Some Thoughts on Cloth Diapers and the World We Live In

Most of you know already that we have decided to use cloth diapers exclusively for Pip. For us, it was an easy decision because 1. it’s cheaper, 2. it’s much better for the environment, 3. it keeps chemicals and plastic away from Pip’s skin (given my allergy issues, we thought this was a good idea).

Since deciding on this path, which we chose before Pip even started baking, I’ve done a lot of research about types of diapers, methods of cleaning, and anything involving diaper fluff. I’ve learned a lot, and I’ve also seen how seriously some families take up cloth products, even switching to “family cloth” (when no one uses toilet paper or paper products).

I have also seen a number of posts by families who have decided that cloth diapers aren’t worth the trouble. Here is one article written by a mother who decided the stress of cloth diapering was too much and that she needed to use disposables to survive. Here is another article in which a mother decides not to use cloth diapers because of a “personal quirk” that she feels soiled clothes should be discarded.

Now I want to be careful with the things that I say next, because I do think that each family needs to decide what it has to do to survive. I do not think that it is my place, especially as someone who is not yet even a parent, to rail against other families’ decisions. And making life work is priority number one. However, I do not think the decision to use disposable diapers is as simple as “a personal decision that we have made for our own family based on our unique preferences and circumstances,” as described by the second blogger mentioned above.

Unlike breastfeeding or co-sleeping or baby-wearing or any number of other parenting decisions that are equally divisive, cloth diapering is a choice that affects my child as well as another parent’s. According to a study, disposable diapers create 2.3 times as much water waste, use 3.5 times as much energy, use 8.3 times the non-regenerable raw materials, use 90 times the renewable raw materials and 4 to 30 times as much land for growing raw materials as cloth diapers. This study is outdated at this point, but I am struggling to find a clearer one done recently, and the environmental costs have not gone down.

So, yes, parenting decisions have to be made by each family, and there are a number of reasons why one choice is made over another. However, I can’t simply say, “to each their own” regarding a choice that so directly impacts the environment and the future of the world my child will inherit. I feel similarly about those who choose to drive cars when there are other options, or who select gas-guzzlers because they like the style of the car.

Every choice involves weighing pros and cons and deciding what will work. I think that we should all consider the impact of our choices on others who inhabit this planet with us as we choose. Maybe cloth diapers are icky, and maybe they take more time. Maybe driving to work feels more comfortable, or driving a huge SUV feels safer. But these choices are not sustainable, and have greater reach than the one family making the choice. There are reasons to come to one decision or another, and I try not to judge without knowing each family’s own struggle, but I hope that we can all consider these greater impacts when making important choices.

Our choice for cloth diapering wasn’t a hard one for us to make, but it’s also symbolic of how we want to teach Pip to live in the world: to consider his actions, to think about others, and to sometimes choose something slightly less convenient in an effort to preserve the shared world.

The Final Countdown and the Dangers of Google

Lots has happened since I last posted about an emotional experience with a chair. For one thing, we finished the nursery (photos of that to come soon). Baby clothes were washed and folded, car seat installation completed, and many bowls of cookies n cream ice cream have been consumed.

We are almost at the end. Today, we are 38 weeks and 3 days. At our weekly doctor visit this week, I was measured and ultrasounded and poked. Our doctor is concerned because Pip is measuring a little bit too big (he is measuring at just over 8lbs), and my level of amniotic fluid is too high. He said that if we don’t have Pip naturally by next Tuesday, we will schedule an induction for sometime within week 39.

Can I tell you something not to do ever while pregnant? Or maybe just ever. Do not google things your doctor tells you about. Just don’t do it! I spent the better part of the day on Tuesday afraid for all sorts of defects for Pip, and for complications that I might face in delivery. I worried about the dangers of inducing labor, and that I might be unable to have an all-natural delivery if I am induced.

And for what? Did the random experiences of women posting on the internet give me more useful information that what my doctor told me? No. I am still in the same situation. I am going to wait and see what will happen by next Tuesday and go from there. I am honestly no better informed than I was before google searching. If anything, I had to undo the psychological damage of reading how much more at risk Pip is for certain problems that did not indicate just how low that risk was to begin with.

I don’t mean to say that it’s inappropriate to have questions and concerns about the doctor’s choices, but I don’t think hysterical posts found through a web search are the best way to deal with those questions. Lesson learned!

Anyway, the great news is that in about a week, one way or another, Pip will be born and Peach will become a mommy! This is great news, and what we are choosing to focus on in our house today. 🙂

What’s in a Name?

Naming a baby sounds like so much fun in theory! It’s a great game when you’re a teenager and naming future babies that you can’t even imagine having. That said, thank God I grew out of some of those names!

The real thing is a little more complicated. Suddenly we’re responsible for giving a real person a real name that he’s going to have for his whole life! (don’t screw this up, Peach!) There are things to take into account like: initials, monograms, nicknames, associations with famous people, family names, and on and on. And two people deciding is much harder than just one teenage girl. Sure I like the name Jacob, but Pip’s dad has a bad memory of a Jacob once upon a time. He might like David, but that’s an ex-boyfriend of mine. Darn! We also wanted a name that not everyone has. The NameVoyager tool was great for this!

Anyway, that kind of trouble is NOTHING compared to the voices from the village. The first question almost anyone has is, “so, have you thought of names?” Being first time parents, we of course shared our ideas with everyone at first. Boy, was this a mistake. It turns out everyone has an opinion about what our Pip should be named. And, while it’s relevant if a name belonged to my crazy ex, it simply doesn’t matter that the name we like best belonged to an enemy of an acquaintance. Our families, too, seem to feel they have veto power over the names we choose.

In reality, of course, whatever we decide to name Pip, our families and friends will love him the same. Once he is born, even if they think our choice in name was absurd, they won’t tell it to our faces like they do now. They’ll wait to talk about how crazy we are until we leave, like decent people. 😉 I just wish everyone would think about that part now. What if we choose Sylvester and you think that’s a stupid name, and you told us so? We’re not going to forget that in a few months when Pip comes out, and you may wish you had kept your feelings to yourself.

I know what really is happening is that everyone is tapping into that fun teenage-girl “ooh, I want to name something!” excitement. I honestly love hearing what everyone else would name Pip if it were up to them. But because it can be upsetting when people we love have criticisms of our favorite names, we have decided to keep Pip’s name a secret until he’s born, even though we are pretty sure we know what it is.

So until he’s here, Pip he shall be! Did you have this experience when naming your kids? What are some of your favorite names?