How to wash modern cloth nappies

There is a lot of talk about how to wash your cloth nappies in internet land, and as with everything on the internet, there's plenty of nonsense mixed into the good advice.

I have recently discovered the Fluff Love University website, which I consider really good advice. It has heaps of really in-depth info about cloth nappy cleaning, along with a well-attended Facebook page offering tailored advice to those with problems. The most frequent problem seems be people using either not enough detergent or detergent that is too weak, which can lead to (among other things) ammonia burn on your baby's bottom from urine building up in the nappies. Severely suboptimal!

Because I wouldn't wish that on any baby (or parent) I thought I'd share our washing routine. This is based on the principles found on the Fluff Love Uni site (though we had this mostly in place before I discovered the site), and works well for us - we have very little nappy rash, our nappies don't stink (unless, uh, they have good reason to) and the process is very easy.

1. Remove excess solids if required. 

I know, ew, but it's important. This is only relevant once your baby is eating actual food, as before then their output is fully water soluble. There are various methods for this; the easiest is using disposable liners, which you can then bin (pro tip from plumbers: don't put these in the toilet if you can help it - can cause blocked drains). Other options include flushing the nappy (or washable liner) in the loo; using a nappy sprayer; or using some kind of scraping tool.

We prefer to do this soon after the nappy change but depending on your preferences and setup you can wait until you're putting the wash on.

Now that we've got the worst bit out of the way...

2. Put nappies in washing machine

This step is easy, especially if you use a bin liner wetbag you can just upend into the machine.

3. Add detergent

Preferably without fabric softeners (as they coat fibres to keep 'em soft, so can inhibit absorbency), but otherwise pick your favourite (or cheapest) supermarket brand. You want your nappies to get clean so a good detergent, and the recommended amount, is important here. Detergent doesn't build up in nappies so don't be shy! If you're worried about cleanliness Persil is the Consumer NZ choice for best laundry detergent.

4. Pre rinse

If your machine can't do this without adding the detergent you might need to reverse these two steps. This step removes most of the soiling from the nappies so that the cleaning step can get a better clean. Some people skip this and have no trouble, but it makes sense to me that a quick rinse first will get better results so we do.

5. Wash 

Ideally you'd do a warm wash but many people have success with cold. We tend to do ours at 40C. Evidently temperatures over 60C can damage PUL (the waterproof stuff) over time so best avoid the 95 degree cycle. Don't skimp on the wash but no need to go overboard either - keep it simple.

Many machines can have the pre-rinse programmed in at the beginning of the wash cycle so that steps 4 and 5 merge together - as if it wasn't already easy enough!

6. Dry

On the clothesline is ideal but inside on a rack or in the dryer is fine too. The sun has magical bleaching powers but its antibacterial abilities are compromised since the UV-C rays you need for that are blocked by the atmosphere (i.e. make sure your nappies are clean before hanging them out - well, duh!).


So that's how we do it - a bit boring but hopefully useful to someone out there wondering if they need to buy fancy-pants cloth nappy "safe" detergent.

Do you have any tips to add?

Naming a baby - first name edition

New Zealand's most popular baby names of 2014 have just been announced by the Department of Internal Affairs, which I always find interesting and particularly so this year, since we contributed to the list.

Naming a baby is a pretty daunting undertaking - it's kind of a long-term decision. We treated it like we do most other things, which is to say, we read all sorts of information and looked at (too much) data and made lists. Not everyone will take our approach but I thought I'd share our thought process.

We wanted a name we both liked
The obvious first! I read somewhere that you never realise how many people you don't like until you try to name a baby. We didn't veto too many this way but it was interesting how easy it was to strike quite a lot of names out immediately as one or the other of us just didn't like it.

We wanted something easy to spell and pronounce
Keeping it simple... But actually we haven't quite succeeded because it turns out that there is another way to pronounce our boy's first name that we weren't aware of until after we'd given it to him. It wouldn't have changed our choice but we thought we were safe on that front!

It had to work with our surname
A friend said to me the best way to test a name was to go to the back door and yell it into the yard a few times. The neighbours might think you're nuts but you'll get to hear how it sounds... And let's be honest, that's about the only time you use middle names, right? We also were keen to avoid awkward initials and I had a weird obsession with the rhythm which, once we'd chosen a short first name, had me seeking a middle name with at least three syllables. I don't know either. I'm weird.

We wanted something that wasn't too popular... Or too rare
Picky, I know. We found a really cool tool called NameVoyager which maps popularity of names over time - it's US data so not quite applicable here but still very interesting. Go and type in your name - you might be surprised at the trends (for example, in the late 1800s Elizabeth was sometimes used as a boys' name). We actually used the graph from this site in our birth announcement. We're nerds.

Closer to home we checked out the DIA name lists, and struck out a few names for popularity.

Though as with any decision where there are too many options one needs some arbitrary conditions to narrow the field, the popularity condition is not really terribly important these days - even the most popular names aren't used by that many people. Young Sir's name comes in at #89 on the DIA list, with 49 other little New Zealanders sharing it with him. Even when added to the longer version of the name (#63) there are still only 121 kids his age in the country with that name, so the chance of one being in his class are pretty slim. Apparently in the US in 1880 25% of boys were given one of the top four names; now it's less than 4%. We're all a whole lot more creative than we used to be!

If you're looking for a baby name sometime soon you might find some of this useful - or you might have a completely different set of criteria. So long as you end up with something that works for your child it doesn't really matter!

If you have kids how did you choose their names?

BumGenius Freetime AIO Review

This is one of the biggest nappy brands, and was the nappy often rated top of American AIO reviews (which is to say, most of the reviews I could find online) so it definitely needed to be trialled. The Freetime is made from synthetic fibres, and has a sister nappy called the Elemental, whose absorbency is from natural fibres - I had assumed when I purchased the Freetime that the inners were the same design but that turns out not to be the case, so if you're interested in the Elemental this review is not likely to be very relevant (and I might try it out somewhere down the line). 

Anyway, on to the review.

Nappy construction: PUL outer, microfibre inner with wicking microsuede lining. Two sets of domes to adjust rise for smaller babies. My 7kg baby fits the middle setting well. Laundry tabs are actually very soft squares of fabric so that even if they rub against your baby’s skin they’ll be comfortable but I prefer the proper loop stuff as it holds on better. Two soaker flaps are attached at either end - this makes for quick drying but also makes removing solids trickier. The double flap system means no troubles with unwieldy soakers on smaller settings as they overlap in the middle. Each soaker has a pocket on the back but these are small so probably more for airflow than stuffing. The seam joining the absorbent inner to the PUL allows the absorbent fabric to show if you're not very careful putting it on - which means wicking and leaking is more possible than I'd like! 

Nappy weight (dry): 132g

Price: $34.50 (middle of the range)

Ease of use: Love the fit - great stretchy waistband and seems to be well designed (apart from the potential leak zone in the leg)

Absorbency: ~254ml – at the lower end of the range but still likely to be plenty for most babies. 

Drying time: Very quick – within one hour on the line on a sunny day.

Leakproofness: Average - potential for wicking at the leg meant I did experience a leak with this nappy. This might be able to be avoiding with careful adjusting at each change but I'm opting for AIOs as an easy option and want anyone to be able to change my child's nappies without a lesson so this is a dealbreaker for me. Other than the leg the fit was great so waistband leaks would be unlikely. 

Conclusion: This nappy is made from quality materials but unfortunately the probability of leaks takes it right off my list. It comes in lots of awesome prints and colours and the price isn't too high, so if you think you're more patient making sure the nappy is on each time it could work well - but I think there are better options out there. 

BumGenius Freetime nappies are available from Nappy Heaven for $34.50 each ($36.95 for prints). 

Great (and not so great) newborn gifts

I hope you've had a marvellous Christmas and a bit of a break somewhere in there. We've just arrived home from time spent with family, which was lovely but glad now to be back home. We have another week and a half before we're back to work so looking forward to some "just us" family time.

Since we've just got home I'm catching up on my life admin, and I seem to know lots of people with babies due in the next few months, which is awesome but has got me thinking (now that I've been on the receiving end) about the best gifts to give someone with a newborn.

Like many elements of babyland (and other kinds of gift-giving), baby gift concepts are often overtaken by convincing advertising and completely overlook actual benefit. So I thought I'd list out what I think some of the better options for baby gifts are, and some of the things I will henceforth be avoiding giving with my newfound mumtelligence.

Great gifts

• Woolly hats, cotton beanies and sunhats - it's nice to have a few of each so they can be stashed in convenient places. 
• Knitted cardigans and vests - lovely to have some cute woollies! We loved everything that was knitted for us. But do think about size and season - preferably avoid newborn as they won't go out much and will usually be bundled in a blanket when they do. :-) 
• Tasty things for Mum & Dad - definitely nice as a new parent to know you haven't been forgotten, and it's great to have some treats on hand for the endless feeds in the early days. Up the ante and bake some lactation cookies if you're feeling inspired. 
• Lamington socks - the best socks! And since they're kinda pricey but completely adorable a pair of these is a great small gift, or couple with a hat or something for Mum & Dad to round it out. 
• Your favourite cloth nappy - obviously I don't mean your actual favourite one, but a new one of your favourite kind... Or, even better if you can swing it, a voucher for a nappy retailer and a loan of some of your stash so the recipient can try before they buy. 

  

  My favourite cloth nappy -
  Thirsties One Size All In One

• Cloth wipes - even if not using cloth nappies these can be used for any number of purposes, and if you're handy with a sewing machine you can make these very cheaply and easily. 
• Cloth breast pads - might depend on your relationship to the recipient as this might be weird with someone not so close, but I was given some of these, they're great, and I wouldn't have thought of getting them myself as disposable is the default. As above, very easy to DIY too. 
• Time - cliche but true. Anything that helps is awesome, whether it's giving a hand conquering Mt Laundry or delivering a pre-cooked meal. Maybe hold off on babysitting offers for a while though - mileage may vary but maternal hormones usually make new Mums want to stick close to their little people. 

Things to think twice about 

(I'm not saying these should never be given, just that perhaps a little more consideration should be applied before you purchase)

• Newborn clothing - most babies grow out of this very quickly and some never fit the newborn size at all. Larger sizes are great - 0-3 months will fit most babies pretty quickly and sizes from 6 months up last much longer as the pace of growth slows dramatically. 
• Booties - super popular as a gift, but (honestly) not that practical. We were given heaps and didn't get much wear out of them - Young Sir tended to kick them off within seconds, so we mostly used his Lamington socks, which stay firmly put. There are exceptions - some clever designs solve for fallingoffitis but in general I'd steer clear. The same goes for baby shoes (but some people are willing to put up with the hassle for the cute factor). 
• Baby jeans. Super cute (and I gave these to quite a few people in my pre-baby life, sorry friends with older babies than mine!) but very impractical. I bought a pair for Young Sir and he wore them once - they were so annoying to put on and take off. Next time perhaps we'll go with baby jeggings instead! 
• Stuffed toys - cute but that's about it. Cool teething toys are a much better bet if you want to go with something to play with - but as with jeans, some people do like stuffed toys so know your audience (and we got one that was super cool and meaningful so again, not a solid rule!).

So those are my thoughts... What do you think? Anything you'd add to or remove from either list?

Naming a baby - the surname edition

With many different family configuration options in our flexible world, there are lots of options for family surnames. This is something I still think on quite a bit, even though we've made (and are happy with) our family name decision so I thought I'd share our thinking - and I'd love to hear your thoughts.

As with many of the options available in life this is one where different answers are right for different people (and even the same people at different times).

I consider myself a feminist (as does my husband) and we're both pretty liberal in general - apart from the fact that I am better endowed to grow and (initially) feed an infant, we're equals (just in case any male readers are feeling left out of baby growing, don't worry, it has both pros and cons, and as my husband helpfully informed our antenatal group, it is technically possible* for men to breastfeed... ). So when we were planning our wedding, the surname factor was extensively discussed.

In the end I adopted his family name. Here were the deciding factors for us:

We wanted our whole family to share the same name
This is definitely not required, but seems easy, and if you've taken anything from this blog hopefully it's that generally I like the easy option. ;-) Mainly this just removes inconsequential but slightly awkward confusions from everyday life - like letters addressed to the wrong combination of names, or teachers who assume you share a surname with your child.

We didn't want a long name
My previous surname is nine letters long. Although that doesn't rule out hyphenation as an option it seemed unwieldy.

He was happy to adopt my name
I'm a contrarian. If he had insisted I take his name I would have refused. But he was happy to so it could have been decided by a coin toss if we hadn't come to an agreement (perhaps that's what we should have done!).

Hybrid names didn't really work for us
We did spend quite a while thinking about ways to mash our names together to make a new name that represented us - but the options seemed likely to make us (and our then hypothetical progeny) a laughingstock.

I can completely see how others could come to opposite conclusions on any or all of our criteria - that's what makes this such an interesting world to live in! But that was our logic, and it works for us.

What's your family surname configuration and why did you choose to do it that way?




*This would likely require some hormone treatment and a well above average commitment to the cause - but the potential is there. He hasn't offered though! 

Imagine OSFM Stay Dry AIO

This nappy’s low price intrigued me – I generally believe that you get what you pay for so I didn’t have great hopes but as it was only just over half the price of the most expensive nappies I was trialling it seemed worth a shot. And I have to say, given the price I think it’s a pretty sound nappy, though not one I’ll be stocking up on. 

Here’s the lowdown:

Nappy construction: PUL outer, fleece inner with fleece-lined microfibre soaker. Two sets of domes to adjust rise for smaller babies. My 7kg baby fits the middle setting well. Laundry tabs are actually small pieces of fleece - this means even if they rub against your baby’s skin they’ll be comfortable but I prefer the proper loop stuff personally. The soaker pad is attached at the front and this is actually what I’d call an AI2 (All In 2) as it is attached by snaps – but it never came off in the wash for me so acted as an AIO (I guess it gives you flexibility to upgrade to a more absorbent soaker if you need to). The soaker is a reasonably good fit but you need to be vigilant that it’s fully contained once the nappy is done up as I occasionally ended up with bits poking out. Lining is fully attached (no pocket) so if boosting was required the additional pads would just be laid in the nappy. The PUL feels as nice to me as that on the most expensive nappies I tried.

Nappy weight (dry): 111g

Price: $22.50 – very inexpensive for an AIO!

Ease of use: Unfortunately a bit tricky to put on snugly – we found that we always had to make adjustments when putting it on to avoid gappiness. This is really the only substantive problem with this nappy and as you can spend a little extra time making sure it is on well it’s completely workable – but perhaps not so good for other carers, e.g. daycare.

Absorbency: ~292ml – middle of the field and would be plenty for most babies.

Drying time: Reasonably quick – within two hours on the line on a sunny day.

Leakproofness: Good – no leaks experienced with snug fit – just takes a little more effort to get the fit right.

Conclusion: This nappy is a strong contender and does everything a nappy needs to at an extremely good price. It’s probably best suited to people who will mostly be the ones in control of nappy changes themselves, due to the slightly tricky fit, and does take a little longer to dry. It also only comes in four prints – but really that’s a minor concern in my book (and the Ring A Ding print pictured above is perfectly acceptable!).


Imagine Staydry AIO nappies are available from Nappy Heaven for $22.50. 

There is no normal!

The thing I hated most when pregnant was being told there was no normal. "They're all different..." "You can't plan for it..." "You just have to take it as it comes..."

I like to know facts, figures, stats, so this approach doesn't really work for me. I like to think I'm pretty good at not getting too attached to specifics like, say, an estimated due date (it helps that Young Sir arrived a few days before his, of course!) but framing up a general expectation so I'm not taken completely by surprise. Whether or not I succeed in not getting attached is somewhat subjective, but at the least I feel more in control when I've got some facts behind me. 

The 'no normal' phrase started niggling me when we were learning about labour at our antenatal class. I understand why it was used - there is huge variation in how things pan out - but the lack of any hard numbers (give me the range and maybe some percentages and I'm happy) made it very hard to understand what to expect.

It didn't stop at antenatal class though - I often ask questions in order to obtain the data I'm interested in, and was told many times in pregnancy to stop worrying (which I wasn't) or that I wouldn't be able to use data to predict my own outcomes (not my plan). My midwife was extremely taken aback when I asked her the complications most likely to occur in my labour - she didn't want to scare me (and the explanations she gave were fortunately not relevant to us) but knowing the path for resolving the stuff most likely to go wrong calmed me. 

Between my incessant (and probably annoying!) questions and because I read a lot about every current obsession (which pregnancy certainly was for me at the time) I was reasonably well informed. The only bit of my labour that was in any way surprising to me was the length of the pushing stage - and apparently mine (about 2 hours) was very normal for a first timer. But I have heard plenty of stories from women who had a really rough time because they had no idea what to expect - and I wonder if that might be helped a bit if real data was provided.  

Anyway, it is true what they say - there is so much variation that there is no "normal" in pregnancy, childbirth and parenting... But there are still averages! 

(Emily Oster's excellent book "Expecting Better " helped me with data on the pregnancy side and I highly recommend it if you are like me and want to understand risks and probabilities)

Do you like to know the numbers or are you happy just taking life as it comes?