How to buy used cloth diapers

Buying used cloth diapers is a great way to test out if you are interested in making the switch, or as a way to build up your existing stash. But sometimes it may seem a little daunting. Fear not, here are a few tips on what to look for when shopping craigslist or consignment sales.

• Look at the velcro. If you know how to use a sewing machine, replacing worn out velcro can be very easy.
• Look at the elastic on the legs. If there isn't really any spring in them, then you'll be looking at replacing those too (not as easy as replacing velcro)
• Snaps - are all the snaps there?
• Smell - clean cloth diapers are not supposed to smell. 
• Stains - most stains are easily sunned out. But once the baby starts eating solid foods, there are some stains that are harder to sun out than others. Stains shouldn't necessarily be a deterrent but they can give you a clue as to how they were taken cared for. 
• Condition of the PUL - any "snags" in the material or tears? Take a good look around each of the snaps if it is a diaper with snaps. Sometimes pulling too hard on the snaps will begin to tear the PUL (see picture below). Torn PUL = high chance of leaking.

Questions to ask when buying used cloth diapers:

•  Price: Used cloth diapers hold their value pretty well. Have an idea of what that brand of cloth diaper sells new.
• Type of detergent used
• Air or machine dried
  
  • Machine drying is not necessarily a bad thing - many companies say it's ok to machine dry. However drying at too high of heat for too long and delaminate the PUL and you've got yourself a diaper that doesn't work. Air drying may take a little longer but it helps prolong the life of the diaper.

What happens if you buy a diaper and it is smelly?
Try "stripping" your diapers to start with. "Stripping" means removing any build up in the diaper. All About Cloth Diapers has a good tutorial on cloth diaper stripping. I personally have used the "blue dawn" method when I was given some hand-me-down diapers and after rashes that don't clear up in a day.

There are a ton of cloth diaper retailers who sell "seconds" (which are brand new diapers that may not completely meet all QA standards, but are still useable) or have clearance sales too. My favorite way to get quality used diapers is through the Cotton Babies $1 Diaper Sale. You read that right. Every once in a while, Cotton Babies purges its stashes and sells used cloth diapers for $1-$10. So if you live near St. Louis or Vancouver, WA - you should keep an eye on their facebook and blog for when their next event will be. 

It may seem gross to buy used diapers.. but think about it. Cloth diapers are meant to be used over and over, and many families use the same stash on multiple kids if the diaper holds up. So as long as you keep a few things in mind and feel comfortable with the source you are buying the diapers from, there's no reason why not to save a few bucks and go the "pre-loved" route!

Have you ever bought used cloth diapers? What was your experience? Would you add anything to this list?

ABCs of Me

Thanks Sarah for sharing this! This type of post reminds me of filling out these "surveys" via email in middle school (and then forwarding to everyone) and later on myspace.. Don't act like you never did one either!

{A} Age: 26

{B} Bed size: King. It started out just for Adam and I..then we got Romeo, and then he got too old to jump up. Then we got Squirt. Then we got Penny.. and that's when Squirt was no longer welcome up ;)

{C} Chore you hate: folding the laundry. I don't mind doing the laundry, I don't mind stuffing cloth diapers. But I hate folding laundry. To the point where the only folded items in our house are linens. Everything else is either stuffed in a drawer or hung.

{D} Dogs: Romeo and Squirt. Also known as "Poof-poof" and "Squirty McWigglebottom" 

{E} Essential start to your day: Snuggles with my Pennypot!

{F} Favorite color: Lately purple. Historically - pink and blue.

{G} Gold or Silver: Silver

{H} Height: 5'5

{I} Instruments you play: I played the baritone sax all the way through my freshman year of college. I was a music major that first year, where at the end I learned that although I was good in high school, college is where all the other good kids go and I was not that good in comparison ;)

{J} Job Title: SAHM!

{K} Kids: Penelope - 10 months. Furry-kids: Squirt 2 1/2 years, Romeo *almost* 13!

{L} Live: WA State

{M} Married: July 4 2009 

{N} Nicknames: B

{O} Overnight hospital stays: None, besides when I was born.

{P} Pet peeve: Leg bouncing. It makes me nervous. And Adam does it out of boredom!

{Q} Quote: When life gives you lemons, make lemonaid!

{R} Righty or Lefty: Left

{S} Siblings: Two younger bros  - Nick and Paul

{T} Time you wake up: Anywhere between 6-9a. Depending on Miss Penny's whims that day.

{U} University attended: Western Washington University

{V} Vegetables you dislike: Radishes

{W} What makes you run late: Nursing Penny really quickly before running out the door..

{X} X-Rays you've had: Teeth and shoulder, I think. 

{Y} Yummy food: Baked goods. I am totally a sucker for cakes and cookies!

{Z} Zoo animal favorite: Orcas

Will you play along?
Pick your favorite letter and leave me a comment :)
If you keep a blog and make a post out of this, leave me your link!

Garlic Parmesan Roasted Cauliflower

Cauliflower is one of those lesser appreciated veggies. Too often it is simply served as a piece to a veggie platter, lacking any enthusiasm.  Growing up, my mom would steam a head of cauliflower and top it with breadcrumbs and butter. YUM!

Recently I hosted two large family holiday meals and decided that I wanted to have a few sides that weren't the traditional-all-American holiday side. You know what I mean - candied yams, mashed potatoes, green beans, rolls with butter. So I went out on a limb and whipped up a side that was a little out of the ordinary.

I mean, where can you go wrong with garlic and Parmesan? Even the cauliflower skeptics tried it and were impressed. And preparation is super easy.

You will need:

• 1 head of cauliflower
• 4 T of Olive oil
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• Salt and pepper (to taste)
• 1/3 c shredded Parmesan
• You will need a preferably metal baking dish, lined with tin foil
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees

You will do:
1. Cut off the stem and leaves. Separate the florets, and wash thoroughly.

2. Slice the florets to about finger width (this isn't rocket science, approximations are ok).

3. Microwave the olive oil and garlic for about 20 seconds - enough to get the olive oil warm. This will allow the oil and garlic to marinate and release the garlic flavor.
4. In a large bowl gently toss the warmed olive oil and cauliflower slices to coat the cauliflower evenly.
5. Arrange the cauliflower on the lined baking dish in a single layer. It doesn't have to be perfect, and they can touch each other.

6. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper over the cauliflower.

7. Place in your preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes. Take a spatula and mix the cauliflower around a little. Then evenly distribute the shredded Parmesan over the cauliflower, and let it bake for another 10 minutes.

And voila! So delicious, soft yet crispy where it needs to be. 

 I'm going to come out and be absolutely shameless here - yes, I did pick the baked bits of cheese from the pan and savored their salty crunchy goodness. Feel free to do the same.

My sweets: 10 months

Dear Penny,

While I was pregnant, I had a serious problem with the sweets. No joke. I used to say that you were taking all the sweetness out of me, so I needed to make up for it. You are definitely my little sugar bug, and although I don't regret sharing my sweets with you, I have to pay a high price for it at the dentist.. 

Your mama tries to be brave, but the dentist is definitely her least favorite place to be. And she's going to have to visit him A LOT in the next few months.

But back to you -

This month you've...

• started standing on your own! I thought you might be walking too, but these were just you attempting to gain balance.
• learned how to clap. At first you just fist bumped yourself, and then moved to having one hand open and the other in a fist, now it's full on baby claps :) You mostly clap when you want something.
• New foods: roasted butternut squash, pasta with a little bit of sauce, scrambled eggs (a hit!), roasted cauliflower, ham and cuties. Pears and chicken remain as top favorite. We've also pulled out our juicer and have experimented with different flavors, such apple/carrot, and apple/pear.
• We thought you might have a dairy allergy, after giving you some dehydrated yogurt drops you broke out in hives. It wasn't the first time you had yogurt before, so it was a little strange. After a few days we tried plain yogurt without any problems, so it must have been a fluke!
• expanded your babbling vocabulary. No new words, but we are still working on "up," identifying 'dada,' where our nose is, and 'woof' when we see the doggies. 
• kept mama and daddy guessing as to when more teeth will come.. but right now we're still at DEUX DENTS.
• weighed in at 18 lbs 6 oz, 28.5 inches.
• developed this amazingly high pitched little girl scream. It can be deafening!

In less than 2 months, you will be a YEAR old! We've got to get that birthday party planned!

Love always,
Mama and Daddy

Fresh off the clothes line: Buttons Diapers and a giveaway!

I've been doing my very best to patiently wait for my opportunity to try Buttons Diapers. I met the owner, Amy, and her adorable daughter at my nephew's birthday party and a few months later a little birdie told me that Amy would be starting her own cloth diaper line. To which I squealed in delight - I love that cloth is becoming more popular and that I actually kinda-sorta know the family behind the label.

Buttons Diapers is a family company based in the Pacifc Northwest. The company was born because Amy wanted to make cloth diapers that were well-made, affordable for everyone, and simple to use. (Using cloth should be easy, right? Why clutter your busy-mama life with more work?!)


I am a stay-at-home mom of one 18-month-old, and one due in July 2013. :) I love cloth diapering. Also, I am an old-fashioned-girl at heart, and find joy in doing things the old-fashioned way (with new technology, of course!). After using a few different types of cloth diapers on our daughter, my husband and I decided that we preferred the "hybrid" system. This two-part system consists of: a waterproof cover (which can be used multiple times before washing... thus, saving money and energy) and an absorbent insert. We LOVE having inserts that snap in, so they don't move around inside the diaper. 

We hope you will love Buttons Diapers as much as we do, and would LOVE to hear from you!

~Amy   (amy@buttonsdiapers.com)

This system is a diaper cover with a snap in insert. The majority of my stash is pocket diapers, but I also rock the diaper cover with Flip inserts every now and then to give my pockets a rest. I was excited to try these out as I've never used a snap in insert.

At first sight, there already were a few features about this diaper cover that made me give them a thumbs up.

• I love that the cover is 2 layers of PUL. The other covers that I've used (Flip, Blueberry and Thirsties) are all one layer and I just like the thicker feel.
• The covers are one size, so you can adjust the rise as your baby grows. This eliminates buying multiple covers as your baby grows - just buy your stash once and you're done!
• These covers feature a double gusset at the legs and also extra elastic at the belly button and backside. What a customized ft! I've had trouble in the past with Penny not fitting diaper covers very well and leading to leaks.
• The inserts are by far the thickest, softest pads I have seen for cloth diapers. I also really liked the contour stitch, which reminded me of maxi pads, LOL! They come in small and large, as well as day time and night time thickness. The inserts are unique in the way that you can stack them for more absorption. The night time insert has snaps on both sides so that you can stack a daytime insert for super soaker babies.

The double gussets became worth their weight in gold when I tried Buttons at night time. To be completely honest I was expecting a pee leak because Penny is a side sleeper and it's hard to find any diaper that doesn't leak from time to time. Because we still bed-share, waking up on a wet sheet thanks to my sweet pea (haha I made a funny) is not one of my favorite things to do. When I woke up the following morning and found that the sheets were dry I knew this was a good diaper cover. Then a few minutes later as Penny started doing her morning routine of poop-yoga (yes, I did just say that, don't act like you haven't seen your child do it either!) I stood back, waiting to see if the cover was going to pass the poop test. And without going into too much detail - yes it did!


My only worry with trying these diapers was that I was worried about being "tied down" with the snaps feature on the covers. It's important to me that my stash is versatile and I can mix and match covers and inserts depending on what we might have planned that day or what is in the laundry at the time. It would be such a shame if I could only use this awesome cover and pads only with each other. So I gave it a shot by using a Flip insert with the Buttons cover (and visa versa) and found that they work well together! Looks like my system has full compatibility!

Are you ready for the best part? Amy has offered a cover and two inserts for one lucky winner! If you've been waiting to try cloth diapers, now is the time!

You can buy Buttons Diapers on Amazon

This giveaway is over - thanks to all for entering! 

Keep an eye out for more Pierogie Mama Giveaways.

Disclaimer: Buttons Diapers provided sample products for me to review, 

however, all opinions expressed are my own. This post may contain affiliate links. If you have any questions or would like to have your product featured, please email me at thepierogiemama@gmail.com 

Fresh off the clothes line: Buttons Diapers and a giveaway!

I've been doing my very best to patiently wait for my opportunity to try Buttons Diapers. I met the owner, Amy, and her adorable daughter at my nephew's birthday party and a few months later a little birdie told me that Amy would be starting her own cloth diaper line. To which I squealed in delight - I love that cloth is becoming more popular and that I actually kinda-sorta know the family behind the label.

Buttons Diapers is a family company based in Mount Vernon, Washington. The company was born because Amy wanted to make cloth diapers that were well-made, affordable for everyone, and simple to use. (Using cloth should be easy, right? Why clutter your busy-mama life with more work?!)


I am a stay-at-home mom of one 18-month-old, and one due in July 2013. :) I love cloth diapering. Also, I am an old-fashioned-girl at heart, and find joy in doing things the old-fashioned way (with new technology, of course!). After using a few different types of cloth diapers on our daughter, my husband and I decided that we preferred the "hybrid" system. This two-part system consists of: a waterproof cover (which can be used multiple times before washing... thus, saving money and energy) and an absorbent insert. We LOVE having inserts that snap in, so they don't move around inside the diaper. 

We hope you will love Buttons Diapers as much as we do, and would LOVE to hear from you!

~Amy   (amy@buttonsdiapers.com)

This system is a diaper cover with a snap in insert. The majority of my stash is pocket diapers, but I also rock the diaper cover with Flip inserts every now and then to give my pockets a rest. I was excited to try these out as I've never used a snap in insert.

At first sight, there already were a few features about this diaper cover that made me give them a thumbs up.

• I love that the cover is 2 layers of PUL. The other covers that I've used (Flip, Blueberry and Thirsties) are all one layer and I just like the thicker feel.
• The covers are one size, so you can adjust the rise as your baby grows. This eliminates buying multiple covers as your baby grows - just buy your stash once and you're done!
• These covers feature a double gusset at the legs and also extra elastic at the belly button and backside. What a customized ft! I've had trouble in the past with Penny not fitting diaper covers very well and leading to leaks.
• The inserts are by far the thickest, softest pads I have seen for cloth diapers. I also really liked the contour stitch, which reminded me of maxi pads, LOL! They come in small and large, as well as day time and night time thickness. The inserts are unique in the way that you can stack them for more absorption. The night time insert has snaps on both sides so that you can stack a daytime insert for super soaker babies.

The double gussets became worth their weight in gold when I tried Buttons at night time. To be completely honest I was expecting a pee leak because Penny is a side sleeper and it's hard to find any diaper that doesn't leak from time to time. Because we still bed-share, waking up on a wet sheet thanks to my sweet pea (haha I made a funny) is not one of my favorite things to do. When I woke up the following morning and found that the sheets were dry I knew this was a good diaper cover. Then a few minutes later as Penny started doing her morning routine of poop-yoga (yes, I did just say that, don't act like you haven't seen your child do it either!) I stood back, waiting to see if the cover was going to pass the poop test. And without going into too much detail - yes it did!


My only worry with trying these diapers was that I was worried about being "tied down" with the snaps feature on the covers. It's important to me that my stash is versatile and I can mix and match covers and inserts depending on what we might have planned that day or what is in the laundry at the time. It would be such a shame if I could only use this awesome cover and pads only with each other. So I gave it a shot by using a Flip insert with the Buttons cover (and visa versa) and found that they work well together! Looks like my system has full compatibility!

Are you ready for the best part? Amy has offered a cover and two inserts for one lucky winner! If you've been waiting to try cloth diapers, now is the time!

This giveaway is over - thanks to all for entering! 

Keep an eye out for more Pierogie Mama Giveaways.

Disclaimer: Buttons Diapers provided sample products for me to review, 

however, all opinions expressed are my own.  

The Babywearing Workout

I *loved* pregnancy. I loved everything about it, after the first 12 weeks, of course. I loved the beauty of growing another person, I loved the confidence, and most of all.. Lord help me, I loved the food.

I didn't gain a ton of weight. I still felt like a whale at the end, thinking "When am I going to start attracting planetary bodies and keeping my own set of moons??"

Then at about 4 months post partum the weight to literally come sloughing off. It all started when I found that I could comfortably fit into my pre-pregnancy clothes, and a short while later it looked like they were just barely hanging on for dear life. I was excited I was getting awfully close to my high school swimming figure.

However, toned was far from where I was at. Sure, lifting and carrying an increasingly growing baby conditioned my arms.  But going to a gym to get to where I wanted to be physically wasn't an option either. This SAHM needed to find a way to get fit(ish).

That's when I came across The Baby Wearing Workout. It made so much sense! Workout with Penny! It couldn't be more perfect!  So I quickly worked a session into my daily routine. It's so simple how you can incorporate those mama-moves into those normally very boring moments - like when you're holding your baby and waiting for the water to boil, watching TV, on walks, or afternoons where they are having a difficult time falling asleep.

I use an Ergo when working out with Penny. She quickly relaxes as we begin the work out and most of the time is knocked out from the constant motion and close time with me. The only things you need is your baby and a soft carrier (such as an Ergo, Mei Tie or wrap).  I can definitely recommend this work out to other new mamas! This month, Kelli is also hosting a weight loss challenge with her workout.

There's a ton of prizes that will be awarded weekly (winners are based on random, not by weight loss), which include prizes from Smiling Tree Toys, Barlean's, Onya Baby Carriers and so much more. So if you already have a baby carrier (make sure it isn't a "crotch dangler"), check out her workout video - which is affordably priced, especially for the download option, and sign up for the weight loss challenge!

Disclaimer: I was provided the download to workout in order to accurately review.

Holiday Recap

So the whirlwind month of December is over and I feel like a can breathe in a huge sigh of relief,

Don't get me wrong, our family had so much fun.. but to be honest, we've probably been more social in the last 5 weeks than we have all year so it felt like a lot of events crammed into a very short amount of time.

And of course, the holidays means family time...

 Penny and her cousin Pamela are literally two peas in a pod (hahaha I made it punny). Those two girls, although 5 years apart, are definitely going to be inseparable one day. Then you've got Penny's 3 boy cousins, ranging from 9 to 6 months older than her...who better not throw mud and sticks at her when they get older. hrmph. But now that Penny is crawling and pretty much able to fight back, play time with the boys is fun and it's awesome to watch them all interact.

It had been my Christmas wish for Penny to get her two top teeth, which didn't happen.. and then I hoped they would sprout by New Years.. which didn't happen.. So I suppose I can hope that they will come out by her birthday (in two months, so she has time!).