If you want more information on how to potty train your infant, baby, or toddler (or just how to cloth diaper - economic and eco-friendly!), here are the resources I use and love!
The Best EC Resources
EC Books:
Early-Start Potty Training by Linda Sonna, Ph.D. and
The Diaper-Free Baby by Christine Gross-Loh
EC Supplies:
This is the BOMB. Absolutely the best. You can try other models with soft inserts as the kids get bigger, but I won’t. I’ll just get the Bjorn Baby Potty (the slightly bigger size) until she’s big enough for the real toilet. It’s been too easy.
Leg warmers: a must for EC-ing babies. Here’s how to make some. And coming up: the net’s Best Baby Leg-Warmer Tutorials!
EC Websites:
For Clean and Easy Cloth Diapers:
Laundry Supplies:
For laundering cloth diapers the no-stain, no-fuss way (more on how to use this stuff in Early-Start Potty Training – or you can view the following websites or email me): Borax, Baking Soda, Country Save, white vinegar & appropriate scoop. I have a front-loading machine. I use a 1/2 Tablespoon and fill it 3/4 with detergent. See that box? I loved the way it cleaned our clothes and made my daughter’s mild exczema disappear, so I started using it (1/2 scoop of the included scooper per load) with all our laundry, and not just the diapers. Can we say “long lasting?” That little box lasted our family of four an entire year. It’s half the size of a Tide box, and we do four to six loads a week – PLUS four to five loads of diapers (two cycles each, so that’s 8-10 loads) – Well over 100 loads in one box. Amazing. I love Country Save.
Now, if you have some reaction to Country Save and it’s a known issue, please feel free to let people know in the comment section by saying, “People with x condition should not use Country Save because of y.” But most of the world can use it without any problem – no enzymes, no phosphorus. Love it.
We call enzyme detergent “Butt Munching Detergent” because of what eco-friendly, non-phosphorus, enzyme-only detergents did to our cloth diapered babies butts. Enzymes break down organic material on liquid contact. If there is any residue in your diaper (and there always is), enzymes will proceed to munch and break down the um, material in the diaper, and that includes organic material like sensitive little bottoms. I’m not sure why it makes such a difference in a closed diaper vs. the rest of your clothing and body, but we stay away from the Polluting Phosphates and the Butt Munching Enzymes. Just FYI.
If you’re buying diapers, the best way to go is Green Mountain Diapers. And if you’re considering it, send me a line. I’d be happy to set you up with everything you’ll need based on whether you’re full-time diapering, part-time potty training, or full on EC-ing. My third baby cost us a full $80 to cloth diaper. OH YEAH. I love going to the grocery store and NOT spending $12-18 per week on diapers. Thank Providence for front-loading, water-saving, money-saving modern cloth diapers. No toilets to swish in, no stinky smells. Ah. Just clean babies and happy mommies.
Books on Cloth Diapering: (Please submit your favorites! I found Early-Start Potty Training had enough info for me.)
Websites: www.greenmountainclothdiapers.com
Other Resources: I highly recommend a high-pressure sprayer, if you don’t already have a laundry sink (or sprayer in your kitchen). Better than Shout or Oxi-Clean is blasting the mud, grass, and poo (yes, I said poo) out of the fibers with a shot of high-pressure water. Don’t bother dipping or soaking your diapers in the toilet and scrubbing them together (EWWWW!). That just rubs the poo into the fibers permanently. Instead, get a sprayer for your laundry basin or buy this very convenient kit for your bathroom – the bucket sits on your toilet and this sprayer is the best out there!) (Bonus: no stooping). Spray it out with cold water, flush, throw your diapers in a diaper bag (no standing water for babies to drown in) and if you have a slight discoloration, sprinkle a little Borax on the stain before putting it in the bag. Then do your diaper laundry as recommended, and you’ll find white diapers and no smell every time. You can also add a half or full cup of plain white distilled vinegar to your rinse cycle if you have a lingering smell (that usually means you’re using too much soap or not getting a clean rinse… or waiting too long to wash them).
Okay, I admit it. I now use a high-pressure sprayer on nearly all my stains – mud, blood, lipstick, ink, paint, oil… and if spraying doesn’t take it out, rubbing a little baking soda, a little method dish detergent and scrubbing then spraying always does. I just took exterior home latex paint out of my daughter’s shirt today.
Other Potty-Training Methods
And if you’re potty training older children (older than 2 years), buy lots of bribing treats, make charts with stickers, pray for patience, be positive, read everything out there and decide that it’s all bogus and above all, be consistent. And pray. Bribe. Repeat.
Did I already mention praying? You’re going to need it.
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