Step-by-step Diaper Change

Step 1: Remove old diaper and wipe up

I take off the old diaper and set it aside. Then I wipe up whatever messes are present, throwing the used wipes in the diaper pail.

Step 2: Fold prefold and lay in wrap

For Isaac, I take a regular (4x6x4) prefold, fold it in thirds and lay it in the wrap. With a Bumkins cover, I stuff the front of the prefold under the flap. For a Prorap, I just lay the diaper on the cover.

Julia gets the same deal, only I use a premium prefold folded into fourths for her.

Step 3: Put diaper and cover under baby's bootie

Just lift up your baby's legs and slide the cover and prefold under his/her bootie just like a disposable.

(the flannel wipe is just there to protect the innocent -- hee hee)

Step 4: Pull up the center

Pull the diaper and cover up between baby's legs. Make sure it's nice and snug, then hold it down against their belly as you prepare for the next step. I've shown this with a Bumkins and a Prorap.

Step 5: Fasten the sides

Smooth down one corner, then pull over the velcro tab and fasten it.

Smooth down the other corner and fasten it. Make sure the corner of the wrap is pulled all the way over to the side. Otherwise, it might fold back on itself and scratch your baby's skin.

Step 7: Quick check

Do a quick check to make sure none of the diaper is hanging out the sides or the back of the cover. Also make sure there aren't any big gaps at the legs.

Also, with Bumkins, make sure the flap is pulled down over the vent. Otherwise, you might have moisture leak out.

Step 8: Take care of the dirty diaper

This is when I release the child back into the wild and deal with the dirty diaper. If it's just wet, I dump the prefold into the diaper pail and hang the cover over the side of the changing table to air out. I cycle through the same two covers until one gets pooped on, or it just seems like it needs to be washed.

If it was a poopy diaper, I dump whatever comes off into the toilet (note: breastfed BM's can go straight into the diaper pail) then throw the diaper into the pail. Then I fasten the cover and throw that in the pail too. For toddler poops, I throw the cover in the pail whether it got poop on it or not, just because the smell tends to linger with the cover until it's washed.

I've read that some people can't get this to work on their kids and the wraps sag to the kids' knees and just don't stay up. Maybe it has to do with body shape. But anyway, I diaper this way with my infant and my run-all-over-the-place toddler and they stay up just fine. Hopefully, you'll have the same experience.

For reference, these pics are of my five month old son (about 17 lbs) in size M wraps.

This site has been viewed times since March 9, 2003.

Last updated June 13, 2006