Squish Wearing

Let's be honest here, this is just a photo dump of cuteness. You remember that post about how I was anticipating wearing my squishy little boy while I was still pregnant?  Well here he is in all his tiny cute squishy glory.

Paz Wickandish Sunset

Very first wearing picture. We were still in the hospital and I used this Paz to announce gender. Squeaker is a boy!

Girasol Double Rainbow Azul Ring Sling

Out first grocery store trip was made snuggly and less stressful by this Girasol Ring Sling. A good ring sling is perfect for squish wearing. If you can only get one newborn carrier, I often recommend a ring sling.

Calypso

Sleepy boy needs some cuddles while big sis needs attention?  I got this. A soft wrap is the perfect way to snuggle one and play with the other.

Clementine Sunshine and Rainbows Turquoise Weft

Squeaker's first trip to the library. He found it to be a very peaceful place.

KHR Memories From Under the Bridge

A luscious fiber festival!  When he wast being doted on by all of mommy's fiber friends, he was snuggles up nice and tight.

Rainbow Frog Wet Paint

Snuggle snuggle snuggle, I just can't help it!  Look at him working on holding his head up!

In addition to their cuteness, I hope that these photos help to demonstrate how babywearing fits in to every day life and how you can keep your newborn close while still taking care of your other kids or your life.  In the majority of the wrapping pictures I am using Front Wrap Cross Carry because it is my favorite newborn carry.  It is a nice secure hold and I feel confident moving around in it.  I know that Squeaker's back and neck are well supported.  As he grows and can spread his legs naturally, instead of taking the cross passes over his legs (which is what is hiding his feet here), I will take them under so he is, in essence, sitting on an X, which will provide additional support when he reaches the wiggly stage.  For now I will take the peaceful, cuddly stage every second that I can get it.  I love to wear my little Squeaker.  (It has also renewed Bitsy's (Big Sis) interest in being worn so maybe there will be a tandem post sometime in the future!)

Somer Johnson is a Babywearing enthusiast and Momma to Bitsy and Squeaker, two bundles of energy. She is a Babywearing Institute Certified Babywearing Educator.  She is also addicted to cloth diapers and makes and sells wool dryer balls as SomerKnits. Occasionally she also carves out some time to knit, spin or weave - her main pre-baby passions.

Babywearing: Lots of Ups and Downs

We started out on our babywearing journey with an Ergo I found on Craigslist while I was still pregnant with my little man. It was a great carrier and it served us well, but then my son started protesting it. He was never really content if I was just standing around, but things deteriorated until he was crying, running away, or putting it away every time I pulled it out. I thought he was done with babywearing altogether and that made me really sad.

Then I found Babywearing Around Tulsa and read the term knee-to-knee. I googled it and instantly realized the problem. Silly me, before that I thought that an Ergo rated for 45 pounds could actually be used until a child weighed 45 pounds. Once I knew that the Ergo was probably super uncomfortable for my 2 year old I dug out two ancient ring slings I’d been gifted and started trying those. They were not at all ideal for a 2 year old either. (I actually think one of them might be a converted bedsheet.) Caelan did tolerate them for quick ups but they were really, really unsupportive and uncomfortable. I started looking for other options.

I bought a Tula from a sweet BWAT mama and got a quick lesson on SSCs and tried out a wrap. And I was hooked. I started out slow but I’ve collected a stash of several wraps and a wrap conversion Mei Tai. I can’t claim that my toddler was always cooperative- each time we got a new carrier or wrap, I would be sooo excited to try it, And Caelan, with his inconvenient mind of his own, would tell me “No carrier!” or “No, THIS

carrier!” THIS carrier was never the new one I wanted so badly to try on. But we’ve made so much progress. Caelan has gone from refusing all carriers to accepting (almost) all of them. At first he only wanted to ride in front, but he’s willing to do hip and back carries now. And the big one: he tolerates wrapping! Front, back, or hip carries. He often still wants to choose, but I’ll take it. There were plenty of times when I was building that stash that I wondered if he would ever let me use them. My husband was amused at the irony of me having a new hobby that relied on the baby when the baby didn’t like it.

I have no words to describe how happy I am that babywearing is working for us. I hope our story encourages others to keep trying when they hit a rough patch. (I should note: a lot of white chocolate, marshmallows, and highly preferred activities have been used to encourage the little one to go up. It’s worked!)  

Babywearing is one way we can maintain the closeness of our bond as we approach weaning. As a working mom, I’m always looking for ways to connect with my little. Babywearing overall and BWAT has been a really fun way to do that and make friends while exploring a practically unlimited number of cute options.

Wear all the babies!

Lisa is an extended nursing, full-time working, full-time grad student mom of one ridiculously cute 2.5 year old boy. She actually can NOT do it all, but babywearing allows her to almost keep her head above water.

In My Arms ISO

Have you ever fallen in love with a carrier just to find out it's hard to find (HTF) or highly sought after (HSA)?  At some point in your babywearing days you'll be in search of (ISO) or even desperately in search of (DISO) a carrier.  It could be your first carrier or your twentieth or even you've lost track of how many churner flavor of the week carrier.  ISO answering mamas are a huge blessing to those that seek limited edition, HTF, HSA carriers, or just looking for some great deals.  Sometimes though these ISOs come with larger than life/retail price tags.  Regardless, if you've ever been DISO a carrier that has been fulfilled, you will understand the joy that comes to your heart when you are asked to pay and then again when you receive it.  It's different than receiving any other fluffy mail.  It's more than Christmas. 

   

PAXbaby has a wonderful ISO Angel service.  Randomly they  will post asking for your ISOs of carriers that they carry or have carried in the past.  The ISO Angel  pulls strings, searches boxes being sent for conversions, unreleased boxes, etc to find as many ISOs as she can.  Unfortunately not everyone's ISOs are found nor fulfilled, but when just one is it truly is like winning the lottery. 

Recently I added my ISO to PAXbaby's ISO Angel List.  Within a week I was sent a link to pay, I ransacked the house for things to sell. Bought my ISO.  Stalked it with tracking.  Checked my door/porch 3 times within the hour it was marked delivered.  Called the post master.  Snooped on neighbors doorsteps looking at their packages.  The post master appeared and snooped in my neighbors' mailboxes.  Package was located and I was hugging my wrap.  I opened the package before even heading inside my house.  Both babies were napping so I wore it as a shirt.  I swear it never fails.  Fluffy mail only comes when your wrapee is asleep.

Soon though baby girl woke up and we were off to playing.  The best part for me is that I received a woven I love and didn't have to pay over retail.  My ISO was Girasol Zig Zag.  It is a new herringbone weave with colored weft stripes and cream warp.  It truly makes it one of a kind.  This baby was like touching a cloud.  It was soooo soft.  I quickly did a FWCC to test drive it.  OH MY it was one of the easiest FWCC I've ever done, in fact I actually got it too tight!  It's quite thin but very supportive.  My size 6 folds up to about the same size as my ring sling, so it's been going everywhere with us in the diaper bag.  I've had it for almost a month now and just now washed it.  Since it was so soft I didn't feel like it needed to be washed to help break it in.  Except for Halloween I haven't even used any other wrap :/

I've also fulfilled DISOs.  It's a high knowing that your carrier will not only be loved but will be treated like it's a king or queen!

Have you ever received for fulfilled an ISO request?  What was it?

C.J. North is a Babywearing Institute Scholar who is also an aspiring photographer. She stays home with her three kids; 6yo stepson, 3yo son, and 8mo daughter. C.J. has always loved working with children. In her spare time, she manages the allergy and special needs of her family, while being overly addicted to research.

 

Carry of the Week (CoTW) - Front Wrap Cross Carry

I love woven wraps. Love, love, LOVE them. I love how versatile they are and how I can do a front carry, hip carry, or back carry all with my same piece of cloth. I remember the immense excitement when I ordered my first wrap and the anticipation I felt as it traveled to my home. But I also remember the overwhelming panic that overcame me when I finally received it and realized that I had to somehow use this piece of cloth to attach my infant to my body! I watched video tutorials. I scoured picture instructions. I re-watched. I read. I prepared. And then, five minutes into my first wrap job, baby red-faced screaming, me drenched in sweat, tears streaming down my face, back aching, I almost threw it in the trash. Then I thought, why was I making this so hard? I didn’t have to learn the technical term for every pass, I didn’t need to know there were roughly 1,456,098 ways to do a front carry, I didn’t need every inch of the carry to be perfect - I needed to relax. I was doing this to make my baby happier and my day a little easier. So I picked one carry I would master, Front Wrap Cross Carry (FWCC), and decided for the time being to only focus on that one carry. And that’s what I did.

Now, much further down the road, I am comfortable doing loads of different carries but there are so many more out there I want to try before my babywearing days are done. I had often seen “Carry of the Week” on different boards and groups but always felt too overwhelmed to add my not quite perfect picture to the group. Again, I needed to relax.
 

As motivation for myself, and a road-map for others who may feel as I did, I thought it would be a great idea to start our own Carry of the Week! Each week we will pick a different carry and include tutorials, instructions, and pictures. There may be variations. There may not be. We will try and alternate between a more beginner carry and a more advanced so there will be something for everyone! If there is a carry you love or want to learn, please feel free to write your own blog post for a Carry of the Week as well.
 

We would also love everyone to contribute a picture of themselves doing the carry of the week, along with what wrap and size they are using on the Facebook page. Add in any tips you discovered doing that carry and any snags you ran into. This is a group effort and the more participation the more fun we will all have!

And so, without further ado: Carry of the Week - Front Wrap Cross Carry!

The FWCC is a perfect beginner carry. In fact, if you started with a moby wrap on your babywearing journey you are probably already familiar with how it works!

It is a great carry for younger babies because it offers a ton of head support and is super easy to breastfeed in.  It also works with heavier babies because of the multiple passes that distributes the weight for mom or dad. A size 5, 6, or 7 wrap is needed to do a FWCC.

The basic steps of a FWCC are:

1 - A torso pass (a torso pass goes over the baby and then under both arms of the wrapper);

2 - Cross in back, going back up over your shoulders;

3 - Two cross passes (a cross pass goes over the baby diagonally), either spread out over baby or gathered and bunched;

4 - Tied in back.

Video Tutorials: http://s391.photobucket.com/user/morse_family/media/babywearing%20instructional%20videos/M4H04513.mp4.html (Great pre-tie basic FWCC step by step)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRSTW8h5lcs&NR=1 (how to tie a FWCC holding your baby in your arms without a pre-tie)

Picture Tutorial:

http://www.wrapyourbaby.com/frontwrapcrosscarry.htm

Variations:

Nursing in the FWCC, Tied under Bum, and Semi-FWCC (can be done with size 3 and 4 wraps), Picture tutorial: http://bwiofpeoria.org/blog/tag/front-wrap-cross-carry/

Semi-FWCC (or “short”) tied under bum video tutorial if you have a size 3 or 4 wrap: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9v6tSljTt8

And here is Solomon and I in a size 6 Mulu:

 

And here Sol passed out about 3 minutes after wrapping:

 

I hope you guys have fun with our carry this week. Please let us know how it works for you and post your pictures on the FB page! I would also love to hear about any carries you would like to see in the future or other suggestions you may have. So please feel free to make suggestions or write a blog post for Carry or the Week as well!

Tiffany Johnson is a breastfeeding, baby wearing, co-sleeping, attachment parenting mama to three beautiful children. She is currently taking a leave of absence from her busy career as an estate planning attorney to focus on her home and family. In her spare time she loves crafting, reading a good book, red wine, all things geeky, and loving on her babies.