When we decided to adopt, I started gathering necessities as a way to pass the time, and somewhere along the way decided I wanted to use cloth diapers. I began to pick up a few here and there when I found a bargain or nearly new ones at consignment shops.

I also invested in the diaper covers which I ferreted out at garage sales and thrift stores. The covers were hard to come by, especially in larger sizes....I should have known something was up, and surmised that a lot of people, like me, get all hopped up on cloth and about the time their child is old enough for a larger diaper cover, they’ve long since dropped cloth diapers like a hot rock, or a smelly diaper, since that's what they actually are.

I have a strong sense of environmental responsibility, and was determined not to put an average 7,349 single-use diapers into a landfill. One-time use, throw-away diapers are the single largest nonrecyclable component of household garbage, creating one ton of garbage per year per child.

Here is where international adoption sets you up for failure. You spend 2-3 weeks in another country using disposable diapers that are convenient, hold about 3 gallons and best of all are *easy*. There is nothing more satisfying than rolling the thing up into a ball and tossing it in the garbage, never to be thought about again, you can move on to more fun filled activities, like Mr. Toad’s wild taxi ride or how to order a complete meal with little more than smiling and pointing.

After a couple of weeks perfecting the diaper roll and toss, the idea of trading it in for a stint with a stinky diaper pail, no less than 2 wash cycles and a good 3 hours of dryer time, seems ludicrous.

Here is where international adoption can also help, by assuaging your guilt. If the average child uses 7,349 (this number varies widely, depending on where you get your information) until they are potty trained at an average age of 30 months, you are comfortably sparing the system 2,939 diapers if you adopt at 12 month of age. I feel better now...

I’m not squeamish, I’ve picked up enough dog poop in my life to easily get me sainthood the next time the Vatican takes nominations. I justify my ethical about face by feeling that I should get to take part in modern scientific advances that make our lives easier. I didn’t drive my horse and buggy to town and I’m not writing this post on papyrus to be rolled and delivered to you via carrier pigeon, and I shouldn’t have to play “rock, paper, scissors” with my husband to determine who has to change the next poopy diaper.

p.s. I realize that the bulk of this issue can be negated by hiring a diaper service, an option not available to us; we live rural, and haul our own recycling to the center to further assuage our guilt...thank you very much....