gdiapers. eh.

we're back from our trip! lots of fun was had. lucy, at 9 weeks old, is already an excellent camper. one of my favorite moments was waking up in the middle of the night, with lucy all snuggled up in my arms. looking up at the sky through the mesh ceiling of our tent, big sky all full of bright stars. music was drifting down from somewhere far up in the hills--a peaceful, instrumental version of what i think was the star spangled banner. beautiful, ephemeral music, floating through the air. as i was about to drift back off to sleep, i glanced at lucy nestled in my shoulder. she was wide awake, staring up at the sky, completely quiet. watching stars fall, i suppose. it was lovely.

anyway.

not so lovely are the gdiapers. well, that's not exactly true. gdiapers are great for pee. lucy is still breastfed, so her poo is super runny. which makes the gdiapers a not-so-super option. it's a lotta work.

here's how this 3-layer diaper functions:

cloth outer layer: acts like a cover. is not waterproof. not disposable.
vinyl inner layer: waterproof. holds insert in place. snaps into outer layer. not disposable.
inner insert: nests inside vinyl layer. looks like a big ol' maxi pad. absorbs liquid without the use of plastic/chemicals. disposable/flushable/compostable.

the issue with the gdiapers is that when baby poos, poo gets onto the vinyl insert. in order to get baby cleaned up, you've got to change that layer. snapping out the messy one and snapping in a new one takes a bit of work. then you've got to stuff the new pad into the inner insert. all this while baby squirms and wiggles and kicks. if the cloth outer layer happens to get dirty, it needs to be washed before it can be used again.

our cloth diapers are very much like disposables, in that you take them off as a whole piece, and throw them into the diaper pail. pocket diapers need to be unstuffed, but that can be done at any time. the g's just seem a lot more complicated. not knowing this, i packed enough diapers to see us through about 2.5 days of camping. i had no choice but to use the g's, as we were gone for 4 days. it was a real hassle at times and i certainly wouldn't do it that way again.

i imagine that gdiapers are like anything... once you get used to working them, it gets easier. and i think that they'd work much better with firmer poo. i love the fact that you can flush the dirties and compost the pee ones. i also think that could be a good alternative for those who can't do cloth because of access to laundry facilities. but as of now, i have to say that they aren't for us. i'll use through what we've got left when i know she's not likely to poo. and i won't rebuy. sorry to say it. i promise, i wanted to love them.