Cloth Diapering Milestones: When to Move Up a Snap Setting on Your One-Size Diapers
Posted on August 05, 2011
As your baby moves from those tiny infant days to the big run-around toddler days, different size cloth diapers take care of all your cloth diapering needs. If you've chosen to use
one-size diapers, obviously you'll need to decide when to change the snap settings to get the best sizing at every step of the way. If you're at one of times, congratulations on this milestone in your baby's growth!
Here are few things to watch out for to know it's time to change to the next snap setting:
When the rise falls below the top of the hips, you know the diaper no longer comes up high enough to provide adequate coverage on the front of the diaper. The "rise" is the height of the diaper in the front - this often indicates the the back of the diaper is a bit short as well, so it's definitely helpful to extend the rise at this point by moving up one snap setting.
When the leg openings become tight, that can also be an indication that the diaper is on the small side. Leg openings should be
somewhat snug in order to
keep messes where they belong, but if you can no longer fit one finger in between the leg elastic and your baby's leg or if the elastic is leaving significant indentations in your baby's skin, then it's time to re-evaluate.
It should be noted, however, that tight leg openings can occur for other reasons, as well, so you should check out other fit issues before changing your snap settings. If you have a wonderfully chubby baby, the legs will probably become tight before the rise becomes too short, while if you have a long legged, lanky babe, the leg openings may never become too tight before it's time to switch. Tight leg openings are merely a companion symptom. (Leg openings should never gap, however, so look for a different culprit if changing the snap setting results in gaps around
the legs!)
However,
if the diaper is tight around the waist and difficult to get on, that's a good sign that your baby is ready to move to the next snap setting.
[caption id="attachment_3559" align="alignleft" width="288"]
bumGenius One-Size Guide[/caption]
If pee regularly starts leaking over the top of the diaper, regardless of the rise, it may be time to change the snap setting. This can be due to a boy who tends to point upward or a girl who sleeps on her front - however, before you decide that changing snap settings is the best way to solve this problem, consider doing some "problem solving" by making sure to tuck your boy downward when you change him or by adding extra absorbancy to the front of your girl's diaper.
The makers of
BumGenius, one of the most popular one-size diapers on the market today, offer a helpful comment to keep in mind as well:
Remember, babies change shape frequently as they grow up. You may have times when your relatively young baby is using their one-size diapers on the largest setting. The same child may be on the medium setting several months later due to increased mobility.
Also, one extra note for those of you who use
Fuzzi Bunz One-Size diapers:
Even though Fuzzi Bunz's version of the one-size diaper uses elastic instead of snaps to change sizing, these guidelines still apply. However, the elastics allow more settings than snaps do, so you may choose to adjust them more or less often, according to what works best for you and your child. If you ever find yourself trying to find the "right" adjustment for your child, use
this handy chart to find suggestions that may work for you.
Here's the best to all you fantastic mamas as your child grows and hits many milestones in the first few years of life!
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