A few "logistics" questions

[BeachBaby]

I have a few questions based on stuff I've read . . . sorry for any lack of basic knowledge, I'm the first among my close friends to have a baby. :o

1 - Can someone please describe how runny is runny when we are talking about BF poop?!? :) And, really, it doesn't smell in the pail?? I know this is what you all do/did, so I really want to believe, but you know, its poop! :) Maybe its the BF part that's they key there??

2 - I feel like I've read that there are different "phases" of pee and poop. When does the "explosive" phase usually start and stop? Does it begin right from the start or after a few days/weeks? And I thought I read that it starts to slow down (maybe this is wishful thinking?) at some point? What about peeing? When will I know if I have a "super-soaker"?

3 - Related to #2, I am doing all UBIPFs for now (well, starting in July). When is a good time to try a Pocket or AIO at night? Or about when should I start using doublers or hemp PFs?

4 - In the CD 101 thread, someone (Rashmi, maybe?) mentioned that the IPFs infant size is smaller than the infant CPF. I was planning to get 3 dz infant IPFs. Is this a mistake b/c the baby might grow out of them too fast? Are the regular size IPFs also smaller?

5 - Finally, I really Love the idea of wool covers. Are they completely ridiculous for a newborn? I was admiring both the Aristocrat and the newborn Nikki and Bumpy the other day . . .and I have not allowed myself to check out KiwiPie!! :)

Thanks again for all your help! I can't wait to be able to actually contribute my own suggestions!

Megan

Oops . . . one more. Any recommendations for a diaper bag? DH likes the camoflauge SkipHop . . .will it be too small? Do any of you just have a "normal" tote bag?

[todzwife]

#1. BF poo can range from very watery like um...diarrea to peanut buttery. Dallin's usually smells like sour milk, well it did before we started solids anyway.
#2 Phases vary baby to baby. Dallin never exploded until about 4 months. But it was always in a disposable that we got the leaks. Never had a leak in cloth.
#3This really depends on your baby. Dallin is still a light wetter and never poops at night. We have been using FB at night since he was about 2 months.
#4. OUR IPF's aren't any smaller than CPF, just hicker which makes them a little harder to snappi becuase there is extra bulk. The premium IPF are a lot smaller than CPF, and Dallin barely fits in them now. (18 pounds)
#5 Wool isn't a bad idea for newborns if you use fitteds. I would think you would end up washing too much because of poo leaks onto the wool in a prefold, but that's just me. And PS. I Looooove kiwipie!:P
No suggestions on a diaperbag. We are still searching for one right now. And I am actually using the freebie black bag from the hospital that my friend got. I got an ugly one! LOL! Good luck! Cloth is so much fun!

[stillplayswithbarbies]

>
>1 - Can someone please describe how runny is runny when we
>are talking about BF poop?!? :)

It varies. Sometimes it is as thin as water. Sometimes it looks like melted ice cream, you know runny but with some foamy stuff. Sometimes it is like water with some cottage cheese mixed in. It is usually runny enough that if you held the diapers up, some of it would drip off, but in glops not a steady stream. (sorry for all those visuals, but you did ask!)

At the breastfeeding class I attended, the instructor had a book that had pictures of different types of poop so you could see what it looked like in a diaper. When we passed the book around, that is the section most of us turned to and spent the most time looking at. It's so funny that we are all so interested in poop. :)

>And, really, it doesn't
>smell in the pail?? I know this is what you all do/did, so I
>really want to believe, but you know, its poop! :)

It does not smell bad. It has an odor, kind of sweet or like buttery popcorn sometimes. But it doesn't make you want to hold your nose or hurl your lunch.

>Maybe its
>the BF part that's they key there??

Absolutely. Breastmilk is almost completely digested because it is a perfectly designed food for babies. So there isn't really much waste product to come out. This is why as baby gets older they can go as long as a week sometimes without pooping. There just isn't much leftover unused stuff from breastmilk to poop out. :)

>
>2 - I feel like I've read that there are different "phases"
>of pee and poop. When does the "explosive" phase usually
>start and stop? Does it begin right from the start or after a
>few days/weeks?

Explosive poops start right away and then become less and less as time goes on. Baby's digestive system is immature and has to practice for awhile before getting efficient. So sometimes the poop really explodes out of there at first. We could hear her pooping all the way across the room. Honestly, my 12 year old son heard it the first time and said "mom I think her butt exploded" and he was seriously a little concerned. :)

>And I thought I read that it starts to slow
>down (maybe this is wishful thinking?) at some point?

Yes. After a few weeks, maybe sooner, most babies stop pooping every day. Logan would go almost a week without pooping. At first it is like a conveyor belt; as food goes in the mouth, poop comes out the butt. Logan would poop every time she ate. But that stage didn't last too long.

>What
>about peeing? When will I know if I have a "super-soaker"?
>

The first time your lap gets wet. :)

>3 - Related to #2, I am doing all UBIPFs for now (well,
>starting in July). When is a good time to try a Pocket or AIO
>at night? Or about when should I start using doublers or hemp
>PFs?
>

I didn't start CDing until she was 6 months old, so I can't help you here.

>4 - In the CD 101 thread, someone (Rashmi, maybe?) mentioned
>that the IPFs infant size is smaller than the infant CPF. I
>was planning to get 3 dz infant IPFs. Is this a mistake b/c
>the baby might grow out of them too fast? Are the regular
>size IPFs also smaller?
>

Logan is still wearing a standard size prefold at 1 year. This is the CPF with the white serging. I think that is the same as "infant" size? I also have some preemie size that I use to stuff Fuzzibunz, but she didn't fit in those at 6 months when I started.

>5 - Finally, I really Love the idea of wool covers. Are they
>completely ridiculous for a newborn? I was admiring both the
>Aristocrat and the newborn Nikki and Bumpy the other day . .
>.and I have not allowed myself to check out KiwiPie!! :)
>

I think that because of the newborn poop, you will want a cover with leg gussets and especially because you will be using prefolds you will not want wool until you can predict the baby's poop schedule.

>
>Oops . . . one more. Any recommendations for a diaper bag?
>DH likes the camoflauge SkipHop . . .will it be too small? Do
>any of you just have a "normal" tote bag?

ugh. I can't help with this either. I'm still in search of the right diaper bag at one year. I suggest you start with the freebie bags you get from the hospital until you get a sense of how you will use a diaper bag. I have a closet full of things I bought before baby was born that are totally unsuitable for the way I really use a diaper bag. I don't know what I was thinking.

...Karen
Jacob Nathaniel Feb 91
Logan Elizabeth Mar 03

[papal]

#3
Ooops! I just measured the IPFs and CPFs.. the infant sizes are the same in both. It is in the regular that the IPFs are about half and inch narrower than the CPFs. So you definitely go ahead and and get the infant IPFs!

#5
I have the Ella Elaine and it works fine for us. I carry 2 extra cloth dipes and a cover along with all the regular stuff.

I agree with everything that Shandelle said for #1, #2 and #4 !! :)

[BeachBaby]

Thanks Shandelle, Karen, & Rashmi! Your answers cleared up a lot of my questions.

Karen, you are too funny . . .I LOL'ed at your 12 y.o.'s reaction to Logan pooping! :) I'm not really squeamish, so the "visuals" didn't bother me. I just wanted to know what I was getting myself in to (hopefully not literally!).

Off to check out Ella bags . . .

[papal]

There is a co-op for the Whimsical Wears bags going on now. Go to the Diaper Bags forum for details if you are interested. I would have got one maybe if a)I did not already love my Ella b) The WW bags had a zipper on them.