So what is eLeMeNO-Pee, anyway?

Hi, there! Welcome to the eLeMeNO-Pee blog. You may have stumbled across us lately because of Pinterest or DiaperSwappers or because one of your Facebook friends "liked" us. Maybe one of your local or online friends told you that she applied to be an eLeMeNO-Pee consultant and you were curious, or maybe you found us the old-fashioned way: Google!

So, who are we? 

Well, we're a (1) cloth diaper retailer, in some ways just like any other online cloth diaper retailer. We have a Web store that offers same-day shipping, a Facebook Page, a blog. We run sales and specials from time to time, we stock several major brands of quality modern cloth diapers that come with good warranties, we offer our clients support and answer questions or help them process returns and warranty claims. We also carry the usual array of cloth diaper accessories, like wet bags and diaper sprayers and clean-rinsing detergents, and, of course, that most wondrously wonderful wonder of the natural parenting world, Baltic amber and beaked hazelwood jewelry.

But we're also a (2) direct selling company, much like Thirty-One or The Pampered Chef. We have local consultants all over Louisiana and Texas, and we're currently processing applications for potential consultants all over the United States, from California to Maine! Like most modern direct selling companies, the eLeMeNO-Pee "opportunity" is commission-based, and, after a thorough education and training process, and with the support of the home office and veteran consultants, our local consultants have the opportunity to successfully open their own cloth diaper businesses without encountering the massive overhead involved in owning a brick-and-mortar store... and with the highest commission rate we've seen from any cloth diaper direct selling opportunity. This means consultants are free to earn an income simply by geeking out over cloth diapers with their friends who are in the market and introducing their communities to the benefits and how-tos of cloth all while working from home or on-the-go with their babies in tow. Our consultants' clients can choose to host a party to receive awesome hostess rewards, have a cloth diaper baby shower, or just meet one-on-one with a consultant to learn more about cloth diapers, see and touch and try diapers on their babies, witness a cloth diaper laundry demonstration, collaborate to come up with a "dream stash," and then start making that stash happen! Additionally, each consultant has her own Web store, so that you can continue to support her business when you need to make a purchase but know what you want without requiring a consultation.

The store: 2102 W. Prien Lake Rd.

We are, finally, a (3) local brick-and-mortar store in Lake Charles, La. The "store" is technically our home office and warehouse, and it is staffed by our Lake Charles consultant for the convenience of her clients. As such, it is open for limited hours that change a little with each season. Summer hours are Tues. and Thurs. from 10 am - 2 pm. Lake Charles clients are encouraged to come in and shop during those hours or to shop online and select "in-store pickup" to avoid paying for shipping.

Why are we all three of these things?

So that we can be as mom-friendly as possible! Founded in 2008, we are still a relatively young company, and we are truly passionate about allowing moms to supplement their families' incomes by helping other families save money and green up their lifestyles by switching to cloth diapers. Each of our consultants is a talented woman committed to providing excellent customer service and product support to her clients. In order to keep things as low-pressure as possible for our consultants, who have no "quotas" to meet in case they need to take some personal time away from working, we also accept sales from our Web store to increase our volume of sales in regions where we have not yet hired consultants. But our goal is for every client--you!--to have her customer service needs met with the personal touch that can only be offered by an expert consultant!

Want an insider's perspective?

Several of our Louisiana reps at a training session.

I may be a tiny bit (ok, or a huge bit) biased, but as an employee and a client, I have huge admiration for each and every person who makes up the eLeMeNO-Pee family. The dynamic husband-wife duo, Allison and Todd, who own and run the company, work hard to make sure that our consultants feel supported and have an easy time learning the ropes. Our consultants, both veterans and newbies, are a true team, offering each other ideas and tips, celebrating each other's business and personal victories, and offering sympathy tears and comfort during each other's times of personal tragedy.

Lest you think eLeMeNO-Pee is just one big self-contained lovefest, I will also iterate that eLeMeNO-Pee exists for the clients just as much as for the consultants; after all, without the clients, there are no consultants! We encourage our consultants to host annual cloth diaper resale events in their communities, to offer free and open-to-the-public cloth diapering classes, to keep handy a list of resources and professionals for clients, who are often brand new parents, to be referred to when they have big parenting questions. And we continue to update our party hostess benefits (including the recent addition of free shipping for an entire party's order where the party sales total $400 or more, no matter how heavy the box!) as our company grows and our budget allows for it.

Each of our consultants has also shared with me instances where she has been willing to go to bat for her clients, so, for example, if you're also in direct sales or you own your own small business, know that your consultant is happy to learn what the products and concepts you represent can do for her. As one of our veteran consultants, Jenny H., is known to say, "It all comes full-circle when work-at-home moms are supporting each other."

Adventures in pottying (...finally)!

Oh. My. Goodness. Y'all.

Oh, my goodness!

The Little Dude who, for the last year, has held up five fingers and told me he would start using the potty when he was "this many," who told everyone he knew that he would "never sit on the potty" as long as his "superstar diaper and planets diaper and Rudolph diaper" still fit him, even though his "plain old diapers" (the trusty FuzziBunz mediums we've used since he was six months old--his entire cloth-diapered life) were finally starting to get too tight... this is the kid who coolly announced yesterday afternoon that it was time for him to use the potty! Oh, you know. NBD. It's just time, Mom. Can't you tell?

I was nervous. I am nervous.

But with four successes and one small accident before the bedtime diaper yesterday, we were off to an excellent start!

Today we're heading to the store to buy... more underwear! For the duration of the errand, Little Dude will be wearing a FuzziBunz Trickle-Free Trainer. However, we are probably going to have to navigate the world of public restrooms... if not today, soon.

Here's how it's going today:

8:50 am - Little Dude is on the potty, trying to go before we embark on our underwear-retrieving errand. He's playing the Potty Time with Elmo app (.99) on our iPad.

Success!

9:30 am - We're at Target to pick out cool superhero underwear. Little Dude tried to sit on the toilet here, but he was afraid of the loud flushes and the hugeness of everything. Uh oh.

10:15 am - We're home! And our Trickle-Free Trainers are dry! LD tried pottying, but nothing happened. Time for a quick snack, and then we'll try to sit on the potty again.

10:55 am - Still no accidents! We're sitting again. I am seriously impressed with his momentum. Maybe there is something to be said for waiting until 3.5?

1:24 pm - I've lost track of the number of attempts, but we've still had no accidents. I've been wanting to test the capacity of the FuzziBunz trainers, but we haven't had to yet!

2:39 pm - Still no accidents, but not much going, either. I've noticed he's not keeping his beloved water bottle with him, and he's yet to do a #2 today... But I'm trying to focus on the positive. No accidents!

2:47 pm - He just ran to the potty! His underoos have the slightest, smallest little dot of wetness. He's sitting now! Aaaand... success!

Here's what I've learned about potty-training so far:

1) My diaper sprayer is key. Because of his age and height, we're using a potty ring on our regular toilet, but it still gets a little messy. The sprayer has been perfect for cleaning it off between uses. I can only imagine how much more useful it is if you and your child prefer a potty.

2) Waiting this long may not have been a bad thing. I've put myself on a guilt-trip for the past year, because all my friends had potty-trained two-year olds, and my Little Dude didn't even seem to be aware of when he was wet, much less when he was going to wet his diaper. But his track record so far suggests to me that waiting until he initiated this process was the right move for us, even if he initiated a little later than his buddies.

3) Natural fibers help. Last week, I pulled out some old prefolds and asked him to tell me when they felt wet. It didn't take long before he was well aware of the sensation of wetness! However, when I tried this a year ago, he still didn't pay enough attention to know when he was wet. Maturity has a lot to do with it.

4) Apps help, too. What can I say? Back in the late 1980s, I sat on my potty with a stack of books beside me. But my kid is a technology kid. Weeks ago, I promised him a few potty-related iPad apps if he'd start sitting on the potty. They've worked like a charm to get him to go sit. And, while real-life sticker charts don't seem to matter much to him, the virtual ones on the potty apps thrill him to no end.

5) Little Dude likes cool underoos just as much as he liked his cool diapers. This means I'm just letting him change them after every time he potties, even though they're staying dry. He talks eagerly about the next pair of underwear he's going to put on, and he organizes them into Marvel and DC comic heroes. Kind of strange? Yes. That's my Little Dude. And it's working to motivate him!

6) This is actually kind of bonding. We're at home for the most part, and I'm hanging out with him quite a bit while he sits on the toilet so that he'll be willing to sit for a while. I have to pay a lot of attention to his habits to see if I think he's holding anything. I dreaded this part, but it's been nice to be so in sync!

We'll see how it goes as we continue! So far, so good. What I really need is your advice for how to patiently and gently help him to deal with his fear of public restrooms so that we can get this show on the road full-time. What worked for your children? Please advise! This is new territory for this mama!

The skinny on adjustable leg elastic, or: Why leg elastic sets the rise (with visual help from a Tremendously Creepy Doll)

If you're new to cloth, you may be reading reviews that suggest that there's a "learning curve" to using one-size diapers correctly, especially one-size diapers like SoftBums (seen on the right) or FuzziBunz Elite that work by toggling, cinching, or otherwise adjusting the elastic along the sides. That's true! There is.

You may also have heard or read that adjustable leg elastic is perfect for babies with skinny legs.

I'm going to blow your mind: that's not necessarily accurate.

A customizable waist is best for both newborns and older babies with skinny legs. Adjustable leg elastic is perfect for any baby if you want diapers that will grow gradually from around 8 lbs. through toddlerhood.

What do I mean?

Cinching or toggling leg elastic works by gathering the fabric to make a diaper longer or shorter. This is similar to a snap-down rise, but looks cleaner and neater from the front when the diaper is fastened on a baby, and it is much more customizable: there are more length possibilities because there are more--or even practically infinite--settings to choose from.

But since the elastic is part of the leg, you know, the brain's inclination is to eye that elastic and figure out how long or short it needs to be to go exactly around the baby's leg snugly, creating a seal to hold in, well, everything a diaper is supposed to hold in!

Better start with very tight, short settings, you think. This little skinny-legged one has a long way to go to chunk up.

But something must be wrong. The baby's sheets and clothes are always wet; experienced cloth diapering friends are telling you that your diapers are "wicking" around the legs and right at the tummy. The absorbent insert isn't soaked, so it's not a matter of having too little absorbency.

What am I doing wrong?? Are these diapers I've invested in just not going to work for my baby? They're already so tight that they're leaving red marks around his thighs. HOW is the pee escaping? There are no gaps!

Fret not! Most likely the diaper is going to work for your baby... with a few adjustments.

What's happening is called compression leaking. It can happen to any type of absorbent core, from a microfiber terry insert to a trim hemp prefold to an all-cotton fitted, if the outer fabric of the diaper is pulled too tightly around the baby, or if the cinched elastic is digging in, causing the absorbent core to be "smushed" in any area. This forces moisture, which has nowhere else to go, to be sort of "wrung out" onto any surface that will absorb it: your baby's unprotected skin or clothing, your sling, the car seat, or the crib sheets.

So what's the solution? Let the fabric out until the rise falls just below the belly button in the front and right at belly button-level in the back. On a FuzziBunz Elite, that means moving the buttons over to a hole marked by a lower number, possibly even at both ends of the elastic. On a SoftBums diaper, that means using the Slide2Size adjuster to release the cinching of the fabric by a full centimeter or more.

To get that seal around the legs that will hold everything in and let the insert do its job without being "wrung out," tighten the waist as tightly as necessary to ensure that there's not a gap between the baby and the secured diaper's leg hole. On a classic hook-and-loop SoftBums diaper, that means making use of the crossover tab--the little "loop" square on the end of one of the tabs that allows you to overlap them. On a FuzziBunz Elite, that means using the innermost thigh snaps, the innermost waist snaps, and the appropriate hip snaps to avoid "wing droop." If you are using the tightest possible snap settings and there is still a noticeable gap between the fabric of the diaper and the baby's leg, go ahead and bring the rise back down a notch.

Are you a visual learner? Here's a side-by-side comparison. Same Tremendously Creepy Doll (TCD) diaper model, same type of diaper (FuzziBunz Elite), but two different approaches to sizing. On the left, a longer rise, dependent on a tight waist setting to secure a seal around the thighs. On the right, a shorter rise... and more potential for bunching and compression.

(Please note: Creepy Doll is belly button-less, and he has an unusually short rise for his length and chunkiness.)

On the left: Size 3 rise; on the right: Size 6.

The left looks like it might be too big for TCD. The right seems like a more intuitive setting, right?

Wrong! Look at the perfect seal around TCD's leg on the left, and look at how smoothly the fabric lies. Look at the way the fabric is pulling on the right.

The tightness here is causing the insert to bunch and compress. If Tremendously Creepy Doll could wet this diaper, the insert would be "wrung out" and moisture would wick around his creepy almost-lifelike legs and at the tummy.

Here's the same principle applied to SoftBums, but in reverse. This time, on the left, the rise is short and the diaper is taut--and pulling down a little at the tummy. On the right, the rise is a bit longer, the crossover waist tab is employed, and the diaper still fits trimly and smoothly--and the insert is less likely to be compressed by tightened fabric.

There you have it: a couple trim, leak-proof, compression-proof one-size diapers that really will work for almost every baby. Give these adjustments a shot, and let us know how it goes for you!

We salute you, Ms. Work-at-Home-Mom!

Inspired by real moms.

If you've ever...

• Pulled an all-nighter to knit, sew, glue, paint, bedazzle, applique, smock, blog, transcribe, re-touch, package, or list items for sale before jumping right into cooking breakfast, packing lunches, quizzing on spelling words, and throwing in that first load of morning laundry,
• Scheduled your day down to the minute, only to replace "shower," "brush my own teeth," and "get a haircut," with "WORK,"
• Had to wash baby puke off a nearly finished quilt before the craft show tomorrow,
• Crafted five perfect sparkly bows and matching tutus, hand-embellished four prefolds to create chic burp cloths, knitted three tiny newborn beanies, filed two blog posts, or submitted one huge online order to your distributor... while sitting in the school pick-up line,
• Supported your family for any length of time through your own unique combination of talent, hard work, flexibility, faith, and foolhardiness,
• Had to explain to a fellow PTA mom exactly what a "HyenaCart" is,
• Written a Netflix subscription off as a business/childcare expense,
• Made a meal plan that included "peanut butter and jelly" on five different types of carriers: sandwich bread, tortillas, apple slices, celery sticks, and, what the heck?, by Friday, fingers will do,
• Knitted, crocheted, or stitched like mad to complete an order from the bleachers at the ballpark, cheering on an older child and wearing a younger one,
• Had to refund an order because the one time you forgot to purchase postal insurance was the one time a package was lost in transit,
• Named a business after one of your children--or one of your children's embarrassing nicknames,
• Jumped up and down, twisted and shouted, and gathered your kids in their varying levels of enthusiasm into the room with you to joyfully announce your first sale!
• Answered a 2 am e-mail about where the raw materials for Michael Miller fabrics are sourced, 
• Wished that, for just one day, you could put on a business suit (instead of yoga pants and a t-shirt) and drive off for your 8-5 with lunch out (instead of your 'round-the-clock with vertically challenged but ever-energetic colleagues eager for mac'n'cheese... again) in a company sedan (instead of your swagger wagon),
• Caught your kid playing on your phone--pretending to be you--taking an order,  
• Been told that your "foreign accent comprehension" is exceptional (this one's for the medical transcriptionists!),
• Felt like you finally had the hang of the work-husband-kids-house-personal time balance only to hear yourself telling your husband, "Let's have another baby!"
• Felt a little shady for giving your card to a mom you met while you were hiding unsafe baby carriers at the backs of shelves at Babies R Us,
• Allowed a fingerpaint mural on your driveway just so you could finally get that Mother's Day blog post written (ahem)...

Naturally, a WAHM road is a pretty one.

If you've ever been there--or anywhere else that this WAHM road leads--then we salute you in a special way this Mother's Day!

 

The modern cloth diaper industry began as a network of Work-at-Home Moms, and eLeMeNO-Pee began as a one-woman WAHM business endeavor when our founder's husband was laid off from his job. We salute these industry foremothers. We salute our WAHM vendors--and our "big" vendors who began as WAHMs. We salute our consultants, many of whom work from home supporting multiple business endeavors, and some of whom work from home for eLeMeNO-Pee and work outside of the home as well! We salute our clients who have their own WAHM businesses. We salute everyone who supports and promotes WAHM businesses, and we salute every woman who provides for her family from home--in phenomenal ways and in small, but always helpful ways--using her own talents, time, creativity, and people skills.

Fill in the blank: You might be a WAHM if you've ever _______________________.

Product line spotlight: hosie naturals

So often it takes a pregnancy for us to wake up to what's in our conventionally manufactured skin and health products. I know that was true for me. And the thought of making over the contents of my medicine cabinet and bathroom drawers was completely overwhelming--especially in light of everything else that a new pregnant mother finds herself impelled to learn. But I also knew I wanted the products in my home to be safe for my baby--that's part of the reason I chose cloth diapers, after all.

If you've ever made an appointment with an eLeMeNO-Pee representative, you know that we carry a highly effective cloth diaper-safe diaper rash remedy called Butt Balm by hosie naturals, and we also carry hosie naturals' concentrated Wipe Solution (think the "wet" part of a wet wipe) to be used with cloth wipes.

But did you know that hosie naturals is so much more than that?

hosie naturals is: Scar care, headache remedy, tingly lip balm, menopause support, and so much more!

Kari Feucht, the mom-trepreneur behind hosie naturals, has a degree in skincare and is also certified to work with herbs. Her creations run the gamut from basic skincare to herbal medicine.

Belly butter ingredients: whipped perfection.

Belly butter to prevent stretch marks and improve the look, feel, and moisture level of your skin during pregnancy? She's got that. (Hint: let your man know it's fabulous on the feet during one of those third-trimester, pregnant-wife-pampering massages. It also smells like a cookie.)

Scar care to aid in healing after a c-section or other surgery? Check.

Peri care for the postpartum mother, teething balm (to be used on the outside of the cheeks) for the fussy baby, baby butter for baby massage, makeup remover/ facial cleanser? Luxurious coconut scrub exfoliant? Tingly lip balm that comes in either a convenient stick or the more traditional dip-your-finger-in-the-pot form? She's got all that, too.

And it's all organic plant-based. No chemicals. Nothing you'll find getting a bad rap on the Skin Deep database.

Perhaps the most unique of all of Kari's creations, the Love Your Labor birthing oil is my Number One choice of baby gift when I have a friend who's expecting. Now, I'm admittedly part of those earth mama, no pain med-taking, prenatal yoga-doing, moo-like-a-cow-and-sway-to-you-and-your-baby's-harmonious-biorhythm natural childbirth circles. It's not unusual, for example, to hear a pregnant mama in my friend group say she's considering a lotus birth. But I've seen this stuff in action in your average induction-in-a-hospital setting, and the results are the same for so many women: many of us who've used it during labor never knew that we were in active labor.

 

 

How is that possible, you ask? Beats me, but Kari from hosie naturals sure seems to know. The ingredients (pictured above) are a (to me) magical combination of uterus-toning and mind-and-body-relaxing herbs and oils, so while it's aiding in your labor's steady progression, it's also keeping your mind clear and focused and helping your body to relax and breathe through contractions. I know three doulas and one birth center who keep this "birth potion" on-hand for their clients. Personally, I think it's eLeMeNO-Pee's best-kept secret. I'm wondering why hospitals don't stock it!

If you've never delved into the world of organic skincare, hosie naturals is the perfect place to start. A work-at-home mother who's built a business that started on her Jeanerette, La. kitchen table into a successful storefront with retailers all over the southern United States, Kari from hosie naturals is committed to creating mother-and-baby skincare and herbal support products that are both affordable and a pleasure to use.

New products are introduced only once their "recipes" are perfected, however, so know that anything you try has been tested repeatedly for safety and efficacy (just not on animals!). And, while you can't find any of it at your local drugstore, hosie naturals organic skincare products are always available through our Web site or through your local eLeMeNO-Pee representative.

Six ways to celebrate this Earth Day!

When Earth Day was first celebrated in 1969, the organizers may as well have called it "Hippie-Dippy Day." In the early days of this celebration, metropolis-dwellers, ecologists, activists, and university students gathered for annual "environmental teach-ins." Your average American housewife? Was probably celebrating her daily cook-and-clean-in.

But today, after decades of our nation collectively spiraling further and further into consumerist habits that made our landfills look like Everest, even the most corn-fed, countrified, heartland family is taking steps to reduce their carbon footprint (or would that be "feetprint"?).

Here's our list of six simple steps you can take to green your family's lifestyle AND be a positive influence on your community :

1. Celebrate Real Diaper Week. It's your opportunity to share your reasons for cloth diapering with everyone from your pediatrician to your mailman! Show your cutest cloth diapers off in public, refer someone to your local cloth diaper retailer, get your friends together and ask your favorite baby boutique to carry cloth diapers. Let everyone know that cloth diapers are a real option for real families! The official "rules" are here.  

2. Recycle. If you're here in Lake Charles, where our home office is, you know that we don't have curbside recycling... yet. But we do have a drop-off location that's open every day of the week! It's located off Nelson Rd. near the soccer fields--signs lead the way.

What my little family did this year was pick a location in our house (our computer/music room) and put stackable, clear plastic bins with lids, labeled "Aluminum," "Plastics," and "Paper," in a corner. When a bin is full, I empty it into the required garbage bag, load the kids into the minivan, and head to the drop-off point. That's it! No trying to find out where the Team Green truck is. 

If you're lucky enough to live in a locale with curbside pick-up, your challenge is to write to your city council and thank them for their efforts to keep your city clean and green! Let them know that you recycle, and that the city's recycling program represents tax dollars well spent.

3. Upcycle! Upcycling is reusing with style... and it's a Pinterest-addict's dream come true! There's an old World War II-era saying that our friends at the Sulphur, La.-based business America Make Do have adopted as their inspirational tag line: Use it up. Wear it out. Make it do. 

But wearing it out doesn't have to mean letting your household goods go ugly or threadbare. Slightly holey blue jeans become custom baby bibs and junior handbags. Dad's worn-at-the-hem dress shirts become tiny dresses. With the help of a pair of scissors, a serger, and some pretty thread, old curtains become heavy-duty napkins, frayed towels become a new set of dishrags, and old t-shirts become baby wipes. Why create waste by throwing any perfectly useable piece of cloth (or glass, or aluminum, or, well, anything) out?  

Compost bucket with filtered lid.

4. Compost. You'll decrease your food waste immediately! Collect your fruit and vegetable peels, egg shells, and coffee grinds in a bucket or bowl to start your compost. Composting is a great way to create rich soil for your flower beds or vegetable garden, and it makes for significantly less trash in your house. In fact, if you're recycling, upcycling, cloth diapering, and composting, you may find that you have almost NO household trash! 

Our compost, ready to be turned.

5. Cut down on excess packaging. Make the choice in the grocery store to buy the brand that's both affordable and uses minimal packaging. Buying in bulk usually costs less per unit and involves less excess plastic and cardboard. Buy as much as you can from local growers, and bring your own reusable containers (think Tupperware) to the farmer's market to store rice, oats, and flour in. Finally, e-mail your favorite brands, or find their Facebook pages, and request that they eliminate excess packaging!

6. Speaking of groceries... BYOB! Bring your own bags, that is! This is a simple and convenient way to keep plastic out of landfills. Reusable cloth bags can (and should!) be washed and dried with your clothes or towels to keep them clean and free of bacterial contaminants. Woven string bags can expand to hold up to 40 lbs. of goods, and simple canvas totes can come in all your favorite colors and fun prints! In fact...

If you're one of the first 25 participants to make your way to the Great Cloth Diaper Change - Lake Charles, you'll receive a FREE one, full of swag, compliments of eLeMeNO-Pee!

Chances are you're already doing at least one of these things. As part of Real Diaper Week and leading up to Earth Day, won't you share this on your Facebook wall, and tell your friends how many of the listed items you can check off! You just may inspire someone to green up their household.

gDiapers: So THAT'S what the 'g' is for!

Confession: eLeMeNO-Pee has carried them for more than a year now, but I've never tried gDiapers. I've never even tried them on one of my babies. In all honesty, until today, I'd never even seen them on a real, live (non-photographed) baby!

gDiapers always has such beautiful photography, though!

Three years ago, when I was exploring the idea of cloth diapering, I asked my friends about gDiapers on Facebook. I didn't get any good feedback, so I didn't explore them further.

Last fall, I even tried to convince Allison and Todd (who know me by now, and know that I'm prone to giving unsolicited advice, and who graciously appear to listen when I launch into a spiel) in the home office that there was no reason to keep them in our product line, because they, truthfully, weren't much of a hit with our clients.

Enter Jessica.

Jessica is one of our brand new reps, and she's located here in Lake Charles--she works out of the home office!

Jessica is bright and funny and just a fun person to work with and be around. She's also an expert on gDiapers. I got to see her in action one day, and we'll just say that, at check-out, I was just as excited as the client about her new stash of g's.

I'm going to let the gExpert's words take over from here.

I just really love everything about gDiapers. I first fell in love with the design--how the gPants have such a trim fit. I love that the gPants can be reused throughout the day, because it makes it easier to coordinate outfits with the fluffy bum. I love the flexibility of using cloth or disposable (and being able to compost, flush, or toss the gRefills). I love the 'gBreathe technology' that makes them more breathable than many other diapers on the market.

For many of us 'gMums,' 'g' is more than a product; it's a lifestyle. The company goes by the philosophy of Fair Dinkum: an Australian term that means 'genuine with everyone.' So, 'g' stands for 'genuine,' but it also stands for green, groovy, grateful, or whatever else it might mean to you!

The gDiapers headquarters is based out of Portland, Ore., but when the gTeam travels around the country for business, they reach out to their fans and try to meet with as many as they can by hosting gTeas. Actually, when several gMums from around the country decided they were going to take a trip to Portland for one of the company's local gTeas, gHeadquarters created a big event for them that included a tour of the city, taking them out to dinner, and even a gSleepover! I've never heard of any other company giving that kind of personal attention to their customers.

One misconception I had about gDiapers is that using them wasn't really for families who were using cloth to save money--I thought they were just about having a green disposable option that was also cuter and more breathable than a conventional disposable all-in-one. But Jessica set me straight:

I know several gMums--myself included!--who primarily use gCloth. Flushies (officially called gRefills) are a nice option to have for traveling, if you want to use a strong, commercial diaper rash cream and don't want to risk messing up your cloth, if you get behind on diaper laundry, or for any other reason you might feel like you need to take a break from cloth. I keep a pack on-hand, but it's rare that I reach for them.

Way back when I first put the call out to my Facebook friends for gFeedback, I'd been told that because the gPouch, which provides the water-proofing for the system, was biodegradable, it could only be used a handful of times before it had to be composted, and thus would need to be replaced often. I saw that as $$$ flying away, and I needed cloth diapers to save us money. However, Jessica says she uses the same gPouches she's always had. Here's her gLaundry regimen:

I wash the 100% cotton gPants with regular laundry, on cold, and hang to dry to prevent shrinkage. The snap-in, waterproof gPouches go in zip-up, mesh garment bags to protect them from too much wear and tear, and I wash them with regular laundry on cold or warm. They're also hung to dry. And gCloth gets washed just like the cloth diaper laundry you're used to: cold pre-wash, hot wash with detergent, extra rinse. I dry them in the dryer along with my FuzziBunz inserts.

Speaking of FuzziBunz, it seems to me that there are "cloth diapering moms," and there are "gMums," and nary the twain shall meet. But Jessica assures me that gDiapers can be worked into the kind of varied stash that I like to keep.

The great thing about g's is the flexibility! If you have a favorite prefold or bamboo insert, for example, just stuff it into the gPouch! I think people focus on the idea of 'hybrid,' but add a few g's into your diaper rotation, and I'm sure you'll love them.

I took her up on her challenge, actually, and took my ever-lovin', diaper-collectin' self to the eLeMeNO-Pee store to see what colors were in stock. I came home with this pretty little thing called "Glacier Blue," and I'm using a FuzziBunz hemp insert in it for now:

Mediocre cell phone photography by yours truly, with help from the Snapseed, Picstitch, and Instagram apps.

So far, so cute!

And if I don't like it, after all? Jessica says,

Spring gStyle: Diaper + matching dress!

The resale market for g's is crazy right now! gDiapers releases new colors, prints, and gStyles (matching top and bottom sets) two times a year, and once items are not available through retailers, they're considered "Hard to Find" in gCulture... and there's a bit of chaos at that point. People fight to find them, even used. While I don't necessarily agree with this kind of pricing, I have seen some of these Hard to Find prints sell for over $200--used. Even well loved gPants in colors that are still available can sell for $8-$10, though.

So here's to seeing how this one integrates into my stash! The separating for laundry part will take me a bit to get used to, but I have to do regular old bright-colored clothes laundry anyway, right? (Cue whining about the Mt. Washmore that appeared in my laundry room the day my first baby came home from the hospital--six months before a cloth diaper ever touched his bum!)

gDiapers Headquarters says that the 'g' can stand for anything you want it to. So, today, 'g' is for, "Guess I'll give it a go!"