(Totally not my diaper or my baby)
Do you celebrate Earth Day? Do you go on a walk outside or purchase some “green” items?
Before I became a mom who cloth diapers her baby, Earth Day was a flippant holiday to me. Images of tie-dye, dream-catchers, rawhide bracelets, and long walks in the woods filled my mind when I heard the words “Earth Day.” Those items and activities are just not of interest to me; therefore I paid no attention to this minor holiday. And then, once pregnant, I discovered Earth Day sales. Game changer!
Last year, I bought the newborn bundle of gDiapers.
This year, I upped my game and I expanded my “celebrations” from just purchasing [a lot more] cloth diapers and accessories to also participating in the Great Cloth Diaper Change.
Full confession: I actually spent a lot of money because I had no idea that there would be so many great sales until a week or two before Earth Day! I also fully [yet tangentially] blame the Flats and Handwashing Challenge. It is because of this challenge that I browsed the online cloth retailers looking for flats and covers and found so many intriguing items beyond just my shopping list. And then, in order to be a good consumer, I researched the most interesting items and read all the blog reviews. Man, cloth diapering is a rabbit hole that I completely fell down! My first big purchase from Nicki’s Diapers was delivered yesterday, my little order from Abby’s Lane is out for delivery [totally stalking the mailman right now as I type this], and my completely unjustifiable order from Lil Tulips should arrive tomorrow. *gulp* I actually think my next purchase needs to be from IKEA. Now I need a far bigger place to organize, store, and/or display my stash!
But I digress…
The other part of my Earth Celebrations was the Great Cloth Diaper Change. I don’t even remember how I heard about this, but I eventually found a local event and signed up via Facebook. The idea of meeting up with other cloth diapering mamas seemed like a good idea and, as a stay-at-home mom, the idea of leaving the house and doing something social seemed splendid. Clearly, I need more hobbies. My husband – who is pretty much a saint – was willing to join me. We arrived at the event fairly early. The event was hosted by a local cloth diaper store; there were a few vendors and a goody bag for the first twenty-five attendees, plus the entire store was on sale. My husband and I browsed the diapers and checked out the other baby carriers (a Tula Free-to-Grow was spotted!). I wish I weren’t such an introvert, but I totally stuck next to my husband the entire time. All the mamas seemed to know each other and the hour between 10 am and 11 am passed slowly. The actual diaper change went really quickly – it was over in five minutes! Afterwards, there was a raffle with some really nice prizes. Overall, while the event itself was slightly underwhelming, it was a good experience and I am glad we went. Next time, I won’t show up quite so early though.
Did you ever participate in the Great Cloth Diaper Change? When you get together at a cloth diaper event, do you all really know each other?
Oh, and if you took advantage of the Earth Day sales, what was your favorite item you purchased? I am super curious for next year!
Flats Challenge Accepted 