Do any of you remember (or maybe you even purchased) those diapers that looked like jeans last year? I thought those things were totally ridiculous. Granted, if my wife said she wanted to buy some of them for Finn at the time I’d have probably went along with it…but I still thought they were stupid. I didn’t really get the concept of why you would want a custom printed diaper when it’s covered up 99% of the time.
Then a couple of things happened that shifted the way I think about those diapers:
#1 – Finn began to hate pants. He despises wearing shoes, loathes socks, and seems to have his pants off 99% of the time. What can I say? He’s a free bird. He gets it from his mama.
#2 – I found out that those custom printed jean diapers were not just for looks…they were for a cause.
A little while back, I was contacted about becoming an ambassador for the Huggies® Every Little Bottom Program. They wanted me to be one of 5 bloggers in the U.S. who would contribute to the spread of information about the diaper need in America. I’d been looking for an opportunity to be called an ambassador all my life, so I decided I should do it.
Actually, I decided to help out when I saw the research study that had taken place and thought about my own kids. Seeing that 1 in 3 moms in the United States struggles in some way to diaper their child hit a little too close to home. We’ve struggled. Sometimes the excess is there and we don’t even think twice about buying diapers, but I’ve also been in the position where I’ve skimped on other stuff we need to buy the diapers that we needed even more. We’re rich by most standards, but growing up in a home where the electricity wasn’t always on helps me to feel the burden of those parents who truly have to fight for the most basic necessities. The kicker – the reason I really decided to help with this – finding out that 1 in 17 parents have actually REUSED a soiled diaper.
Say what? Cleaning out an old disposable and putting it back on your child? I can’t even imagine.
It was pretty cool to discover that Huggies donated 22.5 million diapers to parents in need last year. This year they are going to match that and want to go above and beyond. As a pastor, I’ve seen firsthand many mothers who cannot find a way to buy diapers. This initiative helps to alleviate some of that burden by partnering with local food banks and holding diaper drives all around the country.
My goal right now is simply to get you to read more about this Huggies® Every Little Bottom Program and see if there is something that calls you to get involved somehow.
I’ll be posting more about this dealio over the coming months, but be sure to check out the posts from…well…you know…the other mom bloggers who have partnered with the Huggies® Every Little Bottom Program:
Sarah @ Whoorl.com
Emily @ Not That You Asked…
Stacie @ The Langs
Whitney @ Rookie Moms
Help us to cover their butts!
Ryan (the mom blogger)
Disclosure: I have partnered with the Huggies® brand to help promote the Huggies® Every Little Bottom program. I have been compensated for my time commitment to the program, which includes writing about it here. However, my opinions are entirely my own.
Good for you, Ambassador Ryan. ; ) It is nice to hear about Companies doing this kind of thing. I also thought the ‘jean’ diapers were ridiculous, but now, I see them differently, thanks to you. I look forward to learning more about their program.
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I enjoyed the “jean” diapers and bought a package the first time I saw them at the store. In fact, we were the first in our area to have them since they hadn’t made it out west yet. (We purchased them in the Midwest) The commercial was a kick.
I never knew people reused the disposable diapers. It’s good that it’s going to those in need. It’s also sad that some families have to do it in order to survive.
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I am an ambassador for correct English among pastors who seem oblivious…a real mission field.
WRONG: I’d have probably went along with it.
RIGHT: I’d have probably gone along with it.
Of course, if still has a split infinitive, but I’m not anal about it.
Just don’t ever say anything like, “Me and her went shopping” (even for Huggies)….
My work here is done.
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paul says:
June 2nd, 2011 at 7:18 pm
@Bob in Georgia, Bob i’m excited to see how much free time you have. it will be awesome to see how you use that free time to help those needy mothers and babies.
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sorry. i dont believe in disposable diapers. we used cloth ones. we re-used after we washed.
i didnt buy baby formula either.
and those plastic baby bucket/carriers? for shame.
but dont get me started…..
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Kelly says:
June 1st, 2011 at 10:15 pm
@annie56, You should count yourself blessed to have those choices and options, rather than stand high on a pedestal and judge others who don’t make the same decisions as you.
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Diane says:
June 29th, 2011 at 9:30 pm
@annie56,
Consider taking your inappropriate evangelism elsewhere. Your style of parenting and your choices are yours. Ugh.
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Hey Mom-blogger, good work and thank you. And yeah! for Huggies.
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good for you! well done – So you are doing the cooler version of Mr. Mom? very good
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Like Annie, we’re a cloth diapering family. Cloth diapers are so much healthier for my kids and the environment. Cloth diapering is easy and affordable. Diapering my second baby has cost almost nothing since he’s wearing the same cloth diapers my first wore. Oh and as a bonus, modern cloth diaper are super cute!
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Cloth diapers are reusable!
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We went with cloth diapers beacause we’re poor
But good for you for joining up with a good cause! I can say that if we didn’t use cloth diapers, there would have been times that we would have struggled to buy diapers.
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Two words cloth diapers. Our generation (let’s just say I am over 55) did not disrupt the ecology. We were pretty green with with returnable coke bottles and cloth diapers. They make really cuter outer covers that look like jeans for them too. My grandsons only had disposables in emergencies. Glad you have partnered with a generous company, but hey go green! Its a very “old” concept.
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I have to jump on the cloth diaper bandwagon too. They’re really cheap and if you can do laundry you can do cloth diapers. They’re also stinkin adorable and don’t have that weird plastic smell. I am glad you’ve embraced your inner mom blogger though, lol.
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My baby is 19 years old, so I haven’t bought diapers on a regular basis in many years. However, when my granddaughter was born 3 years ago, I was shocked to see how much diapers cost. Usually if I’m invited to a baby shower, now I try to get diapers as a gift. I totally understand how this is a hardship to some people. thanks for doing this.
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Good job Ryan, thanks for spreading the word. Mary
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Way to go – I’ll go check them out – would love to help out mamma’s, daddy’s and those babies!
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This is great. You know what has even more potential? Cloth diapers. Seriously. My wife and I use them and love them and have sold all of our friends who are parents and/or pregnant on them. I’m neither an ambassador nor the son of a prophet but “Bum Genius” needs to be dropped during any conversations on diapers. We spent a luxurious $300 on cloth diapers and it will get us through Soren’s entire diapering years, and probably the next couple of kiddos’ too. If these folks are willing to reuse disposables, let’s donate cloth to them and free them from ever having to buy diapers again. One man’s opinion.
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I applaud Huggies (and you, Ryan) for helping moms and babies in need. Which reminds me I have a slew of reward codes to enter and donate. Just 16 points will diaper a child in need for a day.
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I was just thinking, as I was reading, that cloth diapers are great and sanitary for those people who have the ability to wash them regularly. Many low income moms don’t have the priveledge of an in-home washer and dryer. They have to travel with their soiled clothes (or diapers) to a laundromat. This becomes costly and prohibitive.
Good for you and Huggies for helping those families that have a need.
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Kelly says:
June 1st, 2011 at 10:09 pm
@Tracy, Thank you for pointing that out, Tracy. And also Anna’s comment. Somtimes we are fortunate to have choices. Sometimes not. And sometimes, even when we do have choices, we have to weigh it out. Yay for you if you choose cloth, or breast feeding, or the miriad of things parents can get on a high horse about. The thing is, we all choose our own way for our own reasons, and we should just allow someone else to make their own choices, withOUT judgement from the peanut gallery.
I was “raised” on cloth. But there was also a diaper service available and disposables were NOT. I can’t even *buy* cloth in my town and didn’t know about all the new “fun” options. But basically, it boiled down to this… I don’t want to have anything to do with touching feces, any more than i have to, and wiping a tushy is about where I draw the line. I have even been known to occasionally throw out a pair of undies that got soiled because it was the kind that just wasn’t gonna roll off. (Hey, my kids get plenty of fiber. What can I say.) *shivers* It grosses me out just thinking of it. I will do a LOT of things in a *suck it up* manner, but THAT is just not one of them. lol
)
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Good cause! My little ones love those jeans diapers! I thought about using cloth, but seriously, how much laundry can a mom with a full time job handle? Well, some can handle a lot, but that’s not me. Also, water and energy are a precious resource where I live, I am not so sure the ecological balance is favorable to cloth here. Does anyone have a link to a fair comparison, i.e., landfill versus laundry?
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Kelly says:
June 1st, 2011 at 10:12 pm
@Anna, I’m curious, where do you live? In the US?
I did mention a thanks to you in my comment above. And amen on the “how much laundry can a mom handle?” I’m a SAHM of five, and I do about 15 loads of laundry a week. No way in Hades I’m adding more to that. Just to cut it down, I don’t encourage my children to wear pajamas and there’s a one outfit per day rule. Well, unless we’re going to town, then I’ll reconsider. lol
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Oh dear lord. You have a lot of preachy people following your blog most of which probably have no idea what being poor entails. It’s fine to have an opinion but I’m pretty sure the subject of diapers isn’t written about in the 10 commandments. I’ve never changed a diaper in my life so I really shouldn’t have an opinion but that would be uncharacteristic. And as for which has more of an environmental impact, Cloth or Disposable, that depends on what study you decided to accept as truth. (I hope Bob in Georgia never reads my blog. I may cry myself to sleep after reading all of his corrections.)
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Fran says:
June 2nd, 2011 at 11:05 am
@TheDan, Oh Dan! Thanks for saying what I was thinking as I read all these comments. I’m also scared of Bob in Georgia and my grammar is pretty good! If I ever get like that, I expect all of my friends to tell me what an ass I’m being. I promise I won’t get mad, I’ll be forever grateful.
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@TheDan – Amen.
@Tracy – That’s what I was thinking.
Great cause Ryan. Good for Huggies. It’s very sad to think of someone reusing or just not being able to use a diaper on their kiddos bottom. I also think diapers are something we forget about when thinking of people in need.
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there is SUCH a need for this! i used to work in a transitional housing program (homeless-to-supported-living) and all of my clients received public aid for food – however, the program did NOT cover the cost of diapers. for someone working minimum wage, it gets to be a huge huge expense. i used to clip and give away all of the weekly diaper coupons from the paper i could get my hands on.
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[...] The two original Ambassadors joining the recently re-launched campaign include Heather Flett and Whitney Moss of Rookie Moms. New Every Little Bottom Blog Ambassadors under Edelman’s direction include Sarah James of Whoorl, Emily Cassee of Not That You Asked…, Stacie Lang of The Langs, and Ryan Detzel of This Is Reverb. [...]
[...] from This is Reverb Sometimes the excess is there and we don’t even think twice about buying diapers, but I’ve also [...]
My youngest is now 15, but I used cloth diapers for all three of my children. I find the idea of throw-away diapers to be pretty nasty. Cloth diapers are soft and comfortable for the child, and taking care of them is not as onerous as people seem to think. It is also much more affordable than throwaway diapers. I agree with an earlier poster who suggested that education regarding cloth diaper use ,and programs that facilitate that, might be more beneficial to families who struggle with their finances.
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The question is would you have done this had Pampers not paid you? I doubt it. Also, why don’t you disclose everything? Did you have to sign some kind of agreement that you would only talk about this initiative and their diapers positively?
Also that “research study” you are referring to was commissioned by Pampers..duh!
You make me sick. Sell out.
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Diane says:
June 29th, 2011 at 9:36 pm
@DB,
Oh, you’ve got to love these Christians who post their nasty little rants like DB did in fits of their righteous internet anger.
You’re a pretentious douche bag who turns people off tremendously by your cowardly attacks online. I’m pregnant – thanks for helping me tip the scales in favor of not going cloth. Now quickly – insult me using your initials!
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[...] is why I was a bit frustrated last time I posted about the Huggies® Every Little Bottom program that I agreed to be a part of. The nasty comments [...]
@annie56,
It’s clear that this is not a choice that Ryan made for his family – do you really believe in this day and age, responsible parents like he and his wife would *not* be aware of the choice to cloth diaper and instead, made a different choice ? This seems so inappropriate to impose your values and in such a passive-aggressive way, suggest that he’s not saving on the economy (when all of the loads of laundry you’re doing washing those cloth diapers aren’t helping either).
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janeen says:
July 7th, 2011 at 2:41 pm
Loads of laundry?? nope. I am a cloth diaperer. I only have added 1 extra load a week- actually about every 8 days to my rotation. No, my house does NOT smell like rancid cloth diapers either. I wait until I am nearly out of my cloth liners & down to 1 cover & then I wash. 1 load of laundry extra has not changed our water bill or our electrical bill. Having a newborn, you generally do a lot of laundry anyway. Plus, with disposables (I used them on my oldest) you have a lot of blowouts & leaks. My babe is 5 months old & I have YET to change her outfit due to a blowout or leak. Cloth holds WAY more than a disposable ever could. Do some research before spouting off facts. @Diane,
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Wow. The comments on this subject are heated. The only thing I have to say is, why does it seem the people who use cloth diapers (not refering to all the comments made here) and breast feed, feel the need to “attack” people who don’t? Clearly there are reasons why people chose the route they do and just because someone choses different than yourself, does not give you permission to attack people.How about take the correct approach, like some here have done, and educate! If I was oblivious to the reasoning of chosing cloth over disposable or breast over formuala, I wouldn’t do it because it seems like it’s some sort of pretentious club.
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I am a mother of three and I am in dire need of financial help right now. My husband was laid off and I am a stay at home mother. I have tried all the government programs and do not qualify. Just fifty dollars would help right now. Anyone have any suggestions? I am posting all over to moms that might know something. Thanks
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