Flats&Handwashing Day 3

Day 3 of the 3rd Annual Flats and HandWashing Challenge. The challenge is to use only flat cloth diapers and handwash them for 7 days. No washing machines or dryers allowed!

I'm sure the maintenance man found himself wondering if he had accidentally driven through a magic time portal when I answered the door yesterday. Alex was sitting on the couch working on homework, I was folding the mountain of laundry that had taken up residence in our papasan chair, and Spain was running around  in nothing but a flat diaper, complete with pins. The soundtrack of our morning was a radio drama we were half listening to. The only thing missing from our vintage domestic picture of bliss, was a poodle skirt. Oh, wait, poodle skirts were not "mom clothes".

I know I'm in the minority, but I prefer pins. Snappis always left me cold, I've used them a few times, and then decided that I shouldn't bother trying to force myself to like them.  

I always keep at least one spare set of pins in the diaper bag "just in case". With a pair of diaper pins you can make almost anything into a makeshift diaper. They're also great for tightening saggy britches, holding together a tear, or just pinning something to your shirt. They're multi-purpose!

Pins don't scare Sweet Husband either. When Alex was a baby pins and prefolds were the first thing Sweet Husband would reach for when changing a diaper. I stocked up on fitteds, thinking Sweet Husband would prefer them, but he still went for the prefolds. 

A couple tips for using pins:

-Make sure they're sharp! Like knives, pins should be kept sharp. A dull pin can cause much more damage than a sharp pin.

-Store your pins in a bar of beeswax or soap.

-Here's a universal truth: A little lube makes insertion easier. If you're having trouble getting the pin through the fabric try oiling the tip. I run the tip of the pin gently across my scalp, but some people prefer a little olive oil or diaper cream. Remember: A little bit goes a long way!