Green, Cheap Ways to Feed and Diaper Your Baby!

All of my friends seem to either have a baby or are pregnant - including me! We all want to raise our kids with as little of an energy footprint as possible (that's SoCal for you) but as we're all working mamas, we're also on time and money budgets. Breastfeeding and cloth diapering are two ways we can not only save the planet, but also some cash, without too much inconvenience! My girlfriends have tested tons of boob and bottom products and here's the best we've got:

Breastfeeding! If one is lucky enough to be physically capable of breastfeeding (and not all mamas are), the task seems daunting both time and effort-wise, especially for working mamas! But aside from bonding, health, and environmental benefits, breastfeeding is also an incredible money saver, and with the right tools can be done almost as quickly as a formula warm up! At a low average of 31 cents per ounce, a year of formula can easily average over $3,000, and frequently more if you go for premium brands. By investing $200-$400 in a reusable, high-quality breast pump, you can build up your supply so that baby's meals can be taken care of while you're working! The number one choice amongst my breastfeeding mamas is the Hygeia EnJoye, which is made from recycled materials and whose best feature is that it can be reused not just by the purchaser for future babies but by friends who buy a $35 Personal Accessory Set! Considering that 2 million breast pumps are purchased every year, this is a great way to cut back on contributing to landfill waste. Users can donate the pump, lend it to a friend, or return it for recycling. Also, the Hygeia EnJoye has a unique C.A.R.E. button (Customized, Audio, Recording, Experience) that can record and playback a baby's cry or other sound, which helps with milk release when you're away from your baby!

And while you're feeding baby, the unused side frequently leaks, requiring disposable nursing pads (and more laundry). Now, there's a hilariously inventive, $25-30 product out called the Milkies Milk Saver, a BPA-free reusable baggie that slips right into your bra! Bottle this 'liquid gold' up in an adorable Silikkin glass and silicone baby bottle and you've just provided a 'twofer' meal!



Cloth Diapering! I'll admit I have qualms about this one, but my girlfriends are going strong! Disposable diapers can take up to 500 years to biodegrade in a landfill, lending to a recent cloth diaper comeback, according to Diapers.com, who says that the top three bestsellers are:
1. gDiapers
2. bumGenius
3. FuzziBunz
These are not the leaky, stinky, cloth diapers of the past, either! Of the brands my girlfriend tried on her adorable babe, she liked Fuzzi Bunz the best. Disposables cost an average of $1,000 the first year alone, while a years-long supply of Fuzzi Bunz would run way less than that, because Fuzzi Bunz created a diaper that can be sized up and down to fit babies from birth to potty training, using an elastic band that can be adjusted to make the diaper smaller or larger. Sure, you'll have to wash them instead of trashing them (I've been alerted to Rockin Green, a new detergent formulated for use with cloth diapers to extend their life), but hey, with babies, you're always doing laundry anyway!

Considering the long-term savings to mother and Mother Nature may make breastfeeding and cloth diapering worth your while!