Green Resolution

I'm not one to make New Year's resolutions, and I'm usually not one to stick to them either... but 2 years ago I made a resolution to go green. I started out small, recycling, turning the water off when brushing my teeth, took more showers than baths, turned off the lights when I left the room, etc. I stopped using bottle waters and bought reusable aluminum and stainless steel water bottles, also because of the BPA risks it posed to our health. Well, a year later I was back to greedily consuming plastic water bottles, throwing away pop cans and papers, not to mention selfishly using disposable diapers for the convenience. Last Christmas Jared got the Planet Earth DVD set and watching the majestic images from around the world I got the green bug again and this time I was taking it to the next level. With not one but two kids in diapers I decided it was time to feed Mother nature a diet more fit for her beauty; rather than shoving dirty diapers down her throat knowing it will take 500 years for her to digest. I did a little research and ordered my first package of cloth diapers.
Yesterday, UPS delivered my order and with it came self doubt in my ability to stick to my game plan. With a deep breath and an exhaled prayer I dug into the box to see what I had got myself into. I had toiled over two popular options: gdiaper and grobaby. Both offered an adorable new and improved look on a product as old as Father time. The first thing that grabbed my attention was a biodegradable liner you can literally compost in less than 150 days. Allowing you to have the eco-friendliness of cloth diapers with the convenience of disposable. Mother nature could literally have her cake and eat it, too! Gdiaper's boast a more streamlined fit, avoiding that tell-tale padded diaper bum look. Grobaby may have more bulk in the hull, so to speak, but they offered one thing in design over gdiapers- adjustable shells making them a one size fits all. SOLD. Now, let's be honest for a minute. I could say that saving money was my first concern in my decision, looking at the monthly bills purchasing 2 sized diapers for 2 kids it was adding up quickly. But, realistically it was the convenience of a flushable or biodegradable insert, which made these new diapers nearly as expensive as their disposable counterparts only with a lot less guilt.
Day 1, first thing I did was try them on both boys. I failed to follow the directions of washing them in hot water first, after all it was just a trial fitting. Well, Grady peed straight away and because I had failed to wash the cloth insert first it was water repellant and all the pee drained out onto the shell and then my leg. It was at this time I realized the grobaby shells were not waterproof. Score 1 for disposable diapers 0 for cloth diapers. With the cloth inserts needing a good washing first, just like they stated, I opted to try the "bio soakers" next. These look like a giant feminine pad, with a peel and stick application to the inside of the diaper shell. The backing of these was waterproof. Relief! Seeing how most likely I will not be using the cloth inserts and taking advantage of the flushable/tossable inserts I feel like maybe I can do this.
Day 2, used only the bio soaker inserts and no leaks (other than once on Logan after a long nap he has the bladder of a camel so when he goes- HE GOES). The bio soakers don't however keep the poop contained and we soiled another diaper shell after Grady did his business. Keep in mind, I only ordered 3, proof of my self doubt. So, now Logan is back in disposables and Grady is wearing the last clean shell.
I also did a little more research and found gdiapers offer a waterproof liner keeping your shell clean and dry (except during poopy events) and their disposable inserts are completely flushable. You can only flush the inside fluff of the grobaby liners and have to throw away the outer plastic. Now I'm thinking I may switch to gdiapers, even though I'll need to order more shells to fit both kids because they only sell small, medium or large. UGH! I hope you appreciate all this effort Planet Earth....