It's been a wonderful summer. We have made so many memories as a family. We have taken the kids to parks, beaches, splash pads, and lakes. We even took a tour of Lake Washington. It's crucial to do lots of outdoor stuff in the summer when you live in the Pacific Northwest. It's the only time we get any sunshine! And it's beautiful, with green trees, serene water, and for once, clear skies. Since the kids went back to school last week, I was flipping through our photos of the summer, and found another momento- Dylan's Beco Butterfly II baby carrier. I am wearing him while splashing in the water, wearing him while walking around the zoo, everywhere we went, I was toting my son. There were so many pictures of him and I babywearing, we could have been an advertisement for Beco!
So this is just intended as a general "getting started" guide to babywearing. It's a great way to get extra cuddles in with your baby while keeping your hands free. I have worn all of my kids, but more so with each baby that came along. This was out of necessity for sure, when you have four kids, and the baby is colicky and needs to be held a lot, you do what works. And babywearing works for us.
Let's start with options for a newborn. I have used the Moby wrap and Comfy Joey ring sling with my newborns. You can also nurse in these carriers, which is great when you are just getting the hang of breastfeeding and the thought of public nursing still makes you nervous. This is a solution to keep you from being tied to the house. Babies also love to be snuggled close to mama in this womb-like environment. Studies show that babies who are worn in this fashion cry less. Here's more about that and some additional benefits. There is a learning curve to tying a wrap, though. It's not difficult, and this video really helped me. I also recommend this video guide for nursing in one. What I also did with my youngest daughter is tie the wrap before going out. Then I'd remove her from her car seat and slip her in. This makes it easier because you're not tying a bunch of fabric in a parking lot! I have heard that the Sleepy Wrap or Baby K'tan is easier because you don't have to do the tying and the fabric stretches out less, but I have not tried these carriers.
Once baby has decent head support, I move on to a soft structured carrier. There are many options here, and I will mention that I am highly uncoordinated so the SSC is my favorite. I prefer one with buckles, such as my Beco, or the Ergo gets great reviews, too. Whatever carrier you use, it's important to have one that is ergonomic in design, both for the sake of baby's hips and your back. When the baby is big enough to have his or her legs out of the SSC, you want to make sure the knees are as high as the bottom. In short, don't use a crotch dangler, like the Baby Bjorn. They are very hard on your back and the babies legs just dangle. Forward facing positions are also impossible to do ergonomically. If your baby likes to look around, try a hip carry in a ring sling.
Our Beco is close to my heart. Dylan jumps up and down excitedly when he sees me putting it on. We're actually getting another one so Anthony can wear Harley, too. It's been an awesome summer....
Happy babywearing!
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