Flats and Hand Washing Challenge: Day 3

This week I am participating in the 3rd Annual Flats and Hand Washing Challenge hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry.

Today is open topic day, and I'm really struggling with what to blog about. I think this is why I don't update my blog very often, I never know WHAT to blog about. I know I want to talk about how to integrate flats and hand washing in crisis pregnancy centers, but I will save that for the open topic day later in the week. I was thinking of doing a blog about Elimination Communication (EC), which I just started doing with Squishy. But then I noticed Dirty Diaper Laundry did their post on EC too, and I didn't want to be a copy cat. :p

Maybe I'll talk about why I do cloth diapers in the first place. Yes, lets talk about why cloth diapers are a million times better than disposables, IMHO.

Have you seen the ingredients list on disposable diapers? Yuck!! Some of those ingredients are known carcinogens, and have been linked with diseases of the skin, liver, reproductive organs, as well as birth defects. They are associated with fatigue, female organ damage, and weight loss. Some of the ingredients used in diapers have been banned from use in tampons because they were associated with Toxic Shock Syndrome. Disposables have also been linked with male infertility, decreased sperm counts, and asthema. {source}

Whew. Every time I read that list it makes me so upset, even though I've read it 100 times. I hate that I ever put anything like that on my son's precious body!!! A body that was made in the image of God, and that has been entrusted to me to provide and care for to the best of my ability.

As if that wasn't enough, there's also the environmental impact. God gave us this Earth and gave us dominion over it. We ought to be doing everything we can to care for this wonderful piece of creation. Disposable diapers are just another non-biodegradable land filler. They do not break down easily. They sit for years and years and years. Isn't it amazing to consider that we pay tons of money to put our child in this chemical filled diaper for a few hours, then throw it away to sit for decades?? I mean, really?? 

Some might argue that using cloth also impacts the environment by using water and electricity and detergent. Again, really?? Sure, it effects the environment. But we can do so responsibly. We can use eco-friendly detergents, wash only full loads, or even hand wash. But I still say its better than filling the ground with 'sposies. 

Then there's cost. As I've already shown, cloth diapering can be very cheap. For less than $50 you can diaper you kid till he's potty trained. Even if you go fancy and get super nice pocket diapers, it's still cheaper than 'sposies. Even with the cost of washing??? Yes. Still cheaper.

Cloth diapers are also cuter than 'sposies. There are SO many adorable prints to choose from. It can get rather addicting, :p 

Well, that's all the reasons I can think of right now. Also, the squirmy baby on my lap is making it exceedingly hard to type. What's your favorite reason for using cloth diapers???

Tune in tomorrow for details on hand washing and how that's going. 

Deo Volente

Breanna