Kait is elbow deep in the great HD situation of 2008 and frankly I feel for her.  There is nothing like diarrhea, or diaper rash or both to make you re assess the cloth diapering decision.  Both my boys have extremely sensitive skin and apparently extremely acidic poop.   If left unchanged (yes this has happened *sigh* remember to carefully screen your babysitters and not base them on recommendations of friends without children…cats are not the same as babies) in a poopy diaper, they can break out in a red angry rash that cracks and bleeds (they also have eczema) it’s awesome.  During these crisis’s I often turn to disposable diapers and their wicking powers.

In cloth diapering like other areas of my life I have learned to go with what works, and that beating my head against the wall often results in headaches. If my children are uncomfortable or in pain I will do what it takes to make that pain go away even if it means using disposable diapers until the problem is resolved.

I think we too often get caught up in comparing ourselves to others, some pride themselves on being different then everybody else, some pride themselves on being the same.  Either way it sometimes feel like a competition.

No other arena is quite as competitive as the ‘good mother game’. I use cloth diapers, I make all my own baby food, I make my own bread, I doing laundry in the creek with handmade soap and rocks I’ve carried there myself.   You get the point.

When I start to feel myself caught up in am I as good as you, or is my kid as advanced/verbal/coordinated as our kid. I take a step back. And spend a day playing and try to re focus.  It can be hard to do. Much like letting go of things.

I like to make my own bread. But my four year old doesn’t like to eat it.  He won’t eat it.  And I can try and try to make a ‘peanut nutter sanwich’ with homemade bread, but really why keep forcing the issue when his will is as strong as mine? Apparently.

Which brings us to the point (thanks for hanging in there with me).  I recently gave up on prefolds. I love the idea of prefolds. Both Kait and Leah have show me fabulous ways to use receiving blankets as prefolds. How thrifty! I love it! I want to do it.

Leah lent me some covers and I spent three weeks trying to use prefolds. And my two year old spent three weeks ticked off.  I used pins, I used snappys. He cried “Take off!!” He yelled.  I used prefolds in covers, I used prefolds in the fuzzi buns covers. He cried. He raged. He walked like he had been riding trail for two weeks.  Seriously.

Leah was called in to consult. She diapered him. He cried, he raged, he walked bowlegged around the house…”Help me” he cried piteously.  It was pathetic.

Leah and I looked at each other and shrugged.  She had had problems with prefolds with her son as well. Her daughter was a breeze, we briefly wondered if boy parts were irritated or aggravated by the snappy’s (she ultimately ended up pinning with him).

Long ago when I worked I led groups and I said things like “the definition of crazy is trying the same thing over and over and expecting different results”.  I finally took my own advice this weekend and gave leah back her prefolds and covers. I returned my receiving blankets to may stash of flannel ready to be made into quilts, dolls, pants…

My son’s cloth diapered bottom will be covered in fuzzibuns from now on,  and his mama’s hair will probably grow back.

Tags: letting go