1. I did not use cloth right away only because I did not know a thing about cloth diapers.  I had not done any research.  I had no idea what was on the market.  I just figured the gerber prefolds were my only option.  My other two kids are 12 and 10 so I had been out of the baby loop for a long time when our 3rd was born.  Now that I know what I am doing, I will start using cloth in the hospital if I have another baby.

2.  I think that you, the mom, need to be comfortable.  I would suggest giving it a try when you get home and are comfortable and see how it works for you.  You may find that you love it.  You may find you want to wait a few weeks, or even a couple month. 

3.  If I have another one, I will have a stash of XS covers with leg gussets, orange edge prefolds from Green Mountain Diapers (or whatever I am selling at the time that is the equivalent ;), and then I will try one of everything else so I can be more help to other moms. 

4.  -

5. I wish I had known someone who used cloth that could have showed me the ropes and told me I could do it.

Thanks so much!!!  I do have a couple of newborn diaper covers that I got from Craigslist and I think my friend will pass on her newborn prefolds to me.  I will definitely give it a shot to see if it's feasible in the first few weeks.  I'm just completely stoked about trying it out!! :)

Thanks again for replying!

Bao

Hello! I am new here also, and I blog about cloth diapers, so I would love to try and help you out :)

1.) I have been cloth diapering my little one since birth, and we are still going strong at nearly 5 months. It's so 2nd nature to me now that I can't imagine using anything else!

2.) I breast feed, and I haven't had an issue. We DID have diaper service as a gift in the beginning, but I view that as more of a luxury than a necessity. I could easily have done with out it, but it did buy me a little more time to grow my own stash. Laundry isn't really an issue in my opinion. I live in an apartment, and have to use a laundry room with little to no control over wash cycles etc....I feel if I can do it ANYONE can, even from birth! There will be a bit of staining from miconium, but sunning them is an easy way to get the stains out. Stains don't bother me much on diapers because no one sees them anyways, and they are just going to get stained again. So I don't worry about them. That's a personal preference though. Breast feeding actually helps your wash routine because you don't have to worry about getting the poop off before washing. Breast fed poo is like yogurt and washes away very easily in the wash machine, unlike formula poo that likes to hang around.

3.) I used prefolds and wraps in the beginning. My little one didn't fit into a one size pocket diaper until she was about 10lbs. There are actually some brands, like rumparooz, that make a newborn pocket diaper. They are much smaller and fit better than one size diapers on a newborn. I didn't really ant to spend extra money on those though, so we stuck with prefolds in the beginning. We still use prefolds even though we have pocket diapers. I just like them better. I use the Thirsties Duo Wraps. They work wonderfully, I LOVE them!

4.) Since I didn't use disposables, and never have, I can't compare. I didn't really find anything particularly challenging about cloth diapers in the beginning. When we came home from the hospital, I picked a diaper washing day and stuck to it. It actually helped me to get into a groove of not just sitting and breast feeding and feeling tired. It gave me something to do to distract me for a little bit and keep me motivated to get up and move around. Breast feeding was hard for me in the beginning, so I needed a task to look forward to. Sounds weird, but it's true! And the truth is, I still look forward to diaper day! Nothing like a fresh clean pile of diapers for your baby to play in!

5.) I wish someone would have told me what was REALLY needed to get started! This is what I recommend you have in your arsenal BEFORE you even take the trip to the hospital:

1.) A plastic Diaper Pail.

2.) Diaper detergent. If you didn't know yet, you will soon find out, that you can not use just any old store bought laundry detergent. I go into more detail here: http://tideebums.blogspot.com/search/label/Laundry%20Tips

3.) A diaper pail Liner. I suggest a washable liner instead of disposable. It's water proof and helps to keep the stinkies at bay.

4.) A wet bag for dirty dipes when you're on the go. I prefer one that zips closed, instead of just a draw string. I think it keeps the smell in the bag where it belongs better.

5.) 12-24 prefolds. 24 should get you through 2 full days. Buy more if you want to go longer between washing. Even if you stop using these as diapers, they are great for pretty much everything. From protecting your clothes while feeding baby to wiping messy faces off, to using as a changing pad when you're on the go. LOVE prefolds! 

6.) 6 Diaper Covers. Having 6 of them will get you through AT LEAST one day, probably two. If baby just pees, then you can wipe it out with a wipe and let it air dry. If poo gets on the liner, you could hand wash and air dry, or leave it for when you wash diapers. They air dry really quickly.

7.) This last one is more a piece of advice than an item you need. Have all of your diapers prepped and ready to go for when you get home with your new one. Most diapers will require at least 3 washings before they are ready to use, if not more. You don't want to be doing that with a newborn. You want to just come home, and be relaxed and ready to change dipes when needed. Have your diaper changing station ready for action, weather you are using a changing table, or a bed in the nursery like us.

By getting this stuff ahead of time, and having them ready to go, you will make your life a lot easier. Everything I listed is just the basics, but it's really what you need to get started.

You can visit my blog for more