Smartipants Birth to Potty Reusable Nappy Review

I was a wuss and didn't use washable nappies with Leon, but I'd like to use reusable nappies for my next baby that will last the whole nappy-wearing period to save money and reduce landfill waste. The average baby uses 7,000 disposable nappies plus the nappy sacks - and think of the production, and transportation costs to the environment (yes it costs suppliers too, but they make a helluva lot back ;). An alternative to this horror is to use 24 one size reusable nappies costing over £200 initially but overall it will save you £1,300 per child. Not bad.

My mission is two-fold as I'm still on the hunt for the perfect nappy for Leon (almost 2 years old but slowly starting potty training), and I wish to use reusables from day one for baby #2 when he arrives this month. The one size fits all concept fits in nicely as I can use them for both babies and don't have to change to a bigger size as he grows.

We tried Smartipants "The World's Smartest one size fits all reusable diaper" (was a given a sample at the Baby Trade show) which is a pocket nappy, and have used it successfully several times during the day while at home- avoiding carrying a wet/soiled nappy when out and about (wet bags are the solution!).

How to use it
You place the soft insert into the opening and then snap the nappy using the adjustable poppers. It's easy to adjust and snap the poppers. With Leon, who's just turned 2 and is rather tall, I used the last two poppers. It's easy to determine the correct fit by checking it's snug but not too tight around the thighs. The nappy fits him really well and are like big comfortable pants rather than papery/plastic disposables.

It's worth knowing that :  'Babies change shape frequently as they grow up. You may have times when your relatively young baby is using their one-size diapers on the largest setting. The same child may be on the medium setting several months later due to increased mobility.'

A tip for overnight use is to stuff the nappy with two inserts and set the nappy to be one size larger than for daytime use (the equivalent of adding a booster sanitary pad style layer to nappies). I'd need to do this as Leon is out-weeing a variety of nappies, but I can't set it any bigger so am unable to :(

When it needs changing, just take it off and whip it in the laundry basket! Or a wet bag until you have enough to wash. (I discovered I already had a couple of wet bags from a Bounty pack last time- so they do come in useful ;) I washed at 30 with non-bio liquitabs and they came out well and hung them out to dry. They were done within a few hours. Though now it's colder I've sped up the last bit of drying on the radiators. It's very easy and are still soft after a few washes. NB. There was a slight wee smell when sniffing the clean nappy insert, so I think they should be washed at 40 but it doesn't bother me too much so I just carry on at 30- hope thats not disgusting.

I've only tried the one nappy in between disposables at home, and it doesn't come up often as I don't do laundry every day so I'd be happy to purchase more or put on wish list for baby or even Leon (he's over 15kg and they still fit him).


Cool Factor?
It's a nappy - but we know how these have been jazzed up by many brands. The Smartipants range is very basic but they have a large choice of bright colours. You can see that they aren't as high-end as some of the other brands. Aesthetically, the one size fits all nappy means you see all the poppers when your baby gets older, but its not ugly and the colours are cool.

In a nutshell, they are practical, fast-drying, comfortable, easy to use and durable and I'll definitely be putting these on my baby #2 wishlist. They cost £13.50 each (less than other similar nappies) and are cheaper if you buy in bulk.

And those 2 extra laundry loads per week uses about the same amount of water as a few daily flushes. So try not to flush as often (if it's yellow let it mellow and all...) be careful with other water usage and over all it's better for the environment!

Early morning wet wakeup call: hunt for the perfect nappy

Leon's been waking up at 6.30am recently with a big "mamaaaaaa!!" until I reach his bed-side and he points at the mattress which is, once agan drenched. He soaks through his nappies every morning resulting in more laundry and earlier wake-up calls. He's 22 months and familiarising himself with the potty, and can go for some dry periods during the day... But I still don't feel he's totally ready for the potty and, well I'm thinking of waiting until baby #2 is out and we move to Madrid (Feb/March) to begin the proper stuff.

Meanwhile I've been trying to find the ideal nappy for him.

Initially I was a Nature Babycare fan- chlorine-free and without the plasticky feel. I felt this was the next best thing to cloth nappies. I loved them and used them for over a year.

But then the price went up a quid (£6.49 for 28 Or 32p each), and my local Boots stopped stocking them, meaning an extra 5 minute walk to Waitrose... And more importantly, Leon had several morning episodes of waking up with the gel stuff all over the place and wet pyjamas, so I searched for an alternative.

I toyed with Boots own brand Super Dry (£4.39 for 28 or 16p each) and Pampers Active Fit & Baby Dry (£6.49 for 27 or 24p each). These were all fine during the day, but like the others, it was first thing in the morning that was the problem, and more than once, on the branded nappies, the gel would come out the top of his nappy and all over him and the bed, which wasn't a nice experience.

If Leon was potty-trained this would be, I suppose, the time for his first morning pee- but alas, he'd have to climb out of his cot, or call out to me in time to lift him out and do his business. So until then, nappies will have to do.

The solution? Friends suggested going one size up- so I've gone for size 6 nappies, even though size 5s go up to 25kg and Leon was 16kg last time I checked. And yes... It worked!

For my next baby I'd like to use washable nappies and have my eye on the birth to potty style available from several brands now, and will hopefully try them out on Leon first! Will save hundreds of pounds and quite frankly I'll feel less guilty about chucking away all those nappies.

Mother's Appreciation day

So Happy Mother's day to all you mummies out there - you rule and are doing a great job. It's actually pretty tough to keep up with everything but I'm loving every moment of motherhood.

And after posting last week about my experience of the Life Before P&G challenge, I appreciate how much easier it has become to complete domestic chores with modern products. It has made me realise how we take many supplies for granted : washing machines, cleaning products, childcare, credit cards... and those that want something else often create it and start their own busineses! Easy.

As part of their 'Proud Sponsors of Mums' campaign, running up the to the London 2012 Olympics, they recognise, celebrate and say thank you to mums for the hard work and sacrifice we make for our families in their new ad... You may have seen it already as it's airing this weekend for Mother's day, otherwise here's the ad in all it's glory Let me know what you think. "Never the focus but always there. Like Air." Thanks P&G.
Not sure if anyone else found it a tad patronising? As if mothers accept that they are in the background - ignored almost. I didn't really see my mum like that and sure hope that I'm not under-appreciated. Perhaps I'm being defensive as perhaps it's true and mums generally to everything for their kids. Hmm.

Modern Motherhood and equality
For many, having kids is just another thing women do. We've gained a collection of successes and now juggle so many other commitments and roles including parenting, which in reality could be more balanced.
To develop the theme of how women's illusions are shattered once they have children, Culture Baby are exploring this at a Salon on May 10th Shattered: Modern Motherhood and the illusion of equality for Rebecca Asher's new book "Ranging from antenatal care and maternity leave, to work practices, relationship dynamics and beyond, Shattered exposes the inequalities perpetuated by the state, employers and the parenting industry and suggests imaginative ways forward to achieve more balanced and fulfilling lives." Culture baby 

Mothers of the 70s and 80s had it easiest
According to the Changing Face of Motherhood research by P&G, half of modern mothers interviewed agreed that the best time to have been a mother is in the 70s & 80s as there was deemed to be less pressure. Lower property prices, plenty of opportunities, decent nappies. The world was theirs.

My Mum in 1980s
She was a concert pianist leaving her place to study at the Mexico City conservatoire to move to England and marry my dashing dad in 1981. My mum did a brill job raising three daughters in a fun, creative and loving environment and not working until we were at school. She was 27, one year older than I am now when she had my older sister. Chatting about her experience as a young mother in the 80s here are a few things I didn't know:

• Nappies existed but used to be very leaky - they've improved tremendously. Same for sanitary towels.
• Washing up and laundry products were already established so didn't really think about it. But food was way more expensive. Lots more use of local shops, milkman but then switched to supermarkets for convenience. This we perhaps take for granted- that we can get our hands on pretty much any product we think of.
• Taking the bus was a bit of a nightmare having to fold and carry buggy, baby, bag and get onto bus. I feel we have more mummy-power allbeit majorly stemmed from improved access for wheelchair users and then the pram-pushers benefit.
• Mothers were rather dowdy back then apparently. Personal grooming was perhaps not as important - today plenty of 'self-improvement products available' and see many glam mummies.
• No mobile phones, internet, google maps... Mums used to receive the NCT newsletter for info on coffee mornings with the address and need to find it using the AtoZ! 
• It was enjoyable to take time for housework, classes and social gatherings unlike now where there's so much pressure to work. Mum would use her spare time crocheting, knitting but most downtime was spent at coffee mornings.
• Toys were not electric perhaps allowing us to be more creative in how we play
• This was a time when you could leave your pram outside of the shops, but now no one would dare now, gates on schools and health and safety overload...

Although there was a baby boom in the 80s it wasn't anything like today - perhaps there's been a decrease in the importance of individual mothers and are seen as groups now. Mothers previously were talked to in the street- unlike now where people avoid the swarms of bugaboos taking over the pavement. I can imagine there was a better sense of community between mums as there weren't as many then. And there wasn't all this technology to become attached to.

Mums in 2010s
So, aged 26, I'm 10 years younger than the normal first-time mum, married with a one year old baby and working part-time (if at all) because I can choose to. I live in a rented one-bed flat, my mother when she had me (1984) was already in a property in a desirable part of London that I would no way be able to afford now. Fortunately I live a 20 min walk to my parents so can see them often and enjoy the comforts of their home!

Local Shops and Community
I like to go to my local cobblers, dry cleaners, newsagents and waitrose... but felt hurt when I receive a snarky eye-roll from my local music shop that I read as "another mum and her pram" Perhaps we have higher expectations when it comes to customer service- so much so, we don't want to put up with a less than acceptable high-street and dream to improve it ourselves. 
I find most products accessible to me and now wish to improve what I do with my time.

Filling our time
I love getting on with personal projects, but find they are constantly on hold due to me trying to do other stuff and getting lost in reading the wonders of the web. On reflection Edith Bowan said that you never stop finding things to do. Is that mothers or women in general?
I could always get on with something creative but I worry about the noise I make in the living room and if the neighbours can hear the rustle of tissue paper, sticking together, sounds of washing up and pottering/dancing around the flat at 2am. So often just stick to the computer. Quieter. But then I do like to switch off. Never used to like jazz, but just love how sexy the sounds of the likes of Ronnie Magri are. Perhaps I'm finally slowing down to have a look as to how alive we were before. Looking up from our iphones and laptops and releaving our crooked necks to see what is around us. 
I'm trying to take my time to live my life rather than talk about it and spending less time on the computer - but having grown up with the internet it feels a bit strange.
   
Thirty
Now, all my friends are waiting until they're 30 to have their babies which is a common tune. Get comfortable first, then introduce the kids. Makes sense to me - but I'm happy to have started my family at a *younger age* than the rest of society.

Pampers Pampers

Oh dear Pampers

http://www.pampers.co.uk/en_GB/proddetail/baby-products/active-fit-nappies/id/2/sectionid/3

Not great comments really, in response to the new Active Fit nappies - and I agree, they seem quite stiff and not that comfortable for my baby (8kg roughly and using 4+) and they smell weird and plasticky. I can no longer sniff my baby's bottom to see if he's done a poo as there's an awful plasticky smelling nappy covering any other smell.

I was thinking how Pampers are the biggest nappy brand in the world but can't get it right. Definitely can't get it right ecologically - they've been voted the least-green major nappy brand. Would like to try out the other greener brands but not sure how good they are.

I'd eventually like to get rid of nappies altogether as mentioned in the Matt and Harriet Rudd article in the Sunday Times last week. Need to learn the 'rhythm' though if there are any tips...?


*Just found out that this is called Elimination Communication
 http://www.naturalbirthandbabycare.com/elimination-communication.html

 Pic from  http://www.whizkidz.biz/main/