Well for the full list, be sure to check out the Mahalo page, How to Diaper. But I have some great tips for you as a parent who's just been in the baby diapering territory. (Working on getting a toddler out of diapers...)

1. Fold the diaper down to avoid the umbilical stump.
There are some brands of newborn diapers that allow a cut-away space for the stump, but just in case (or if you're using cloth diapers), be sure to fold down the diaper in front.

2. Take off the baby's socks!
No matter how well you think you can hold those feet, inevitably, those feet are going wiggle free and dip into the mess--especially while they're newborns. Bare feet are easier to wipe and move on, rather than laundering pair after pair of socks.

3. Don't use scented wipes.
As tempting as the fresh cucumber scent may seem, scented wipes can be very irritating to a newborn's bottom. Wait about a year before breaking out the scents.

4. Fan the bottom before putting the diaper back on.
So much of diaper rash is caused because the bottom (front and back) is left too moist. So once you get him/her cleaned up, fan him/her a bit with the new diaper to let the skin dry. Then put the new diaper on.

5. Don't use baby powder.
Doctors now recommend against it. Instead, use some nice fragrance-free diaper cream whenever the bottom seems irritated. And again, fanning the bottom helps relieve moisture issues.

6. Place a wipe under the bottom during the change.
If it's a poopy diaper, as soon as you pull out that soiled diaper, I like to place a wipe under the bottom. This acts as a mess barrier between the butt and the changing table pad (because trust me, you'll have to launder these enough as-is!).

7. Put a (baby-safe) mirror next to your baby within his/her line of sight.
Newborns LOVE to watch their reflections, and it will help distract them while you do the change. We always kept a padded baby mirror tucked into the side of the table.

Good luck, and happy diapering!

When you consider that disposable diapers have so many environmental problems, with the absorbent urine retention materials for one, the plastic outer wrap for another, and the prospect of wrapping up human waste in a little bundle to add to other bundles to put in the trash (that can go astray if opened by accident, by animals, etc.) and then goes to a landfill to rot, I still favor cloth diapers.

http://www.thedailygreen.com/media/cm/thedailygreen/images/cloth-diapers-lg.jpg

http://www.tendercargo.com/images/bumGenius-one-size-3.0-diagram.gif

I'm not saying only use cloth, but if you will consider using them at least half the time, around the home, you'll be doing the planet a favor. And though it sounds like more work (it is), it isn't difficult. It is less expensive. A LOT less expensive. (Diaper services aren't less expensive, but use real diapers, and I have a note and a link about them at the bottom of this entry).

Using a cloth diaper makes it much easier to diaper a newborn than using pre-fab sizes. Each time you diaper the child you will be folding it as you put it on the child, to be sure it fits perfectly. Ask your pediatrician or one of his or her nurses about the best way to protect that umbilical area for the first couple of weeks. Your diaper can easily be folded to fit below it.

Each time you change a diaper you don't need to change the plastic outer pants, only if the diaper was soiled and the plastic pant was soiled. And now a lot of all--in-one diapers are made that eliminate some of these choices. I'll describe the old fashioned cloth diaper (I prefer the one that is pre-folded with the thick center panel, but I did also use the really old-fashioned wide one that was folded into thirds. Those are handy for other things around the house.) There are several types of diaper "liners," small non-woven fabric-like or sturdy paper liners that can be discarded, some rinsed then flushed, when solids are part of the dirty diaper. As far as a disposable portion of the process, this is environmentally much more sound than using disposable diapers. We all make choices, this offers a bit of a compromise between all cloth and all disposable.

http://www.babyearth.com/images/images_big/10-6462-01.jpg

http://www.babyearth.com/bummis-bio-soft-flushable-diaper-liner.html

What you need to diaper a baby regularly in cloth diapers are are several dozen diapers (buy them by the dozen at places like Sears or Penny's or many other department stores), a diaper bucket, into which you pour a couple of gallons of water and pour in (this is from memory, you'll have to look it up according to the size bucket you use) about a 1/4 to 1/2 cup borax. Keep another bucket next to the changing table so that you can drop the diaper removed from the baby into the bucket, and carry it to the bathroom after the baby is changed and back in a safe place.

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There are a couple of approaches to cleaning the soiled diaper. You can use that bucket from the changing station - fill it with enough water to swish out the solids, then (wearing rubber gloves) pour the contents down the toilet and place the diaper in the diaper bucket. In the old days, people would keep the toilet cleaned regularly, (don't use any of those blue water treatments), and (wearing rubber gloves) swish the diaper in the toilet water to dislodge the solids, then place this in the diaper bucket and replace the lid. There are probably a lot of reasons for not doing it that way now, I'm just saying this used to be common practice.

Washing diapers should be done regularly and with a gentle soap, not a harsh detergent like Tide. And avoid scented detergents. The old standard ones are still out there - Dreft, Ivory, and I see in a quick online search that there are several others. You may also find that some of the "green" detergents are safe for diapers, but do you research.

If you can periodically hang cloth diapers in the sun on a clothes line you'll be making these diapers even healthier for your baby's bottom. While it may seem like you change cloth diapers more often, you'll find that this is much healthier than letting a baby wear a loaded-down wet disposable diaper until it has reached capacity. And when you change the baby, give them a little air time, with NO diaper, to completely dry and get the benefit of fresh air, or don't put the plastic pants on right away. If you have diaper rash problems it was my experience that they're easier to solve with cloth diapers and fresh air versus plastic diapers and ointments (though there are times when you can't get around it and a good ointment is helpful).

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/clothdiaperwhisperer/picture2.jpg

The nuts and bolts of diapering: After I laundered and dried my cloth diapers, I then flattened them in a stack, and then one at a time folded them to the right shape. Typically, with the Birdseye diaper, this meant folding it into a modified triangle with the thin sides being folded over the padded middle. When the baby was tiny I think I folded the wide top edge over about 1 to 2 inches (depending on the size of the baby) to fit the diaper to the child and to offer a double thick layer to pin through. Since most of the absorption is happening in front, you do the most adjusting by folding the front over and letting the extra layer catch the urine. Once the correct flat shape was in place, I folded this in half and stacked them for the diaper holder that hung on the changing table. If you need to double up, you can fold two diapers in the same format, but you won't be doing the folded down top and bottom edges because it's way too thick that way. (Thanks to the Cloth Diaper Whisperer blog site for her photos of diaper folding http://www.theclothdiaperwhisperer.com).

Always use baby-safe safety pins for this, if you don't have another non-sharp fastening method or plastic pant that holds the diapers. The front edge of the diaper, that is now 4" to 5" wide, was also folded over on itself, if needed, to modify the length of the diaper on a very small baby. Folding creatively is the way you can make these diapers work from age newborn to two-year-old when you will be potty training. You'll have to get various sized plastic pants to go over the diaper as the child grows.

For brands, I see that along with the high-end designer styled diapers, there are the good standard Gerber cloth diapers. I wouldn't use Gerber baby food (we didn't use baby food), but I did find their diapers (and other baby products) to be very good and durable. Sears sells them (6 for $13), Walmart has them 12 Birdseye cloth (the ones I used) pre-folded for $11.96, and I'm sure many other stores with baby products will carry them.

There are other accoutrement that go with cloth diapers. Things to keep them in, pins, etc. Take time in making the right diapering choice for your child, and I hope you'll also make a good choice for the planet!

FINALLY, if you think all of this sounds good but like too much work, then look into a diaper service. Here is a site for locating any in your area: http://www.realdiaperindustry.org/

Good luck and sweet times with that new little one!

DISCLAIMER: I used cloth diapers on both of my babies, so I guess this makes me a diaper professional, except that no one paid me to do it, so that might make me a cloth diaper amateur. :)