Diapers: What do I do with this sh*t now?

Brad K. made an excellent point on my "Ladies Only" post that got me thinking. A lot of women (and other people) don't think about adding things like feminine hygiene stuff to the preps. What else are we forgetting? In my personal case, the Boy has been a sloooooooooow potty trainer. He is pretty sure I'm batty, and this going on and on about doing things in the toilet is just silly. Why bother when you can go in your pants and Mom cleans you up? Sounds like a pretty sweet deal to me and I'm 25. That being said, the kid is 3. If SHTF, he'll learn really quick.

Now, I'm also quilty has charged for using disposable diapers when the Boy was a baby. Hate me, I don't care. I got lectured up the front and down the back by heaps of people, and yeah, I still don't care. That being said, if I ever so have another baby, I think I'm going to use cloth diapers. I know a few people who've used them and loved them. Their babies had less diaper rash, and potty trained faster as they understood being wet was uncomfortable. Disposable diapers have chemicals that pull the moisture away from the body, and can hold up to 800 times their weight in liquid by converting it into a gel.

Now obviously, if SHTF having a stock pile of disposable diapers isn't very practical. Whereas, cloth diapers will generally last about as long as you can use them. There are a million different types, as is par for the course with handmade type stuff (everyone adapts it to their own needs). A lot of companies now also offer accesories like diaper covers (in various fabrics and designs), reuseable wipes, washable diaper liners, and even training pants.

A few of the girls I know rave about Kushies. Their stuff is adorable, and they have a ton of accesories and was one of the few sites where I found training pants. I love their Classic Diapers but they are very much on the pricey side. A 5 pack of the classics runs about $65 for the baby sized, and about $75 for the toddler sizes. The diaper covers also run about $9. Of course you could also just buy the cover, and use plain old Gerber cloth diapers for underneath.

If your feeling ambitious, you can also give making them yourself a shot. Diaper Jungle has some great resources, and has links to just about anything you'd need. I'm sure if you just google'd a bit you could find a ton more. I can't sew to save my life, so that's a bit out of my realm.

So during one of my many midnight mind wanderings.....

I had a thought about essentials we will need should the worst happen and all our self-reliance skills be put to the test. I realized I hear a lot about precious metals, foods, weapons, a home with the ability to power itself. We talk of ways to can, to prep meat, to provide for our families in needful times. One necessity I have yet to get much detail on is clothing! If stores have failed or become super expensive how will we get clothes? So I have decided part of my survival storage will be a good amount of durable, easily dyable material, basic clothing patterns, and oodles of needles and thread and buttons. I really don't want to have a huge supply of ammo but have to go hunting naked because I thought nothing about providing clothing for my family. I'll let you guys know what fabrics I found that seem to suit best and are easy to sew. Luckily I have an infant so my first forays into sew from scratch can be tiny clothes!