It occurred to me that we've always been ECing so I don't really have a good idea of how difficult it is. It's worthwhile, so "hard" doesn't really matter as long as I still find it doable. Since I'm critical of cloth diaperers claiming that CDing is "just as easy as using disposables," I thought I should try to think about ECing more and decide if it's easy or just worthwhile.
In the last few days, I've been paying more attention to how much time and energy I devote to my kid's pottying. I don't know the exact amount but it's a lot. I put her on the potty nearly every time I change her diaper (but not if she indicates she doesn't want to be there) and many times per day per her request. That's easily 15 times per day at a few minutes each time. Of course, I'd spend some of that time changing diapers anyway so it's maybe 15 extra minutes per day. Depending on your perspective, that's either a lot or a little. It amounts to almost 2 hours per week or about 8 hours per month. That's not insignificant at all.
It also means that I have to keep track of nearby potties wherever we go. (My daughter wears diapers as a back-up so I suppose it isn't necessary, but it's nice to get her to a bathroom when she asks.) I've run across Disneyland to find a bathroom. We've pulled off the freeway to use a gas station's bathroom. She even went in the library bathroom yesterday. In general, she'd really prefer to be at home and finds stalls frightening (and self-flushing toilets are the worst!) but sometimes she's gotta go and I'm proud of her for asking. (Even if she declares, "DONE!" as soon as she sees what the bathroom looks like.)
I suppose this isn't different from when I was pregnant and looking for restrooms for myself all the time. And I'd probably need to do this with a potty trained toddler anyway so I guess we're just a little bit ahead of the game. It is nice to not always carry a diaper bag.
So I won't say it's easy, though it rarely feels hard anymore. (There are days when it does though. "You want to go again?! I'm in the middle of dinner.") I definitely think it's worthwhile. Fewer diapers, happier baby, potential for earlier and easier potty training. (We'll see!) I'd do this again with another kid though. I think that's probably a good endorsement.
In the last few days, I've been paying more attention to how much time and energy I devote to my kid's pottying. I don't know the exact amount but it's a lot. I put her on the potty nearly every time I change her diaper (but not if she indicates she doesn't want to be there) and many times per day per her request. That's easily 15 times per day at a few minutes each time. Of course, I'd spend some of that time changing diapers anyway so it's maybe 15 extra minutes per day. Depending on your perspective, that's either a lot or a little. It amounts to almost 2 hours per week or about 8 hours per month. That's not insignificant at all.
It also means that I have to keep track of nearby potties wherever we go. (My daughter wears diapers as a back-up so I suppose it isn't necessary, but it's nice to get her to a bathroom when she asks.) I've run across Disneyland to find a bathroom. We've pulled off the freeway to use a gas station's bathroom. She even went in the library bathroom yesterday. In general, she'd really prefer to be at home and finds stalls frightening (and self-flushing toilets are the worst!) but sometimes she's gotta go and I'm proud of her for asking. (Even if she declares, "DONE!" as soon as she sees what the bathroom looks like.)
I suppose this isn't different from when I was pregnant and looking for restrooms for myself all the time. And I'd probably need to do this with a potty trained toddler anyway so I guess we're just a little bit ahead of the game. It is nice to not always carry a diaper bag.
So I won't say it's easy, though it rarely feels hard anymore. (There are days when it does though. "You want to go again?! I'm in the middle of dinner.") I definitely think it's worthwhile. Fewer diapers, happier baby, potential for earlier and easier potty training. (We'll see!) I'd do this again with another kid though. I think that's probably a good endorsement.
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