This year, the world’s largest environmental movement, Earth Day, is calling on businesses, governments, and citizens to take action on climate. Now is the time to preserve and protect our health, our families, and our livelihoods.
Annually, 20 billion disposable diapers go into landfills in the U.S. alone. This astonishing rate of waste not only contributes to plastic waste and carbon emissions but also contaminates groundwater. According to NOAA, disposable diapers take up to 405 years to bio-degrade which means every disposable diaper ever created still exists today.
Global citizens are increasingly aware of their environmental impact on the world. We know that starting a cloth diapering journey can be daunting but it needn’t be. We believe in taking baby steps. Breaking old habits is not always easy but we’re here to make cloth diapering easy – let us show you how! This Earth Day, we’re kicking off our ‘Mamas & Papas Who Cloth Diaper’ series. Each month, we’ll feature Mamas & Papas’ personal stories and experiences in parenthood and cloth diapering in the modern world. First up, Marsha Yuan is a Hong Kong-based singer, actress, dancer, and yoga teacher. We find out how she balances all of her activities while raising a little one and cloth diapering.
You’re a multi-talented woman who sings, acts, dances, and teaches yoga. Did creativity and movement support your birth and post-natal experience?
Yes, definitely. When I was pregnant, I was still very active. I would meditate in the morning, do some yoga, pranayama, take long walks every day and sometimes go to dance classes. I was even doing inversions up until the last week before my son, Matys, was born! I believe that being active really helped me prepare for giving birth. In fact, from the moment we stepped into the hospital to the time that he was born only took 6 hours.
And, of course, for postnatal, since I was already a very active person, I found that the recovery wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. I think that it took me about 3 months to get back into my normal yoga practice. And maybe 3 more months to have the same practice that I had before conceiving.
Creatively speaking, Matys was already exposed to music and dance from when he was in my belly. Now, at 14 months old, he loves to dance when he hears me or daddy sing to him.
Marsha Yuan and her family
Why is holistic wellness and mindfulness important? How does that contribute to your parenting style?
I am a strong believer of the importance of having a healthy mind and body. My husband and I both enjoy being active and conscious about what we put into our bodies. And we would also like Matys to grow up with this awareness. After all, good health and being happy are the most important values we have as a family.
What does a sustainable future mean to you?
To me, a sustainable future means that I want to put the most effort on:
1. Taking care of my own mind and body so that I can be a good mother and wife.
2. Making sure that my family eats right and stays active.
3. Spending quality time together as a family to keep our relationship tightly nit. My little “M-Pire” as I call it (since all of us have names that start with M, including my dog, Mateo)
Matys wears Just Peachy Cloth Diaper in Amazon
Why did you choose cloth diapering for your family and what impact has it made on your lives?
My initial thoughts were that I wanted to be less wasteful, save on money, and be kinder to my baby’s little bum. When I first mentioned cloth diapering to my husband, I was worried that he might not be up for doing it. I said that we could start with the disposable diapers and then slowly move towards the cloth diapers. But, I was pleasantly surprised when he said that we should start right away. Because we started using the cloth diapers from day one out of the hospital, (mind you, I didn’t change a single diaper at the hospital) I found it to be very easy. Perhaps it’s because cloth diapers were all that I knew. In the earlier days, there might have been more leaks because Matys was a very small baby and I believe that there were no sizes that could really be suitable for him. But, through time, I was able to understand better what worked best for him because he was a VERY heavy wetter.
Overall, I’m pretty happy about our choice. I find the cloth diapers to be very cute with all the different patterns and colours. It’s also much easier to not have to constantly worry about running out of diapers.
Matys wears Just Peachy Cloth Diaper in Sky Blue
I did end up experiencing disposable diapers when Matys was 7-8 months old and I had to quarantine in the hotels for 21 days. I wanted so badly to not use disposables. However, I ended up having to use them because it was too much work for me to try to hand wash all the diapers with no machine and hope that they’d dry in Hong Kong humidity. I really disliked the disposables because they seemed to leak a lot easier than cloth diapers. I went through many days when I’d have to call in for new bed sheets because the diapers would leak. I was so happy to go back to the cloth diapers after the 21 days. This just confirms that my choice was the right one.
Marsha Yuan and her son, Matys wears Just Peachy Cloth Diaper in Dandelion
Finally, if you could turn back time and talk to your pre-Mom self, what would you tell her?
If I could talk to my pre-mom self, I would tell her that it’s ok to let Matys cry a little in his crib. He will eventually understand how to put himself to sleep. So, don’t be so hard on yourself thinking that you must pick him up as soon as he cries. He will be able to sleep through the night one day, I promise! You need as much sleep as you can get to be a healthy mommy for your baby. Also, don’t listen to all the mommy advice out there, listen and trust your own motherly instincts. That is what is best for your son.
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