Eco-friendly Flow? Diapers?

Try checking out places like Whole Foods, Wild Oats, and Trader Joes. Also check on line.

For diapers- check stores like Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, Wild Oats, and even Woodman's Market- they have ones with flushable liners sometimes that are biodegradeable and really reasonably priced. Target is also carrying more eco-friendly cleaners and things, they might have something.

For you period, eBay has work-at-home-moms who make cloth pads if you want to try that, or I've heard the DivaCup is good with some practice. I like seapearls- they are natural sea sponges with no chemicals that you dampen with water and insert like tampons. To wash, you rinse them in water and then let them soak overnight with a little bit of hydrogen peroxide in the water to bleach or tea-tree oil to disinfect.
Here is a link: http://www.jadeandpearl.com/catalog/index.php

You might also want to join a Yahoo group- there are some really good ones on how to live a "greener" life, and here is a great site on how to parent more earth-friendly with lots of various sections including how to make your own cleaners, etc!
http://www.mothering.com/discussions/index.php (scroll 3/4 down and look in the Mindful Home Management section if you want to skip the parenting forums!)

Congrats on your decision to live greener and Thank You!!

-A.

I use Seventh Generation products. I use their stuff from diapers to laundry detergent. I love the diapers! I get mine from drugstore.com. They have all items there if you really are looking to go "green". Not just Seventh Generation either. You get free wipes sometimes when you buy a case. Shipping is free also! I honestly don't think they're more expensive either. I'm not too fond of the wipes smell but they do the job, LOL. However, I don't know about the feminine items. I don't get that so I don't buy them! LOL I may use my teen daughter as a guinea pig for them though!! Not sure, we'll see when the time comes. Good luck! That's awesome that you are doing this!

H.

Flow:

http://www.divacup.com/

http://www.mooncup.co.uk/

Diapers:

http://www.gdiapers.com/

Ok...I have no experience with either but I have also been doing the same research. I have not made the move yet, let me know what you think.

As for period time, there are a few solutions...
first, the regular tampons with the cardboard applicators (or no applicator) are pretty eco friendly. You can get ones made with unbleached cotton.
Second, lots of online places sell "mama pads" - nice fabric pads that you can rinse/wash and use again. Check a lot of the cloth diaper sites since frequently WAHMs make both diapers and mama pads. They usually snap around your underwear.
Third, there's a nifty thing called "the keeper" I think - that I've read about. It's basically a soft rubber reusable cup that you insert and it "catches" your period blood (sorry to be graphic here) - then you just pull it out, dump, rinse, and re-insert. I've never used it but have heard that it works well.

For diapers, we use Seventh Generation disposables for our daughter. They're chlorine free and I like them a great deal; the fit is better than what we got at the hospital, and they've caught some major poo explosions! They have them at Whole Foods and health food stores, but you can also order them at 1800diapers.com, where you can get greater quantities at a cheaper price. I believe that Seventh Generation also makes tampons and maxi pads, but I have yet to try them...
Hope that helps!

J.

If you are interested in other natural products, please let me know!

M.
http://workathomeunited.com/marygoesgreen
http://www.melaleuca.com/public/PublicFlash/main.html

gDiapers are great (they're flushable) if you'd like to stick with disposables 7th generation or Tushies are good alternatives... they still pile up in the landfill but are much better than the normal brands.

Hi M.,
I started using the keeper my freshman year of college and absolutely LOVE it. So comfortable, economical, not to mention the bonus of helping the environment!
The Keeper has a website that explains it all and sells them www.thekeeper.com
Hope you can try it out. There is a before vaginal childbirth size and after. I've been using the same one for going on 7 yrs!
And they say it's guaranteed for 7 yrs. We use cloth diapers and yes, it would be tough to do it if we didn't have a washer and dryer in the house.
--all the best!
E.

I don't know the name of it, but there is a reusable tampon that you insert and then pull out and dump out and use over and over. My friend used it and really liked it. I think that she got it at a health foods store.
As for the diapers, I do cloth and have heard good things about the G-Diapers. I haven't used them, but they have a reusable cover and have a flushable liner to catch everything.

We are in the same boat. We live on the 3rd floor, and have no washer/dryer. We looked into cloth, but just could not do it.
We use Tushies and have them delivered. 1-800 diapers has a really good price.

They are the only ones that are gel-free. We have tried 7th generation, and like them as well, but try to avoid gel.

I have researched g diapers (the flushable ones) because I love the idea, but they have not gotten good reviews from users.

good luck!
D.