An evening view of the bar from a tower patio
Just returned from a holiday at
Club Med Bintan Island, Indonesia. Generally, it's been a pleasant and relaxing holiday for my family, especially my elder son. He
simply adored the pool and beach plus the company of other kids (silly me, whose kids don't like that?). Before the end of our stay, all of us got 'fried up' by the sun. Even my younger son could not escape from being tanned although he hardly spent substantial time in the pool or by the beach. The resort is situated by the bay with wide sandy beach. I like the food there esp. pastries and desserts and it's friendly staff (they call themselves as G.O. - gentle officer). It has heaps of activities for adults and children that 3 nights stay is simply not enough.
On board Wan
Seri Beni from
Tanah Merah Jetty Terminal, Singapore to
Tk Sebong,
Bintan Island
White sandy beach with clear blue sea. There are many water sports
FOC
Two tier swimming pool. The pools are cleaned everyday.
Some of the guest room blocks facing the open space garden.
I brought some
CDs along with me during this trip to find out how convenient to cloth diaper him out of home. Well, to be honest it's a good experience, mainly because he never poo poo on the CD through out the trip. I always get the cue whenever he wants to do 'big business', so I was spared of extra washing and
embarrassment from sneering public eyes. Plus we didn't go out of the resort throughout our stay that made it easier to cloth diaper him. The only set back was the inserts took longer time to dry up due to the absence of washing machine. But this can be resolved by packing more inserts. I even put him on a cloth diaper during pool time without the inserts, of course. No problem at all! Now I've busted the myth i.e. cloth diaper is for indoor. Tip: If you decided to try it outdoor, prepare a wet bag for you to put used diapers before you can wash them.
Our room was raided by a bunch of not -so-friendly monkeys. They snatched a
bag full of biscuits and took them 2 days to finished. A pair of them copulated right in front of us. Luckily my elder son thought that they were playing riding piggy back :)
My 2 lovely son. Di di is wearing Moms & Tots CD in white color
Back at home, a friend of mine complained that her son's cloth diaper overflowed in 2 hours time and she is reluctant to put CD on her son again. Let's diagnose the overflow/leaky issue. There are several factors that contribute to this problem and having a heavy wetter doesn't mean you can't cloth diaper your child. Instead, you should be switching to CDs all the more because you'll save more since you'll be using more disposables.
1. Full house
Obviously, your child needs a fresh change if you detect an overflow diaper. If your baby is a heavy wetter, just add on another piece of insert to last longer albeit it looks bulkier. Hey, bulky bottom can be an advantage too - cushioning your baby's bottom from fall especially when he's learning to crawl.
2. Washing instructions
It is crucial to wash your newly bought CDs thoroughly and it means washing a few times before using it for the first time. Washing machine not only helps to clean away the manufacturing residue but also swells and fluff the cotton fiber for maximum absorbency performance. The inserts will absorb better after few washes and continue to function excellently as long as you are following the washing and caring instructions. Most of the cloth diapers cannot be washed with baby detergent or any other detergent that contains softener, bleaching agents, fragrances, additives, optical brighteners and enzymes as these agents will shorten the lifespan of the PUL lining and the elasticity in the gusset.
There is no extra washing steps for CDs. Just treat them like your normal laundry. I wash my son's CDs separately but spin them (in the laundry bag) together with my other clothes if I'm using softener on other clothes. Other than that, I wash the CDs as usual with all the other clothes in the washing machine.
3. Nappy rash cream
Nappy rash cream or any baby balm cannot co-exist with CDs as the former will leave a greasy residue on the fleece thus preventing it to function properly. Should you leave no choice, you'll have to layer the fleece with nappy liners. Nappy liners are great too when your baby poo on the CD. It will lessen the stain on the fleece and inserts thus making cleaning easier.
4. Wrong positioning
Some inserts are made of different layers of fabric, for instance Moms & Tots inserts are made of bamboo fiber and 3 ply of micro fiber. If you are using such inserts, make sure that the bamboo fiber layer is facing the fleece when inserting. This is necessary as not only does the bamboo layer has antibacterial properties, it also absorbs better than micro fiber.
So, these are some of the factors that could contribute to leaky incidents. Hope this post will guide first timers in using CDs. There is a Chinese saying, 'There is no ugly people, only lazy people', the underlying meaning is similar to those who give excuses for not switching to CDs. To be honest, I was one of them before I lay my hands on CDs. I was appalled by the thought of cleaning up the poo (*sob* this is part of the parcel being a mother ) and extra washing(before I discovered they can be machine washed). After using them for some time, I find it as easy as 1, 2, 3. I kind of feel like I've gone extra miles in preserving our planet and I feel so GOOD! All I did is to take the first step - try it with an open mind and read up some internet researches and comments. Since then, I've never looked back.
My next experiment will be using CDs on an excursion tour abroad! Can't wait to share my experience with you. So, keep an eye on my upcoming posting in October (keep my fingers cross).
My proud 哥哥 and 爸爸 enjoying their bird's view scenery of Macau
A simple feast - mostly children's favourites. My aunt served fried sweet potatoes instead of potatoes and it's yummy.
