Flats Challenge: Suddenly It's Wednesday

I know what you're thinking. "Yep. She didn't make it. That whole handwashing thing? Couldn't take it. Now back to reality..."

Sorry, but that's just not the case. :)

I thought I'd get a "head start" Sunday night, so I put Abby in a flat wrapped in a prefold.(Suggested by Dirty Diaper Laundry, the host of this challenge.)

Yes, I use pins! Scary!

Abby's Thirsties Wrap Duo Size 2 snapped down to smallest setting

I had tried flats at night, flats with a flat as a doubler, flats with a doubler as a doubler, flats with a flat and a doubler as a doubler...and had thought that I would never be able to find a solution that would keep Abby's bum relatively dry at night. But this? This works beautifully! Instead of her bum being wet, it was mostly dry!

So far, the flats aren't the challenge. It's the handwashing that gets me. (Well, that and line drying...I do miss my nice, soft flats!) I've been filling a bucket up with water (and detergent for one "wash" cycle), wringing, rinsing, and generally just trying to get the ickies out. One thing that has helped me has been smelling the diapers. I can tell if they aren't getting clean enough because when they're truly clean, I smell nothing. I'll be honest, it's been hard to get them that clean. However, I normally smell ickies in the diapers after I wash them in the machines anyway, probably because we don't have a hot water heater hooked up to our washer. (And, no, we can't get one. Our landlord won't let us.)

My bucket with some cloth wipes added in (the Bumkins is from Sunday)

Soaking the diapers (Both the Bumkins and the Envibum are from Sunday)

One thing that really helps leftover ickies is drying diapers in the sun. Not only does it leave a nice, fresh scent, but the UV rays also disinfect the diapers! I already loved "line" drying my diapers, but I would put them in the dryer for a few minutes to soften them up. But if I'm really going to do this challenge "prairie style," then that's out of the question. I did find, though, that drying them inside the walk-in closet with the water heater gave them a much softer feel!

My first attempt at drying inside...took forever and left them crunchy feeling

Wasn't sure how this would work, but LOVE the softer results!

Yesterday, we were gone all day, so I just filled my little Grovia diaper duffel and headed out. I've always loved how well Thirsties covers work over longer periods. Not that I purposely don't change my daughter's diaper, but sometimes I get busy. With Thirsties, it really does take a LOT to leak, so I knew I wouldn't have problems yesterday. Well, Abby fell asleep last night before I changed her diaper or even put on her jammies. All she had on was one flat and her Thirsties cover. I had changed her diaper around 9 last night, and it took until 7 AM before she even leaked! Not that I want to put her in that situation often, but it's nice to know that I can if I have to.

I'm most likely going to do another summary on Friday or Saturday instead of writing one tomorrow. But I do want to get a list of several flat folds that you can try (if you so choose) as well as links to some of the diaper stores that sell flats. (Not all do, actually, and some are more expensive than others.) For this being the third day of the challenge, I think it's going fairly well. I'm pretty sure I can handle it. Not that I'd want to do it all the time, but I could if I needed to.

Interested? Find out more here at Dirty Diaper Laundry to find out more about why I'm being extra nutty this week! ;)