my crunchy side

Most people who know me, know that I want to cloth diaper my kid(s) when the time comes. Cloth diapering comes with a lot of benefits (less waste, less money, earlier potty training, etc.), but those are all incidental benefits to me. Granted, they're pretty good incidental benefits, but that's not what started me down the cloth diapering road.

It all started when I had my IUD put in. Most women don't have periods at all with an IUD in (lucky  bitches), but I had one every month like clockwork. Oh sure, it was reassuring that I wasn't pregnant and all that other happy crap, but I had been using one of those Pills where you only had a period every 3 months, so this whole every 28 days thing was not going over well.

As the months went on, I noticed that I kept getting these rashes during my period, and wow did they hurt. It occurred to me that it could be my pads that were causing this horribly painful rash, essentially giving me diaper rash. (And apparently I'm not the only one) Needless to say, this did not improve my mood re: the monthly periods.

I forget how I first heard about Lunapads, but once this started happening I was looking at them harder. The hesitation is similar to the hesitation new parents face when they think about cloth diapering: the up-front cost is not cheap. During one particularly painful bout, however, I bit the bullet and bought the Pads & Pantyliners Intro Kit and a couple wet bags.

source

Once I started using them, no more rash!! It was amazing! Once I started using them, I was angry with myself for not just buying them before. I also find them to be a lot more absorbant than my old disposables too. They're thicker, sure, but I'm ok with that. C bleached them once, and I was worried that would affect the absorbancy, but it hasn't.

Speaking of, washing them isn't nearly as gross as it seems. The kit lasts me through my whole cycle, so I keep them all in a wet bag until the end and then just dump the whole thing in the washer (using regular detergent). If I really cared, I'd scrub the stains out, but my feelings toward that are similar to my feelings toward making the bed (what's the point?). I'd like to have a couple more, just to have, and I'll need some different ones for post-partum, so I'm already planning my next purchase. Just need to suck it up again and spend the money!

So that's it, my friends. A bit of ick for your morning :) I just felt the need to evangelize a bit about my love for cloth items that go on one's crotch, be it diapers or maxi pads.