Diapers... to cloth or not to cloth

I have had a diaper dilemma every since Reed was born...

Before he was born, I wanted to totally go cloth, so we got the cloth diapers, we went with the all-in-one variety, which seemed to be the simplest, but just navigating your way through all the choices was hard enough (and actually my parents got them for us...!) my mom also made extra inserts to double up for nighttime.  I got the diaper pail, and I also got my mom to make cloth wipes.

We started out using disposables when Reed was newborn, everyone recommended that just so you could ease into life with a baby, also they are just so small!
Then at about 2 weeks, I started thinking I would try the cloth diapers.  I also felt some pressure, maybe it was imagined, from the midwives who heartily recommended using cloth asap.  Reed was having some sore, bum problems, he had a red raw bum, no matter how often I changed him and bathed him and kept him diaper-free to air out.  I also started using vaseline to act as a barrier to the moisture.  They suggested it was the disposable diapers that were causing the problem. So we had a few trial runs, I found it was all so new, and figuring out a good 'system' was a challenge...

First of all Reed was so small, even though he was a pretty big baby, the diapers were huge on him!  He had this enormous bum and tiny body, and it was tough to get it snug enough so he wouldn't just pee and poo out the sides .... which he did a lot!  We went through about 3-4 changes of clothes a day.

And then there were the wipes, I had found a good recipe for homemade wipe solution.  You would premix in a jar and dip or pour over the wipes before use.  It consisted of olive oil, baby wash, tea tree oil and lavender oil and water.  You couldn't make too much ahead of time, because the wipes had be fresh and clean.  I also bought a wipe-warmer so he would like getting his bum wiped by a nice warm wipe, it also acted as a good holder for the pre-soaked wipes.

There was also figuring out the diaper pail.  At first I went with the wet pail.  I would fill the pail up 1/2 way with water, sprinkling some baking soda and lavender to the water for smell, then when it would get full, I had to carefully cart the pail downstairs to the basement, dump diapers and water into the machine, do a quick spin out before the normal cycle.  And then afterwards, it was all the folding of the wipes again, and I did this every 2 days.  Not including all the rest of the laundry, mine and Colin's and then Reed's clothes and blankets etc.  So laundry every day, fun!

I later changed to a dry pail, and just sprayed some baby stain remover on the bigger poop jobs.  The diapers still came out as clean as when they were being pre-soaked in the wet pail.

But with all this extra work, Reed was still having a sore bum!  It was getting worse, also diaper rash in the front now too!  I felt like such a bad mom!  But he wasn't at all fussed by it, didn't bother him the slightest.

About two weeks ago, I decided to go back to the disposables to see if it would solve the problem.  I also bought store wipes, to see if the diy wipes were an issue.   Well of course within 2 days it all cleared up.  I still bathe his bum atleast twice a day, but what a difference the diapers have made!  Plus it is a thousand more times easier, and less time consuming!

So I'm in a dilemma!  Do I go back to the cloth diapers?  Even though Reed's bum has never looked so perfect and I've have lessened my workload considerably?!  I don't know.  I feel guilty for all the waste we're creating throwing out so many diapers daily!  Not to mention the extra weekly cost.  I'm in limbo.  But I guess my lack of decision is also a decision as I carry on using the the disposables...  I want to be supermom, and do my part for the environment, but it is just soooooo much easier....... to cloth or not to cloth...