I know in my first post I said that I consider myself a fairly crunchy mama and listed several examples of what I feel makes me so. However, I’m sure many people might notice that one of the main things that people think of when they hear the words “crunchy mama” was absent. How can you be a crunchy mama and not mention cloth diapers?
First, let’s discuss just what makes a mama “crunchy”, at least as I understand it. “Crunchy” as is used to describe a parenting style refers to a parent who tries to make choices that are healthier for their family and for the environment. Some parents, like me, might also choose these crunchy parenting options because they often tend to be cheaper. Cloth diapering often seems to be a requirement for being considered crunchy, but some other crunchy choices are exclusively breastfeeding (especially for the first 6 months or longer), extended breastfeeding (I will breastfeed AT LEAST until P2 is 2), making one’s own baby food (especially organic baby food) and feeding the rest of your family organic foods. Other choices that are sometimes equated with being crunchy (but I believe are merely traits that are often possessed by crunchy parents, without actually contributing to their “crunchiness”) are “attachment parenting” choices (attachment parents tend to want to be close with their children physically and emotionally, leading them to make choices that foster this closeness) such as babywearing, homeschooling, gentle discipline (without hitting or yelling), etc.
I’ve heard people say “that sounds more like hippie parenting”. That’s actually what crunchy means indirectly. The term “crunchy” implies that a parent is “crunchy like granola” which “hippie types” often eat. I, personally, am not a huge fan J.
I’m sure there are many choices I have not mentioned and to be “crunchy” one does not have to do all of these things (though there are degrees of “crunchiness”… slightly crunchy, crispy, crunchier than grape nuts, etc.). Cloth diapering and breastfeeding do often seem to almost be requirements though.
What does that mean about me? Well, I didn’t say I cloth diaper, but I didn’t say I DON’T either. The truth is, just over a week ago when I first typed up that post in a word document on my computer I would have said NEVER. The LAST thing I would do is cloth diaper.
But, just a day or 2 AFTER writing that post, I went even crunchier. On March 11, 2012 I decided to try out Elimination Communication, or EC.
That morning I took my 4 month old baby’s diaper of and it STAYED off until I got her ready for bed that night. That’s right, I’m either very brave or freaking crazy because I left my infant diaper free for more than 12 hours. But the thing is, you don’t need to be brave or crazy to do it. The truth is… P2 has been diaperless at least as much as, if not more than, she has been diapered ever since.
Now I know you’re thinking “My goodness the mess! She must pee and poop everywhere!!”
Nope. Actually, most of the time she pees and poops in the potty. “In the potty?!?!” Yes, in the potty.
Babies give signals when they need to eliminate and the parent can learn to recognize those signals. Using this communication as well as learning your baby’s rhythm (Do they have to go immediately on waking? 5 minutes after nursing or taking a bottle? Etc.) and the parents’ own intuition it can be anticipated when the child needs to go so the parent can take them to the potty.
Other times she goes on a towel or absorbent/waterproof pad (that seems contradictory but it totally works) that I lay her on if I have to put her down and leave her there for a bit. Keeping her on the pad can be a bit of a challenge though, as she is just over 5 months now and already beginning to try to crawl and manages to scoot and roll all over the place. Alas, misses (not accidents, there’s that semantics thing again) do happen and there have been a handful of times that a bit of pee found its way on me, Dubya or the carpet but it truly is no more work to clean up than the diapers we no longer have to change and we sometimes got peed on when we were exclusively diapering anyway.
Here are a few links for anyone interested in learning more about how to practice EC and begin pottying (NOT POTTY TRAINING the 2 are very different) their baby. You can start from birth or begin later… unless your child is independently using the potty I don’t believe it is ever too late.
Also, about the cloth diapering thing, I am trying to find someone help me make some cloth diapers for P2 (I want to make them myself because I have some specific characteristics I want them to have to make EC easier) to use as backup for when we are out and about, at bedtime (she doesn’t pee in her sleep, I don’t think any babies do, but in case she has enough time between waking and when I take her to potty), and any other time I want her diapered because I am SICK of paying for disposable diapers and SICK of the chemical smell when they get wet and the extra trash, etc.
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