Cloth Diaper Retailer Cooperative: The Jaxon mission ... impossible or not?

Sunday, September 5, 2010

The Jaxon mission ... impossible or not?

A new mum came into the store on the last day of August, 2010. She carried in her arms, little Jaxon, who was a month old. She told me that her husband was out of work, and they were living with relatives, so money was limited, and they needed to cloth diaper little Jaxon on a very very limited budget. Could I help? I said I would do my best! She said all she had in her purse was $240. And she didn't anticipate more funds being available in the future to buy more.

We started by weighing little Jaxon on my shipping scales. He came to 10 pounds, and that gave us a starting point for our mission. Our goal, to make these cloth diapers last as long as possible! And hopefully make the system easy enough for dad to use.

First off we checked out the Bummis starter kit. These kits are a great kit to get started, but there was one flaw. The smallest version would only fit little Jaxon until 15 pounds. Jaxon's mum asked me, how long till that. Well, how long is a piece of string? That was not an answer I could give. I told her every baby was different. My last one didn't hit 15 pounds until he was 8 months old, but other friends babies were that weight by the time they were 2-3 months old. Predicting weights is not something I can do :)

So then she said, what if she went with the next size up that started at 15 pounds. Could she stuff the cover to make it fit. I pulled out a medium cover off the shelf, and showed her just how big that cover was next to her tiny little Jaxon. No this would not work. Perhaps continue with disposables? I pointed out that the cost of disposables till 15 pounds, would be far more than the cost of the tiny baby starter kit, so she would be best getting both. However, funds did not permit her to get both.

So I sat down at my laptop and started to work some mathematical magic. I call it magic, because math is not something I am good at!

With some back and forth, we were able to come up with a package for Jaxon that even included detergent! And it would fit him until he was 28 pounds! And our package used an easy to use diapering system, even for dads. It was not just a simple cover and prefold system.

This is what we put together:

Item	QTY	Price/Each	Total Price
Monkey Doodlez Tuck and Go Covers - Size Medium	6	15.95	95.7
Bummis Prefolds Size Small/Infant	18	2.67	48
G-Flappers - Hemp/Microfiber/Microchamois	6	6.00	36
Bummis Fleece Liners	5	1.00	5
Bummis Bio Liners Size Small	1	6.00	6
Large Wet Bag	1	18.95	18.95
Gro-Baby Draw String Wet Bag	1	6.75	6.75
Rocking Green Detergent	1	14.95	14.95
Grand Total			231.35

So for around $230 we got her 24 changes, so she only has to wash every two days. She has plenty of covers to last that period of time. She also got detergent to wash her diapers with. The large wet bag was to store the soiled diapers in. Ideally at some point she would need a second, but she can get by with the one. The Draw String wet bag allows her to have a bag to put soiled diapers in while out and about. Her covers will fit her baby from 12 to 28 pounds, which is well beyond most baby's first year of life. The covers, are also good ones that hold the prefolds and G-flappers in place, which makes it easier for other care givers to change the baby.

So yes, you can diaper a baby on a limited budget and not have to settle for the cheapest covers. And you can make the system last through a long weight range too! And it can be simple enough for other caregivers too!

Would you like to win a Monkey Doodlez Tuck and Go cover in the size and colour of your choice? Very simple to enter. Just head on over to my blog and follow the directions on how to enter.