How to cloth nappy successfully - Part 3 Getting Started
So, you’ve got your nappies, you’ve got your baby. Now what? Well first, step back, take a breath and congratulate yourself you’re doing great. Baby’s alive? You’re alive? You’ve remembered to put pants on today? Awesome! (Though to be fair that last one is negotiable). It might seem a bit intimidating, after all you’ve only just mastered putting disposables on and now you want to change the ball game? Craziness! But I promise it’s not and here’s my tips to make diving in a little less scary.
Sit back and watch some videos
Fit videos are a great place to start before you even pick up a nappy. To say I binge watched fit videos is an understatement! But I really do think it helped. Watch generic ones they’ll give you an idea of what kind of fit you’re looking for with a cloth nappy in general. It’s a great idea to watch a few, you never know what little hand movements you’ll pick up from different ones. All your nappies will have brand specific ones as well. Make sure you watch these because each brand will have their quirks and it’ll make life so much easier to be familiar with your nappies for when you get to the next step…
Playing Around
Play with your nappies. Before baby comes or while he’s asleep or being spoilt by relatives just play. Practice folding, play with the snaps, find out how your shells work, your inserts go in and how to adjust sizing. Youtube is great for videos on folds for prefolds or flats. My husband and I practiced different folds on a doll before the baby came so we had an idea of what we thought was easiest without the added difficulty of a wriggling baby.
Wait till the mood strikes
Wait until baby is in a good mood. I know our son was not a fan of nappy changes straight away but he quickly took to them. So don’t stress him and yourself out by trying your first cloth nappy when he’s already crying. Wait till he’s happy, maybe dad’s there and can talk to him while you put the nappy on. The main point is don’t put pressure on yourself! Cloth should be fun and at least till you get the hang of it, just use them when baby’s happy about getting changed. It’ll make you more relaxed and excited about cloth.
It only takes one
Start with one. What could be simpler than that? Do one cloth nappy the first day, two the second and pretty soon you won’t be able to remember the last time you used a disposable. You’ll quickly gain confidence without over stressing yourself, one nappy at time.
Work up to the hard stuff
Start with the easy stuff: daytime nappies at home. You’re awake and have everything you need right there. Then try night time. When they’re newborn they’re still waking every few hours and needing to be changed so you don’t need any fancy night nappies yet, just a parent who’s mildly awake. Next try cloth when you’re out, you’ll be surprised how easy it is. Just pop the dirty nappy in a wetbag and take it home with you. And for goodness sake don’t forget it in the boot! Even cloth wipes aren’t difficult when you’re out especially if you’re at someone’s house or in a nice parents’ room. Just take dry wipes and run them under a tap, or take some Foamy Wipes Wash with you. We have great portable pumps of premade Foamy Wipes Wash that make cloth wipes on the run a breeze.
Take it easy
Don’t stress! It’s just a nappy, and you won’t believe how easy they are once you begin. Remember, there is no right or wrong way to cloth nappy. The cloth nappy police won’t show up on your door if you use disposables at night or don’t cloth till 3 months. You do what works for you and your family. It might seem daunting but once you started you’ll wonder what took you so long.
And if you’re clothing from birth, brilliant! You don’t have to waste your time perfecting your disposables technique. The Bubblebub’s pebbles are a nice easy All-in-one to start with and when you’re feeling ready our BamBams will rock your world.
So step back, take a breath and jump right in. Soon you’ll wonder why you ever did it any other way! And if you’re anything like me you’ll get obsessed and tell everyone you know how amazing cloth is and start writing blog posts about how awesome it is!