Monday, December 27, 2010

All Done.....

Well our little man's first christmas is officially over with. I am happy yet relieved too it has been a long couple of weeks! Before him I would keep our Christmas tree up as long as the hubby would let me... typically a week into January :)
This year though I am already contemplating taking it down today!
Feeling like I have failed a christmas rule already... we never had professional christmas pics done, am I a horrible mom? lol
On the bright side we really didn't get as many toys as I had worried we would. I finally have started to put some of his baby toys (he is only 11mo. still my baby :) away to make room for the big boy toys. What will happen to our living room once we have another child and the baby toys come back out along with all the "big boy" toys.... yikes I am not ready for that.
For now we have a three shelf bookshelf that matches our t.v stand and that is our toy storage. the top shelf is all of his books, the middle is bigger toys and the bottom shelf we have some square storage boxes to put the smaller toys in. It works perfectly for us right now. I REFUSE to get a toy box! Toys will end up on the bottom and you will forget you even have them because they will never come out. No thank you. I have been eyeing those nice wooden shelf things with the plastic bins in them they look very practical but where oh where would I put it?
One more thing about little man growing up is we dont use the changing pad on his dresser anymore since we can barely corral him on the floor...... I can't bring myself to put it away though :( What else do I put on his dresser then? I'm hoping these are normal first time mommy blunders or else I am just a weirdo! hahaha.
well I hope everyone had a blessed Christmas I know we did.

Sunday, December 26, 2010

Berry Sweet Baby Boutique!

Please check out my site on Facebook it's Berry Sweet Baby Boutique. http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Berry-Sweet-Baby-Boutique/147408608634357
I have Baby Burpies, Bibs, Baby Blocks, Pacifier clips you name it All customizable!!! I have the ability to embroider now also! We have giveaways often and I will soon begin doing reviews for other WAHMs!
This has been an awesome blessing to me it has allowed me to stay home and still contribute to our finances. I love to sew and it's so much fun to make things personalized for my customers!

Saturday, December 4, 2010

Berry Sweet Baby Boutique













Been quite busy with my newest project! I am making Personalized Soft Baby Blocks. Please check me out on facebook Berry Sweet Baby Boutique.
The blocks are only $6 a piece. Each one has one soft minky side and 4 ribbon tags. You can add $1 extra for crinkle plastic.
I am having so much fun with my fabrics. Sewing is my down time, the time I spend for myself is also turning into a wonderful opportunity to contribute to my family's finances.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

EcoBuns Sale!

So I have referred to Ecobuns many times on here and now I thought I would tell you about a huge sale they are having!
It's a Pre-Thanksgiving Sale instore and online.
Tue 23rd and wed 24th
15% off storewide!!!!!!
Check them out and tell them I sent you!
www.ecobuns.com
or check them out on Facebook.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Long Time!

Well Here's an update on Little Man, in the past 45 days he has been on 30 days worth of antibiotics for recurring double ear infections..... Also gotten 3 teeth!
He has decided he will start walking using a push toy and he is loving it! Mommy is a bit scared of the toy flying out infront of him sending him to faceplant in the carpet lol
We are loving our new GroVia cloth diapers. They are a step up from pre-folds with covers. You have a cover with snaps and the insert snaps into that. No folding! One of my favorite things about them is the back is waterproof so you don't have to touch anything wet when you take it out :)
At the moment I only have two covers and 4 inserts But I would suggest if you are just starting out you go with these! check out
http://www.ecobuns.com/ for more info on them. Tell them I sent you ;)

A note on the green household. I am still LOVING my babyganics I have the highchair and toy cleaner, the grimefighter, tub and tile cleaner and the stain remover.
I really enjoy the lavender scent not to mention the fact that I can clean up the kitchen with little man sitting right there in his highchair and not have to worry about fumes.

They clean as good as if not better than the products they replaced.


*****Just something to think about..... Buy in bulk when you can, Method hand soaps now come with a refill bag.
Think about all the trash you will save from a landfill not to mention everything that goes into making those plastic hand soap containers.
Buy just one container and a big refill bag. Target I know carries this now.
Hint: It will save you tons of moolah too! :)

Monday, August 30, 2010

My Nursing Story.....

This is my breastfeeding story, it might be tmi for some people so read at your own risk :)
I feel like getting the emotions I am feeling out in writing will help me process everything going on a lot better. I hope this can be of encouragement and or help others who might be having a hard time nursing or weaning their little ones. I will start out at the beginning.
My little guy was born 5 weeks early weighing in at 6lb. 12oz. by the time he came home he weighed 6lb 7oz. We were only allowed per the pediatrician to nurse for 5 minutes once a day for the first couple of weeks....... Which meant a lot more work for me. Once we left the hospital he was on 100% breastmilk. So I had to pump for atleast 15 minutes every 2-3 hours around the clock in order to keep up with the demand. I dealt with A LOT of pain during these weeks, since the pump is not nearly as effective at emptying you as your baby is. We're talking lots clogged ducts and ice packs! finally a few weeks into this I was able to try to nurse him up to 15 minutes twice a day, I think he was over a month old before I got the go ahead to nurse him as much as he wanted. This was our schedule; attempt to nurse for 5-10 minutes (however long it took him to get frustrated) feed him a bottle, and then pump for 15 minutes. By the time this whole process was over an hour had passed. And he would be hungry again in 2 hours, this made for a rought couple of weeks. We also had to deal with the nipple sheild that the nurses had gotten us to use in the hospital....... It was like relearning how to nurse for him without that dumb thing on. By the time we were doing great, nursing pros he was probably 4 months old and then we started on solid foods also.
My supply because of all of this was never really what I would have liked it to be, and therefore I was unable to keep up with demand and we started to supplement a bit of formula.
I was able to quit my job last month and be a stay at home mommy since then I have been able to nurse most of the time and my little guy has had 6oz. or less of formula a day. Which I am quite proud of when I look back at the first couple of weeks and remember thinking we would never get this far!
Oh and we also found out he has a milk allergy around 1 month old so for the last 7 months I have not been able to eat the slightest amount of dairy. We're not just talking milk and cheese here, dairy is in everything, tons of canned soup you would think would be fine, nope contains milk. Just take a look at the ingreient lists of the things you eat daily, it doesn't leave many choices!
In the last few weeks he has been so interested in what is going on around him that it's so hard to stay focused on nursing which was getting frustrating for the both of us.
Also he hadn't been sleeping through the night for about 3 weeks now, waking up a couple of times in the night hungry. Then my hubby said he was giving him a bottle of formula before bed and that was that. He slept 10 hours straight! Finally it clicked why I had been feeling like I was constantly nursing, and he wasn't sleeping enough..... I wasn't producing enough to keep him full.
All of these circumstances have gotten me to the decision made today.
We are going to stop breastfeeding. While I will be happy for many reasons; I can eat dairy again, I can finally put the pump away, I can eat spicy foods, I do not have to deal with the pain anymore, my little man will be fully satisfied and sleeping through the night.
I feel it is one of the toughest decisions I have had to make. I feel as though I am a failure to my son, a lot of people are forced to stop nursing, while I am making this decision on my own. I don't want to be selfish but it's so hard to eat and cook for my husband when I cannot eat anything with dairy in it and he doesn't eat a single fruit or vegetable. I have read sooo many books and magazine articles on the benefits to nursing your child through the first year, and he is only 8 months old. There is this nagging guilt in the back of my mind, and now that I have made this decision there will be no turning back, I do not want to regret my decison!
This has been an emotional rollercoaster for me. I'm sure I'm not the first one to feel all these emotions.
I feel like I am letting him down, but at the same time like I'm making the best decision for the both of us.
I know this is only a short period in our lives and these feelings will pass ( I hope).

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

The Shark!

My next step in greening up my home was to use alternative methods to clean and sanitize our home since I threw out all the yucky "cleaners".

I have had my Shark Steam Pocket Mop for almost a year now, and I am loving it!
First my dislikes though; You have to pump the handle to get the steam to come out, this is natural while you are mopping but it does make it a little harder on your back.... hmmm I think thats really my only gripe.
I love it because; 1.You clean with plain old water nothing else. The steam santizes and cleans in one step! 2. It takes up no more space than my swiffer wet jet did. 3. While the initial cost is a bit more (about $120) you don't have to continue to buy refills of the cleaning solution as with the wet jet. 4. It comes with an attatchment that allows you to sanitize and deodorize your carpets too!
Helps me feel better about having my little guy crawling around on the floors!!!!


Just the other day I purchased the Shark Steam Portable cleaner. And I have never had more fun cleaning my house!
Actually the reason I bought it was because I have to remove wallpaper and the wallpaper steamer I had access to didn't fit in the tight spaces I needed it to. (seemed like a good enough excuse to go buy the steam cleaner I had been wanting ;)

This will run you about $100. But the possibilities are endless :)
So far I have obviously used it to remove the wallpaper, while it isn't necesarilly intended for this purpose it does a good job. I have also cleaned my stove of caked on food spillage. ( I did not have to use the self clean and stink/warm up my house for hours!)
I have cleaned my bathroom tub and the fronts of the dishwasher, microwave, and stove.
The one I purchased came with a few extra attatchments, I found it at Bed Bath and Beyond and used my 20% off coupon. :)
well my teething babe has woken up so in short both products are worth the money!!!

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Follow my path to a greener home! Challenge One

I am reading an awesome book it's called Living Fresh by Sara Snow. It is very motivating and also put into terms you can understand.... It gives you quick and easy ways to make a difference in your family's life and also the enviroment.

(see also earlier posts on my cloth diapering experience!)

The first step I took was to go through all my cleaning supplies and attempt to get rid of anything with harsh chemicals or fragrance.
(fragrance listed under the ingredients in anything is a catch all word for a mixture of chemicals, they do not have to name each one in there!)

This included all air fresheners, air "sanitizers", glade plug-ins etc. The book tells you different ways to freshen your home using essential oils or citrus steaming on the stove.

I found a great company called BabyGanics they make products completely safe for baby and the enviroment. So far I have boughten the toy and highchair cleaner and the multi-purpose cleaner which smells like lavendar!! Love it!

I am having a hard time getting rid of my clorox wipes, they are my security blanket when I am wiping up raw meat juice from the countertop or if someone was in our house and was nice enough to bring germs with them ;) For now they stay and I will use them only if I feel it's needed. We can't change overnight right?

It's amazing all the uses for simple things like vinegar and baking soda that you will find in this book!

Greening up your cleaning and the air in your home is great in so many ways but it also saves you a lot of money, I mean really a box of baking soda and a jug of distilled vinegar?

Look for my next post where I will be reviewing the Shark Steam Mop and the Shark Steam Pocket Cleaner.

Sophie

I bought my little man a toy a couple weeks ago that I had been wanting for quite awhile. It's called Sophie the Giraffe. It's a teether toy, that honestly looks like a dog toy. It even squeaks like a dog toy lol. Anyways it is made with all natural rubber, and food grade paint. so it's perfectly safe for baby to knaw on! I am working hard to surround my baby with all natural products, food ect. Read up on plastics some day and all the harmful things found in most of them! Hopefully you already know that you want to stay with BPA free toys, bottles, cups ect. Plastics labeled #2, #4, and #5 are generally safe to stick with.

So back to sophie, I found her on ebay, and she is perfect for baby to handle and he loves to chew on her ears, and legs.. All in all totally worth the money spent!

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

just a thought on medela pumps

It took me about a month to figure this out, but maybe it was obvious to others? My Medela pump came with .5 and 2.5 ounce containers, but I was needing bigger containers, so I went to babies r us and bought the 5 ounce containers (which weren't cheap). Then I realized that all bottles are essentially the same size (not wide mouth bottles) the cheap gerber 5 ounce bottles work great with the pump, and the medela lids fit just great on the bottles. It made life a lot easier once I realized this..... Seems obvious now, but at the time everything is such a blur who knows whats going on in new mommy brain! :)

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Diaper update

We are (or should I say I am) getting much better at using cloth. I do use up all the pocket diapers first because they are just plain easier to use! But then I have the prefolds and covers..... I try to keep atleast two covers with diapers folded up in them ready to go for ease of use. I have noticed a lot less diaper rash while on the cloth diapers. We have gone out of town twice in the past month and both times we used disposables, and both times by the time we got home (which was only about 48 hours later) my poor little guy had a rash starting to crop up. I am reading a really awesome book right now its called Fresh Living by Sara Snow. It is all about ways you can live better, and a lot focuses on what is going on your body, like lotions, soaps, laundry detergent ect. It's really making me think every time I'm too lazy and go grab a disposable diaper about all the potentially dangerous chemicals I am exposing my son too. I am happy to be starting a further investigation into how I can keep these things away from him while he is still young!
I definately reccomend you read this book. I borrowed it from the library then decided there was just too much good information that I could refer too time and time again. So I bought it for myself. :)

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Reuse your Similac formula containers!

I got tired of messing with the boxes that gerber baby cereals come in. They seem to always spill some out the bottom of the spout, and I don't think that a cardboard box can keep it extremely fresh either.

When we supplement with formula we are using Similac Isomil (soy-based) and it comes in these nifty plastic containers. ( the ones with the scoop stored in the lid). I Have been keeping my empty containers I figured i can use them for something.....

So the other day I realized how perfect it would be to hold the cereals! The container has a rubber seal to it will keep contents fresh and the formula scoop stored in the lid works great for measuring out the correct amount of cereal! No more spilled/wasted cereals!
I have two right now, I removed the lables and used permanent markers to lable what kind of cereal they contain and the date I opened the box.

I have added to my CD collection!


I am really glad that I did not purchase a ton of the same kind of CD (cloth diapers) all at once..... I like things to be matchy-matchy :) And I didn't understand why you would want all different kinds of diapers... But now I understand. There are diapers that are trimmer for when I want him to wear a cute outfit but not have a big bummy, then theres the diapers that you can add a layer to for night time. There are the diapers that are easy enough for my husband to do, but also the ones that require a bit more effort but don't create quite as much wash. ( i.e. prefolds and covers)

Recently I went to EcoBuns... http://www.ecobuns.com/ and purchased two more bumgenius one size diapers to add to the one I already have. These are great because they are most like a disposable diaper so my hubby can use them too!

I also purchased a Happy Heineys pocket diaper which I am super excited about because it came in Cow Hide print! With these diapers you can buy inserts or you can just use the prefolds, which I already have so I am using them.

All you have to do with the Happy Heinys are fold the prefold into thirds and stuff the diaper. Then it's ready to go I just fold it up and set it in the diaper basket. When it's dirty you simply pull out the prefold, attatch the laundry tabs and throw both in your dry pail!

I personally think these are my new fave diapers! the fleece that goes against babys bum is super soft, the velcro makes putting it on extremely easy and did I mention the adorable cow hide print???? (they also make many other super cute patterns ;)

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Giveaway!

Be sure to check out this blog. www.lifeofamodernmom.blogspot.com she is doing a giveaway for a Thirsties DuoWrap diaper. Check out www.ecobuns.com to find out more about this diaper then read the review on the blog and sign up!

Thursday, June 17, 2010

June 2010


Well I have to admit we still aren't doing cloth any more than 50% of the time. I have yet to really teach the hubby how to put one on... I wanted to take it slow with him since he is all for us using cloth as long as he doesn't have to be the one putting them on! lol

I have 13 diapers and it's taking me an average of 3-4 days to get through them all. I have one bumgenius pocket diaper that I am liking more for ease of use rather than the prefolds and covers. It goes on just like a regular diaper, the only downfall; cost I would like to invest in some more pocket, or all in one diapers now that I know we can stick with this for the long haul. It also tends to keep the moisture off of his skin better than the prefolds do. But still we haven't had any diaper rash issues since we started.

I do have a special diaper rash cream in case we ever need it. You can't use most commercial products because they will affect the absorbancy of the diapers so I have an all natural product I think it's called grandma el's? I will have to check on that one, but it smells amazing and is super soft on the skin!

here is a pick of little man sporting his thirsties diaper cover.

Monday, May 24, 2010

Cloth wipes?

I was thinking why get cloth wipes too they seem like extra work when wipes really aren't that expensive anyways and I don't go through a lot having a boy. And one that doesn't have a bm every day or even every 3 days.
But..... you typically wrap the wipe up in the disposable diaper and throw it all away right?
Where do you put it when you have a cloth diaper? I though of having a small trash can on the changing table but thats one more thing sitting out and one more thing i have to remember to empty.
I'm thinking of making my own cloth wipes so save even more money and then they can just go into the wetbag along with the diapers. I have to wash the diapers anyways so why not wash a couple of wipes too!


On another note I looked into a diaper sprayer and they are all around $44.00 if you want an actual "diaper" sprayer. I found a guy on ebay who makes them using a sink sprayer attatched to your clean water supply on the toilet just like the diaper sprayer would. The best part it was only $27.50 plus free shipping!!! Took less than 4 days to get here and less than 30mins to have my hubby hook it up and it works like a charm.
This week we had two major blow outs in one day following a 3 day poop strike ;)
one did get the inside of the diaper cover a bit but no leaks! I am loving these diapers!

My goal this week is to get up a short clothes line to hang the diapers to dry. It shouldn't take too long seeing how hot it is and the sun will help bleach out any stains that might occur. (haven't had any staining yet!) Plus saving on the energy of running the dryer :)

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Poo!

So we finally had poo on friday... Haven't been on here in awhile....
The first dirty diaper I had used a biosoft liner which is supposed to "catch" everything so you can just pick it up and flush it. This didn't go so well though. I don't knowif I need to fold the diaper skinnier because it bunches up so bad and the liner bunched up and the poo got everywhere even on the diaper cover. But the gussets on the cover contained the blowout. So we just had to wash the cover this timearound.
The second dirty diaper went a little better still got some on the cover but it's to be expected I'm still learning how to fold and but the diapers on.
The diapers don't seem to bother little man so thats good.
We are dealing with some diaper rash today so we have been using disposables most of the day today. ( You aren't supposed to use diaper creams with the cloth diapers unless you have a special kind whichI don't yet have) Most diaper creams make the diapers less effective. Just like detergents, and fabric softeners can do.
On anoher note cleaning the dirty diaper was not so great. I haven't yet bought the diaper sprayer because it will put me back close to $50 dollars and I wanted to make sure I can stick with this before I spent too much money.
I did find some instructions onlie for making your own diaper sprayer using materials you can find at a lowes or home depot type store for a lot less money.
All in all it's still a good experience with cloth!

Friday, May 14, 2010

Lazy


So I must admit I'm having a lazy day today..... Still no BM we are going on 4 days here and i'm getting worried... I keep thinking he will have a major bm soon so I put a disposable on him this morning and no luck....

I will just have to suck it up and put a cloth on him and deal with the poo! lol
Look at that adorable diaper cover! There's another one in the background (the orange is a bummis super brite, and the one on him is a Thirsties)



Washing my first load of dapers today also.
Had 7 wet diapers yesterday So I washed them since we only started out with 12 I don't want to get too terribly low. (we will purchase more if we decide to keep upwith this long term)



This is how to wash them:
1 cold rinse cycle with no detergent
1 hot cycle with 1 tsp. all natural laundry detergent (I have a front loading machine
1 extra rinse cycle
dry on medium temp.



The diapers should come out smelling like water if they stink you need to wash them again.

My projectyesterday was a wetbag. I purchased one the other day and the more I looked at it I decided I could make my own with the fabric I have left over from his nursery bedding and curtains. It has PUL fabric inside which has a plastic liner. And I added some ribbons so that it could hang from an infant hanger on the closet door.
Well little love is waking from his nap and it's bath time so I should get going!
Happy Diapering!

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Day 1 down.

it's 9:30pm on our first day in cloth diapers. And the day went great. I am finding that it's really not that much harder to diaper him than disposables! I have three diaper covers so I just put the prefold diaper into each one so that it's ready to go when I change him. You could just remove the diaper from the cover and add a new one to the same cover but...... I don't risk not having something under him at all times!
All in all it was a great day. I think i'm going to go with disposable for the night just because I'm not sure how absorbant the cloth are right now (they get better the more you wash them) and he is sleeping around 10 hours most nights.
The hubby is coming around to the idea of cloth diapering too! I really am surprised yet appreciate his willingness to try it for me!
Little man hasn't had a bm in 3 days now (the dr. says this is normal for breastfed babies) but I am afraid of the blowout he will have when he does as I don't have a diaper sprayer yet so cleaning the poo could prove problematic!
I was told that exclusively breastfed babies bm's are water soluble so there is no need to rinse the diapers they can go straight to the wash! He does get a few ounces of formula each day though so we have to rinse... bummer.
I plan on purchasing a sprayer(hooks into the clean water supply on your toilet so you can spray the poo straight into the toilet) once we have been on cloth for a few weeks to make sure we can stick with it before I shell out too much more money ;)

First Diaper

My little man has his first cloth diaper on this morning! I pre-washed them all 4 times and I think we are ready to go. I did put a biosoft liner in this morning since he is due for a BM and I want to ease myself into cleaning them! haha
Pros: It was very easy to use the prefold and diaper cover on my first try
Cons: It is Very bulky on him especially in the front since you have to fold it over in front for boys. I am thinking it might get less bulky feeling the more times I wash the diapers but we will have to wait and see.

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Excited.....

I got home with all my loot and began the washing process.
They reccomend you wash your cloth diapers atleast 3-6 times before use as the more you wash them the better they absorb. I have so far done 4 washes and I think we will try them out tomorrow as I will be home all day.

I was asked today why I didn't just have a diaper service if I was going to CD.
Yes I am doing this because it is better for the enviroment but my main reasons behind it are the money we will save over years of diapering for our children. And the fact that it's organic and kinder to babys bum.

If I used a diaper service we would still have to pay a weekly or monthly fee to have our diapers picked up washed and dropped off again.

If I wash them all myself I have a one-time investment. Yes it will take more time but I am willing to give it a try!

I bought my diapers

So I found a lady who runs a business out of her home selling cloth diapers and teaching people how to use them in town! Her website is www.ecobuns.com
She was super nice, and helpful. She spent atleast an hour explaining everything to me and teaching me how to use and care for myCloth Diapers (CD)s.

Don't tell my husband but I will break down for you what I spent so you can get an idea of the costs of CDing.

2 thirsties duo wraps at 12.75 each.
these come in two different sizes I got the smalls today as they will fit him up to 18
pounds. They have a snappable rise and they close with velcro just like a regular
diaper.
1 Bummi super brite diaper cover at 12.25
these come in three different sizes but this size also should fit him up to 18lbs.
one size no snappable rise, also with a velcro closure.
2- 6 packs of Bummi's organic cotton prefold diapers at 15.00 (thats 2.50 each diaper)
These are what go inside the diaper covers. Organic so it won't irritate baby's bum.
They are the most cost effective way to cloth diaper and fairly easy to use although
not as easy as the all in one diapers.
1pk. Bummis biosoft liners 6.00 for 100 sheets
The biosoft liners will be nice when we are out and about. You place one liner over the
cloth diaper and that way when baby has a BM you can flush or toss the liner with the
poo and you don't have to carry around a very dirty diaper all day.
1 Allens Natural laundry detergent 1 qt. 18.95
I do make my own homemade laundry detergent. But it has a mild scent and I was told you
do not use any softeners or perfumes on cloth diapers as they can effect their absorbancy
I will only have to use 1tsp. of this detergent for each load of diapers so needless to say
it should last me quite awhile!
1 wetbag 17.50
To put used diapers in until its time to wash them.
Total came to around 106. Which is probably a couple of months worth of disposables. But this is a one time purchase. That I will be able to use for my baby now and any future children!

Cloth Diapers..... Where to start!

I have always wanted to try out cloth diapers, until I started looking for them I didn't realize just how many different kinds were out there! Here is a brief overview of the different kinds from my point of view.
All In Ones (AIO) these seem to be the most conveinent for diapering. But you have to wash the entire diaper every time as far as I can tell. Which means more diapers to purchase up front.

Pocket Diapers Also seem convienent except you have to stuff an insert into them each time and you also must wash the entire diaper after each use.

There are One Size diapers out there with snappable rises (how tall the front of the diaper will be). They claim you can buy one diaper that will get you through newborn to potty training.. From reviews I have read this is not always the case. They are too big for newborns and too small for toddlers.

Diaper Covers go over your simple prefold diapers (the diapers everyone uses for burprags) The nice thing I see with these is that you don't have to wash the cover every time you just put in a new diaper.

A lot of the cloth diapers out there also have the option to purchase disposable inserts. some of which are biodegradable/flushable others of which you just have to toss like a disposable diaper. This could be convienent for outings so you don't have to carry around a dirty diaper all day. But they are a lot more expensive than your regular pampers or huggies. So the way I see it you're better off buying disposables to have on hand for outings.

What I am looking to get out of my cloth diapers:
Something not too bulky
Comfortable for baby and reduces rish of diaper rash
ease of use (mostly for hubby's sake)
easy to wash at home.
a cover that can be reused a couple of times before washing
something durable that will hold up for future babies.
To reduce my footprint and not contribute to landfills.
Save money (duh!)
To be more self-sufficient.
Cloth diapers are also said to help potty train sooner!

I am on my way out today to check out a store that sells cloth diapers and will hopefully help me choose whats right for my needs!
check back as i chronicle my diaper adventures-