem and someone out there has the answers!  You can always join the Cloth Diapers chat on Twitter, Monday nights at 8pm (EST).  Just be sure to use #clothdiapers to join in on the fun.

What about the environmental impact of washing cloth diapers?  One of the top argument against cloth diapers is the use of water and electricity in caring for cloth diapers.  Yes, you do use water and you do use electricity BUT that shouldn’t deter you from using cloth diapers.  I run 3 extra loads of laundry each week and I try not to dry them in the dryer.  I prefer to line dry my diapers because of the strength of the sun in bleaching them.  You also have to remember that the natural resources used to make disposable diapers is outrageous!  They cut down tons of trees, ship them thousands of miles, using tons of fossil fuels in transportation just to the manufacturers.  Then you have to add up the impact of manufacturing and of course distribution to the stores.  Then you have the impacts on the landfills that are filling up with thousands of disposable diapers EACH DAY!  Like I said, yes there are some environmental impacts of using cloth diapers but I honestly believe that my impact is much less than using disposables!  Search the internet and I’m sure you can find actual data and figures to support this.  Here are just a few that I found doing a quick search:  Cloth Diapers Exposed - The Facts & The Fiction and Environmental Reasons to Use Cloth Diapers. 

CHECK BACK TUESDAY MORNING FOR A LINK TO ALL OF THE OTHER CLOTH DIAPER CARNIVAL BLOGGERS!

Since today is laundry day at the Eco Chic household it’s only fitting that I write a post about Rockin’ Green Soap.  Washing cloth diapers is probably one of the most intimidating elements of using cloth.  The manufactures are very specific about what NOT to use when washing their diapers and what will void their warranties.  What they don’t always tell you is exactly what you CAN use.  Since I primarily use Bum Genius I’ll use them as an example.  The manufacturer recommendations say to use a detergent that is free of dyes, enzymes, perfumes, whiteners and brighteners.  Hmmm….

You can understand why I was so excited to find a detergent formulated specifically for cloth diapers!  Rockin’ Green Soap meets all of the manufactures recommendations AND MORE!  Rockin’ Green is vegan so even my best friend can use it to wash her clothes !  Rockin’ Green is phosphate free which makes it…well….GREEN!  Green as in eco-friendly, since phosphates can add unwanted nutrients back into our streams and waterways which can affect the wildlife.  (I actually studied this stuff in college!)

Oh yeah, and remember that I live in Florida…well we have HARD water!  It’s terrible and we have never purchased a water softener.  Hard water can leave terrible buildup of minerals in your clothing that you can’t see.  This buildup can cause cloth diapers to leak!  Rockin’ Green is specifically formulated to work well with both hard and soft water.  They even make a Soft Rock version that is better for sensitive skin (a great soap for baby clothes).

I saved the best for last.  Rockin’ Green will R-O-C-K you senses too!  With a ton of fun smells like Cherry Lemonade you will actually look forward to doing the laundry!  I’d love to list all the different scents but that’s part of the giveaway!

I only had a sample of Rockin’ Green but it lasted for about 4-5 loads of cloth diapers.  The first time I used it I fell in love.  Not only did the Cherry Lemonade scent make me want to shove my nose in my cloth diapers and inhale…but all of the inserts came out bright white.  In the entire load there were only 2 inserts that needed a little sun to get rid of some faint stains from some NASTY poops! 

BUY IT!  You know you want some and I have a coupon to make it a tad bit cheaper!  Samples (5/10 loads) run only $2 a bag.  45/90 loads run $13.95 and 90/180 loads run $22.95 a bag!  That’s right at 13 cents PER LOAD!  COUPON CODE: RockinGreen for 10% off your purchase of Rockin’ Green Soap!

WIN IT!  Rockin’ Green is giving away one (1) bag of 45/90 load Rockin’ Green (either Soft Rock or Classic Rock) in your choice of scents!  Contest is open to residents of the US only.  To enter you MUST visit Rockin’ Green and leave me a comment telling me what your favorite scent is. 

EXTRA ENTRIES: 
1.  SHOP Rockin’ Green (samples start at $2) from now until Aug. 28, 2009 and earn FIVE (5) extra entries!  Leave me five comments that say “I purchased XXX from Rockin’ Green on MM/DD/YY using the following email address…”  Each comment can say the same thing.

2.  FOLLOW @TheEcoChic and @RockinGreenSoap on Twitter and earn ONE (1) extra entry.  Leave me a comment with your @Name. 

3. TWEET about the contest and earn TWO (2) extra entries for each tweet (max 2/day).  Leave me a comment with a link to your tweet.  Must include @TheEcoChic and @RockinGreen and a link to the contest.

4.  Become a FAN of TheEcoChic on Facebook AND share a link with your friends to the contest.  Be sure to tell them it’s not just for cloth diapers!  Leave me a comment telling me that you are a fan!  Earn ONE (1) extra entry.

5.  Add my BUTTON to your blog or website.  Leave me a comment with a link to where it is posted.  Button is located in the right sidebar at the top.  Earn ONE (1) extra entry.  (Links to your blog have been ended up in my spam comments…I will approve them within one day…please let me know if you don’t see it appear within 24hrs…THANKS!) 

Remember CONTEST ENDS on August 28th at midnight (EST).  All entries will be confirmed for accuracy.

LEAVE YOUR COMMENTS HERE TO ENTER THIS CONTEST!

ECO-ngratulations Maria!  You are the winner in the Rockin Green Soap Giveaway!  Thank you all for entering!