How to save money and the planet!

A post on Mrs January's Facebook page made me think of this post.

She asked what people did to save money. Well, for me, it's not to waste.

So here are things that I do for us to save money on things that would otherwise be thrown in the garbage.

1- Use cloth diapers

There are SO many kinds of cloth diapers these days that I'm convinced that there's a kind for everyone! For my first born, we used prefolds. The come in 2 sizes and have 3 rows, with 4 layers of cotton (or bamboo if you choose) on either side and 6-8 layers in the middle. You just put one end on the change under the bum, then fold on top and fasten with a diaper pin or Snappi. You then add a waterproof diaper cover and voilà!

Here's what a prefold diaper looks like:



And a prefold with a snappi (instead of pins - super quick and safe to use!)



Here are the cute covers you put on top:






This worked well, but my second son has extremely sensitive skin prone to eczema, so prefolds didn't work. We had to use a all-in-one. And since we were dishing out money for all-in-ones, we figured it was best to get a one-size-fits-all all-in-one diaper!

Here's what we got:






The prefolds cost about 150$ in total for everything (including all sizes and covers). This was for 36 diapers and 6+8 covers. I sold them for 75$. So it cost me 75$ to diaper a child for 2 years.

The one-size all-in-one cost quite a bit more, but worth it! It cost about 500$ for 25 diapers. They will have lasted 2 months shy of 3 years. I will change the velcro and they will look as good as new! And they work perfectly! I can then sell them for about half of what I paid. So it will have cost me 250$ to diaper a child for 3 years. GREAT in my opinion! I also use cloth wipes (just plain baby wash clothes - we got tons at my baby shower, so that was free). I just add a few drops of Tea Tree oil or Lavender oil and wet the wipes and they're good to go and disinfect! I also use 2 cloth wet bags for dirty diapers (one for home, one for the diaper bag). That's about it!

While I was saving money and the planet with the kids, I decided to do the same for us. We compost and recycle for the earth, but I also grow a garden for fruits and vegetables in the summer. We don't use paper towels. We just use a cloth and wash everything once a week. For cleaners, we use natural products like vinegar.

On a feminine note, I have found a great product! It's a cup that holds all the flow and you can use it for about a year or even sometimes more. It's not dangerous like a tampon (because it doesn't soak up natural fluids) and it's super easy to know when to change it (you feel it).

Here it is:




We also try to use as many reusable containers as we can.

So that's about it for now! I might think of more ways to save money, so I will let you know if I find more!