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When my youngest was born I had thought about cloth diapering her. My husband flat out said no way. He didn't want dirty diapers around the house and he didn't want to deal with all of that. I didn't push anything at the time and we didn't have money for the start up of cloth at that time anyways. However, when our daughter was 4 months old and I had done the majority of the diaper changes in that time I revisited the idea of cloth diapering with my husband.Again he said no way. I presented my argument of money saving and the fact that he wasn't the one changing diapers. He presented his concern of the smell and me not always being on top of the laundry. I promised that I would do better with the laundry and that I wouldn't have a choice but to wash the diapers frequently. He agreed with conditions. He WOULD NOT be changing any diapers! I agreed because he really wasn't changing diapers anyways. Don't worry, he was still contributing and a huge help to me around the house. This is not a bash my husband post because he is very helpful with the children.
So how has it worked with him not changing diapers?
Since I am the stay at home parent and our daughter has been breastfed so far in the first 13 months of her life I really haven't been apart from her for more than about 2 hours. So it hasn't been much of an issue. I have done everything with the diapers. My husband will get me a wash cloth while I'm changing her or hand me a Snappi if I can't find it. Gets me a cover if I need a clean one and it's drying on the rack. So he does help, it's just the actual diaper changes he does not do. Even if I hand a wet naked baby to him out of the tub he won't put a diaper on her. So for the past 9 months I have changed all of the cloth diapers in the house.
All of that is about to change!
It has been a nice run of no diaper changes for my husband, but all things must come to an end. This Friday, I will have to be apart from my baby girl for an entire night. My middle daughter was invited to a sleepover at her school because she had participated actively in the public library's summer reading program last summer. As a reward the school gives all students who actively participated a night in the school of fun and games and they spend the whole night there. But a parent must go too. And since my husband went last year because I was 9 months pregnant and could have gone into labor at any time this year is my turn. I hadn't really thought about diaper changes until I was changing my daughter at 2 a.m. this morning and realized he might have to do this. Actually, he WILL have to do this. I have to be at the school with my daughter Friday night at 7 p.m. Even if I change her before I leave I am going to be gone for over 12 hours. There's no way she can go that long in a diaper and of course I can't guarantee she won't poop after I leave. So he will be changing diapers again.
I do have a sort of cheat for him!
All in all I know he'll do fine and he'll do what has to be done so that I can spend some time with one of our other daughters. Things won't be done exactly as I do them, but that's fine. Nothing ever is and I can't expect him to do exactly what I do in anything. But I know he won't let her suffer with a dirty diaper just to not have to touch cloth!
Cloth diapering mamas: Does your husband change cloth diapers ever? Has he always been fine with cloth or did you have to bring him around?