Why I don’t buy cloth diapers that come without support or warranty.

We’re often asked about some of the less expensive cloth diapers on the market, and why we don’t offer them at bynature.ca. When compared to economical options such as Bummis wraps and prefolds or an amazing DUO system such as AMP Diapers, the quality, absorbency and effectiveness does not compare. These high quality systems offer super value, while limiting the frustration parents will have with leaking, poor fit, or fabrics that fall apart over time—all of which will cost more in the long run.

Cloth Diapers are our specialty! We get so much feedback from parents time and time again about other products on the market, products that send them running to us for replacements that will not cause frustration. We aren’t going to sell something that is continuously causing problems for our customers.

Cloth diapers in general have SO much value compared to single-use products. And, many cloth diapers that seem higher priced actually reflect the value of products made ethically and sustainably, not cheaply and without care for workers or the environment. These high value products are also safety tested to the highest standards, so you can be assured you’re buying something that is safe for your little one. We can offer many tips in our store to help get you set up with cloth diapers for as little as $200. That buys you a system that will work well, fit well, absorb well, and where we know workers haven’t been exploited to diaper your baby (that is, someone else has actually paid the price).

In our eight years of experience, the bottom line is: you get what you pay for. When you buy your diapers from us, you’re also investing in our experience helping thousands of clients along the way to getting off to a great start, with product support, laundry advice, and troubleshooting. We can’t do what we do without your support and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Getting more babies into cloth diapers has been our mission from day one!

What Our Customers Say

A couple of months ago, we posted the statement above. Our customers shared their experiences as well.

Learned That Lesson the Hard Way

“I found some very inexpensive pockets with my first. The extra laundry caused by all the leaks let me know very quickly that cheap cloth diapers are false economy. I’m expecting kid #2 and am glad I saw the value in better diapers because now I have a stash waiting to go for another child.” J.W.

“Absolutely! We received some inexpensive cloth diapers as gifts and ended up hating them! They were available at large baby registry retailers (you know who I mean) and I so much prefer my diapering and service experience with a (somewhat) local company! Thank you for being there!” V.F.

“Totally agree! I’m a self-proclaimed bargain hunter who loves a good find. After buying a few cheaper diapers from a big box store (thinking I was getting a good deal) and not being happy with the results (poor fit, bulky, leaked, etc), I was very hesitant to try more expensive ones. I was SOOO glad I tried ‘just a few’ from my local ‘natural parenting store’ after seeing how different they were from the big-box ones. Even my husband was impressed and actually used them! I’ve had to buy a new stash of diapers for surprise baby #3 after giving all mine from baby #2 away, but am so excited for baby to be born to put the new diapers on him.” K.O.

Research Pays Off

“I bought my first cloth diapers from you almost 5 years ago and have since filled out my stash of mostly Fuzzi Bunz from you as well. I am now CDing my third child and the diapers and accessories I first purchased are still going strong after 3 kids! In fact, many of them still look almost new! After tons of research (including the “cloth diapering 101″ on your website), I am so glad I went with a quality system so I didn’t have to keep replacing diapers after each child!” M.H.

Great Cloth Diapers Last!

“Some of my Motherease have been going strong for over 11 years now!! And they still work as well as the day I originally bought them! I bought the bulk of mine in UK, imported from Canada, and then I topped up here from you. I love them, they fit my children very well. We are now done with diapers and I am about to pass these on.” T.W.

Quality Cloth Diapers Can Come on a Budget

“I think it depends on what you mean by cheap. We use flats with covers, and they were very inexpensive, but work fabulously! There are good quality cloth diapers for every budget and need, and if one cannot afford or do not want to buy a $500 system, one can spend $100 and easily cloth diaper from birth to potty.” K.J.W.

“[C]heap and low cost are not always the same thing. I get frustrated when people are turned off of cloth diapering because of poorly made products, but I am equally frustrated by people being turned off by the belief that one must purchase $30 diapers to effectively diaper their babies.” K.J.W.

Prefolds remain one of our best selling diapers, and they cost less than $5 each. They will also have use well beyond the diapering years, so that initial investment goes much further with the right product. I’m still using ours for rags and puppy pads eight years later, after diapering two children. Some parents are intimidated by them, but that’s where we come in.

What do we mean by “cheap”? Our definition of “cheap” is pretty extensive. Over the holidays we ran a series on the true costs of cheap products.

Image © Andrey Armyagov | Dreamstime.com

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I received a message to our Facebook wall the other day as we were talking about our Great Cloth Diaper Change plans next weekend. This message was from a company I know very well, and, unbeknownst to them, a product line I have used in my own home for the past 15 years. Parents that visit our store or have read through our Cloth Diapering 101 guide online know we love to recommend Nature Clean household products, and we do so almost every day in our storefront in Orillia or when talking with expecting and new parents by email.

Nature Clean is Canada’s original brand of non-toxic, hypoallergenic and environmentally responsible household cleaning products. As you can imagine, we get contacted all the time by companies that claim to be environmentally responsible and they want our help to sell, recommend or endorse their lines. The first question I ask is, “What’s in your product?” I want an ingredient list. I don’t want to be told, “They’re safe! Trust us!” If a company won’t disclose their ingredient list, I most definitely cannot trust what they are saying on their fancy website or pretty packaging. This is not the case with Nature Clean. They are label obseseed and commited to full ingredient disclosure—no exceptions. This is why I have used and trusted Nature Clean almost exclusively for my own family over the years, and they are the only household cleaning line we currently recommend or endose.

On their website,

“Natureclean® is about caring for your family’s health, it’s about the passion we feel for protecting our natural world, and it’s about loving ourselves enough to use safer products.”

Hmmmm. . . this sounds just like the mission we have here at Parenting By Nature and have since day one. All Nature Clean products are non-toxic, biodegradable, and are created from naturally-derived ingredients. Their laundry detergent also happened to be the only detergent that wouldn’t cause an allergic skin reaction on my daughter when she was born more than 7 years ago. So, that’s a huge plus in my book!

We’re also incredibly proud of their heritage, and we love telling people that Nature Clean is a Canadian company, manufacturing and packaging their products in Canada and helping to employ Canadians. What’s not to love?!?

I was thrilled to hear that Nature Clean wanted to partner with us for the Great Cloth Diaper Change. Currently on route are coupons, samples of their new detergent line, their chemical-free travel wipes, and their new shampoo samples for all of our guests. Thank you Nature Clean for your generous contribution to our event. We can’t wait to share these fabulous products with our participants!

PS. If you haven’t registered for the Great Cloth Diaper Change yet, there’s still time! Find a location near you. There are 305 official events in 16 countries. All babies will have their diapers changed simultaneously to challenge the world record set at last year’s events.

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Look at this beautiful birthday party table! This past weekend, Nature Mom threw a birthday party for her daughter. She worked to lower impact for every aspect of the party. Read the story of her daughter’s green birthday party celebration.

Having just wrapped up an eco birthday party for my six year old, I’m excited to share our green birthday party celebration. By making more environmentally friendly choices at your next birthday party you’ll be passing on an important message to your children and the families that participate in your special day. You’ll likely even find that you can save money in the process! I hope our day will help inspire some creative, earth-friendly green party ideas, and you’ll learn how fun and rewarding being green really can be.

Walk your talk and save money. That’s a good start.

Consider:

• Venue
• Party Games
• Eco Friendly Party Decorations
• Homemade Birthday Cake
• Eco Friendly Party Bags
• Green Party Supplies
• Birthday Gifts

Read the full article and see photos of Nature Mom’s eco birthday party.

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Tuesday, Mothering announced that they would no longer publish a print magazine. They will continue as a web source of information and support for natural parenting.

This week we mourn the loss of the magazine that has literally helped me find direction in my life as a woman and mother.

Mothering magazine has helped me learn to be a better, more patient mother. It has inspired me to start a business. It’s made me feel accepted and supported in my less than conventional ways of parenting. Needless to say, it has had a profound affect on me since I started reading it more than 6 years ago now.

My oldest daughter was born in 2005, and I came across my first print magazine in my midwives’ office during my pregnancy. I was immediately attracted to the images of parents holding and carrying their babies in slings. The images of breastfeeding mothers inspired confidence in my own ability to nurse my babies, and, importantly, nurse them confidently in public (I don’t know that this would have happened without Mothering). I adored the stories, sense of community, and even the ads. In fact, it was these ads of the small, mostly mother-owned businesses in the USA that inspired me to start Parenting By Nature. There wasn’t any business quite like this in Canada 6 years ago, and at the time I had to order my first baby sling – the sling that started it all – from an online business in the USA.

I’ve spent many hours on the Mothering website and forums and will continue to support them in this way. I also truly believe they have much opportunity to reach many, many parents via their website and online. I thank them dearly for everything they have brought to my life. Thanks to Mothering, I’ve never felt alone.

Tamara Champion

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Does the holiday season creep up on you, and before you know it, you’re completely overwhelmed? This year start planning early and have some FUN with other busy parents just like you.

Join parenting experts Tamara Champion, CEO of natural parenting store bynature.ca, and Annemarie Tempelman-Kluit AKA yoyomama and author of Healthy Mum, Happy Baby, as well as other parents getting prepared for the holiday season with a Virtual Holiday Potluck! Join us to kick off the holiday season, have fun, and, yes, enjoy shopping discounts and prizes throughout the evening!

When and Where?

Mark your calendar! The party date is Wednesday, November 10th and runs from 8:00 pm to 9:30 pm but you’ll want to register beforehand to take advantage of our special savings offer. The more RSVP’s the greater the savings!!

If you live on the East Coast, RSVP to the Parenting By Nature Facebook page BEFORE Wednesday, November 10, 8:00pm EST.

If you’re on the West Coast, RSVP to yoyomama’s Facebook page BEFORE Wednesday, November 10, 8:00pm PST.

What to Bring:

It’s a potluck! Everyone who shares has the chance to win prizes during the evening. We’ll be discussing:

• family traditions and the spirit of giving
• your favorite holiday music
• funny Christmas YouTube videos
• your tastiest holiday recipes (allergen-free, for bonus points!)
• green holiday tips
• links to online holiday planning resources or tools you may use
• anything else to help with holiday planning!

Why Pre-Register?

The more the merrier! Share our holiday event with friends as we’ll be offering a discount on anything at the bynature.ca Kids store based on how many RSVP/participants we have for each party (as of 8pm EST):

• Free Shipping over $49 for 200 RSVPs (Storewide! Canada only)
• 10% discount for 300 RSVPs
• 15% discount for 400 RSVPs
• 20% discount for 500 RSVPs

So tell your friends to RSVP! The more participants, the greater the discount! The discount code will be shared with participants during the potluck event and will be offered for a limited time (discounts apply to KIDS department only and may not be combined; see bynature.ca policies for full details when using discount codes).

We can’t wait to connect with our fantastic fans, supporters, and customers and meet new people. Most of all, we want to help you save time and money as you get ready for this special time of year with your family.

See you on November 10th!

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Free Swimmis swim diaper

As the holiday weekend is upon us, a lot of parents are looking for the best swim diapers. Be sure to check our Facebook page for a free Swimmis swim diaper. We only have 3 to give away, and details will be up on Friday.

Can Swimmi swim diapers be used in a public pool setting?

Yes! If your public pool won’t allow a reusable swim diaper, we would love the opportunity to challenge their thinking. Many public pools are under the assumption that a disposable swim diaper is more absorbent or hygienic than a reusable swim diaper because the absorbency is “built-in.” Many are unaware, however, of how the absorbency of a disposable diaper actually works.

A disposable swim diaper instantly absorbs liquid, which means the moment your baby or child goes in the pool, the diaper will quickly reach its maximum absorbency level. Have you ever seen a toddler with a disposable swim diaper come out of the pool and walk around? The diaper almost always looks soggy, droopy and hanging lower than when the diaper was put on dry. As soon as a disposable swim diaper is wet it becomes LESS effective at containing waste!

If your public pool is under the assumption that a disposable product is better for their environment, ask them where they think the waste and urine will go as soon as a baby or child is put in the pool. Chances are, they haven’t actually considered this. A simple experiment using a disposable swim diaper immersed in water will show how quickly it “fills” with water and becomes ineffective.

We won’t even mention the chemical gels that are used inside disposable swim diapers, causing the massive absorption rates. We’re actually surprised public pools don’t insist on reusable swim diapers. Who wants to be swimming around with that?!?

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The winner of a $1000 gift certificate to spend at bynature.ca was Cloth Now put together by Charlene and her husband. You can view their video here.

As a side note, Charlene told us afterwards that she has 5 children, ages 12, 7, 5, 2 and 6 months. This prize will surely be put to good use! Congratulations Charlene and family.

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When our neighbors finally made it to the show and set up their booth, we realized that show organizers put a “eco” disposable diaper vendor right beside us, selling biodegradable diapers. Parents would stop at their booth first then move on to ours.

It was an exclusive, no competitors show, but they obviously didn’t consider disposable diapers as our competitors. A short walk through the diaper neighborhood actually opened the door to some really great discussions with customers. Many moms would come to our booth and mention they were “considering the biodegradable diapers”. This provided the perfect lead in.

Me: “That sounds great! So do you have your compost ready to go yet?”

Unsuspecting Mom: “Ummm. . . no. What do you mean?”

Me: “To compost your diapers. Isn’t that the idea?”

Unsuspecting Mom: “Oh. Well, I guess I was just going to throw them in the trash?”

Me (looking rather perplexed): “Ahhh. . . you mean in a garbage bag or diaper genie liner?”

Unsuspecting Mom: “Yes! Exactly.”

Me (still looking confused): “Do you think they will biodegrade like they are advertised in that type of an environment? I didn’t think it would work like that if they were wrapped in plastic.”

Mom (now she’s looking confused): “Wow. I didn’t think of that. That’s a bit misleading, isn’t it?”

Me: “Hmm. Well do you have a pick-up service that will compost your diapers for you?”

Mom: “No.”

Me (with an all-in-one cloth diaper in hand): “Have you considered reusable diapers? They don’t create any waste at all, and they can be changed just like a disposable diaper. The added time commitment is really only two extra loads of laundry a week.”

Now mom starts asking all the usual questions and I get to show them how easy cloth diapering is, how much fun, and I also get to put our literature in her hands about the waste factor of disposable diapers. It was actually so much fun just getting the parents to think through the process as far as a decomposing diaper was concerned. The parents agreed again and again how the concept seemed rather flawed when you thought it all the way through to the landfill. I got to have this conversation with parents all day, one after the other.

It was great to see some of their faces when they realized they had misunderstood, that these disposable “bio-diapers” are not this incredible option that will save our planet.

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We are pleased to announce that Amy’s post received the greatest number of votes for The Most Inspiring Blogger. Amy is the winner of our grand prize (a $600 Visa Gift Card and a six-month paid blogging position). Watch for Amy’s contributions to our blog in the coming year. Congratulations Amy!

Please take a moment to read her winning entry below and to learn more about Emily – the inspiration behind Amy’s post.

Breastfeeding: The Memory of Emily by Raising Arrows

Blog to Inspire winner Raising Arrows is Amy, a thinker, a writer, and a homeschooler. On her blog she chronicles what life is like Raising Arrows.

Breastfeeding is part of my story. It is part of Emily’s story. From her birth to her death, I nursed her. The connection we shared for those 7 months and 6 days will forever be precious to me.

Emily and I shared a nursing relationship that was unique. I’ve nursed all my children, but by the time Emily, number 5, came along, I was a seasoned breastfeeding mama and we were good…real good. So good in fact, I managed to nurse her while climbing down into a dark, and rather treacherous, cave in South Dakota, adding to my extensive list of Places I’ve Breastfed.

When she became sick that night in December of 2007, I nursed her through the scary early morning hours in that lonely hospital room, waiting for a diagnosis…a diagnosis that would eventually bring a stall to our breastfeeding relationship for days on end as her tiny body healed from major surgery.

The day we were reunited, baby to breast, I cried. I held her close, tucking those stray wisps of fuzzy brown hair behind her ears and murmuring my affection in that secret language of mothers and babies everywhere. All the tubes and wires in the world could not keep me from her.

Life post-surgery was challenging and changed for us. Emily was fragile. She nursed every two hours around the clock. Yet, my patience held. I still look back at those weeks with fondness and an awe that I never once felt tied down or irritated by the nearly constant breastfeeding sessions. Did I know? Did I somehow sense those days were numbered and soon, much too soon, I would be left with only memories? Did I feel her tiny frame slipping from my fingers as I held her tightly and gave of myself in the only way I knew how?

In the early morning hours of February 10, 2008, I nursed my little Emily for the very last time…just 3 short hours before her death. It was just her and I in a darkened room…connecting. For weeks on end following her death, I could feel her next to me suckling as my mind climbed out of the depth of dreams and into the world of awareness. Not only did my heart ache for Emily, my body ached for her as well. In excruciating, primal pain, my body mourned her absence. Slowly, unwelcome emptiness set in and I was left with memories…beautiful memories.

Breastfeeding is not just something you do. It is something you feel. It is a connection, a bond, that spans time…eternity, if you will. It is not just a mother feeding a baby. It is a mother and a child intertwined in a dance with steps only they know, with emotions only they share. What I wouldn’t do to dance with her again.

Instead, I dance with another. A new little nursling with beauty and grace all his own. He does not replace the sister he never knew, but his presence soothes her absence. As the two of us share silent, solitary moments in the middle of the night, I am reminded of her and blessed by him.

Read about the Blog to Inspire contest and read posts by the rest of the finalists.

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In our Cloth Diapers category (15 entires) …

Stuland
He’s a Boob Man
Nicole Bergman
The Feminist Breeder
The Eco Chic
A Natural Mama
Dirty Diaper Laundry
Ejlee
One Income Dollar
Muskoka Bear Bums
Melissa’s Happenings
MamaBee
Frugally Yours
The Cloth Diaper Report
Organic Parenthood

In our Babywearing category (8 entries) …

Domestic Dork
Hobo Mama
A Life Less Loaded
Education Uncensored
From My Life
Arts N Lit
My Bloggy Life
Modern Alternative Mama

In our Breastfeeding category (15 entries) …

Accidental Pharmacist
Raising Arrows
Baby Fingers
Pistachio Love
Code Name Mama
Dagmar Bleasdale
Ramblings by Nicole Renee
Red Canuck
Happy Green Babies
The Feminist Breeder
Dumaresq Kiddo
Tim and Amy Raymond
Simply Living on a Budget
Natural and Single Mom
Breastfeeding Moms Unite

In our Natural Play category (6 entires) …

Strocel
Tout-est-des-Rose
Left Coast Mama
Miss P Baby Em
Parenting by Nature
Urban Mommies

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