carriers, carriers, CARRIERS!!! - Page 2

[lalemma]

It's nice to have lots of different carriers, although certainly not necessary. But I don't think it's a bad thing for everyone--it's only bad if it makes you feel bad (as it seems to for you) or it is really unhealthy economically or otherwise . . . IMO!

Anyway, I'd much rather have piles of pretty fabric for carrying baby (and diapering baby) than swings, bouncers, seats, cribs, playpens, strollers, etc (none of which I own). So that's how it works for me!

edited to add: I'm with you on wanting to reduce my personal consumerism, I just don't like to hear you sounding so disgusted with yourself while you struggle with it! Obviously you're a thoughtful mother and earth-inhabitant so . . . props!

I hope I didn't offend! I don't think there's anything wrong with owning high-quality things that are useful and beautiful and bring you joy.

I've just been thinking about this a lot - insofar as I'm a crunchy person, a lot of it has to do with wanting to just consume less stuff and be more conscious about what I'm supporting when I do buy things. It has been weird to have a kid and be the recipient of tremendous material generosity from people. I am very sincerely grateful that people have wanted to celebrate this baby's arrival, but it's been much harder than I expected to be minimalist and thoughtful about acquiring things! Maybe I just didn't realize that babies came with so much of their own stuff?

Thanks for the high-back carry tips! I'll see if I can get someone to spot me and try to be brave.

[beep]

I wanted to love babywearing and excitedly got a Moby and a mei tai before my LO was born. But... either I am not doing it right, or my kid is not a fan of babywearing, which has been sad for his dad and me.

[Tattooed Hand]

I cannot unlock the secrets of the maya wrap.

[Adasmommy]

Originally Posted by lalemma

I hope I didn't offend! I don't think there's anything wrong with owning high-quality things that are useful and beautiful and bring you joy.

I've just been thinking about this a lot - insofar as I'm a crunchy person, a lot of it has to do with wanting to just consume less stuff and be more conscious about what I'm supporting when I do buy things. It has been weird to have a kid and be the recipient of tremendous material generosity from people. I am very sincerely grateful that people have wanted to celebrate this baby's arrival, but it's been much harder than I expected to be minimalist and thoughtful about acquiring things! Maybe I just didn't realize that babies came with so much of their own stuff?

Thanks for the high-back carry tips! I'll see if I can get someone to spot me and try to be brave.

I wasn't offended--just wanted to add my viewpoint.

I get gifted lots of baby things I don't want and which don't work for us at all, and I feel sorry that someone took the time to pick it out and gave it to us with love and it is useless. I guess that's where it's the thought that counts and I should just enjoy the love that came with it!

[Adasmommy]

Originally Posted by fazer6

Diana how do you cope in summer. It gets very hot here, 95 to 105 easy in August. I currently am using a stretchy wrap (by stretchy wrap I mean length of cotton jersey my Granny IL had). Because I like the wrap I guess we'll go to a woven once he outgrows this but will it be too warm in summer?

Babies are too hot in the summer, but I like em anyway. So, yes, wraps are hot but I wear em anyway! Mei Tais are cooler.

Woven wraps are cooler than stretchy wraps though. EllaRoo wraps are cooler than most other wovens. Gauze wraps (like Gypsymama's wrapsody wraps) are cooler than EllaRoos. I've heard linen wraps are cooler too, but haven't used them.

Of course, I go for less long walks outside in the hottest part of the year . . .

[evinmom]

Originally Posted by beep

I wanted to love babywearing and excitedly got a Moby and a mei tai before my LO was born. But... either I am not doing it right, or my kid is not a fan of babywearing, which has been sad for his dad and me.

Have you tried different carry styles? Some babies may not like certain ones. Mine never liked cradle carries for example. DS1 always preferred facing out or being on the hip.

[carmel23]

in the summer when we've been in hot places (Nevada, southern California, mountains, etc.) I put baby in carrier with sun hat, light t-shirt (or naked if we're in the shade) diaper and ellaroo sling (which is thin cotton)...

I thought that the wrap I had (woven) was too hot for me and baby, and the ergo is often too hot, but hiking I'll still wear it and just a super light tank.

And beep, I second Di Linh, mine hated cradle carry, but love being up in froggy... It just takes some experimenting and trial and error.

It is easiest to try when baby is happy, fed, and not fussing... try for a few minutes, and then take baby out, (unless baby is happy and falls asleep )

It took so many tries and hits and misses before I got my ring sling down, and now I love it. I couldn't live without it. And my oldest hated being in a sling at first, too. But I think it was a combination of him picking up on my nervousness, and also putting in the wrong position.

But eventually I chilled out, and found the right positions that worked best for him and me.

[sothisislove]

Adasmommy - I'd love to see how you nurse in a wrap. I've got stretchy material that I cut myself for a wrap and I just get lost in all the loops when I try to nurse. And I get frustrated with having to remove baby to change a diaper b/c everything gets all twisted and stretched out. Does this happen with a woven wrap? maybe I should try one of those.

[ears73]

I figured out how to nurse in the wrap! This am I made breakfast for the big guys and straightened up all with babe on boob... Very great!! I watched a youtube video which wasn't very good but did get me motivated to keep on trying.

[fazer6]

When I nurse sitting down in the wrap I put him in the cross bits sideways so t hat it takes some of his weight. I have seen a video of how to retie to nurse completely discretely. Although I think to be honest I can't b e bothered to retie each time.

Diana, well that's a lightbulb moment. Yeah I guess it does make sense to do everything early on when it's cooler. Last year we had weather from the sahara, one day in August it was so hot I sat outside at 5am and it was still 96, during the day it was even worse. I think I'll ask on the DIY dection of TBW for advice on linens then. I might also even go crazy and actually by a proper wrap seeing as the woven one will last longer.

[beep]

Originally Posted by evinmom

Have you tried different carry styles? Some babies may not like certain ones. Mine never liked cradle carries for example. DS1 always preferred facing out or being on the hip.

So far I've tried the cradle, which he hated, and the froggy, which he tolerates restlessly for a limited period of time. I think he's still too little/wobbly to face out but will try again in a while, and the hip carry won't work for me. I think I am doing it more or less correctly per instructions, pictures, etc.

[evinmom]

Originally Posted by beep

So far I've tried the cradle, which he hated, and the froggy, which he tolerates restlessly for a limited period of time. I think he's still too little/wobbly to face out but will try again in a while, and the hip carry won't work for me. I think I am doing it more or less correctly per instructions, pictures, etc.

How about legs out on each side in the Moby? Everett is starting to hate being froggy-leg. He's getting a bit too big for it, but still too small to have his legs out in the mei tai or Beco. He's prefering the wrap right now because he can have his legs out. We'll go back to the mei tai and Beco once he is a little bigger. In the KKAFP, I am now wearing him tummy to chest with his legs out in front against me.

[Tattooed Hand]

Legs out in a hug hold is the only way Rassa will tolerate being in any wrap, but it's like magic, if I put it on and walk around a little she instantly falls asleep.

[lalemma]

I have a question about facing-out carries, if anyone can shed some light!

H. is starting to prefer facing out (I don't know if its related to froggied legs no longer being as okay with him or not. He's still too small to straddle our waists, though.) and I've looked at videos of forward-facing carries in a wrap. I feel like I'm missing a crucial element!

So I basically have a "crossbar" in the front, and I slide him down in there, and one leg goes on either side of the "bars", so that the cross is under his butt. And then I spread those bars out over his torso to support him. At that point, his legs are still hanging down. Then I pull up the "cummerbund" part of the wrap to pull his legs up in front of him. (Did that make any sense?)

The part I don't think I understand is the part where he's straddling the crossbar! Is that comfortable? Am I doing something wrong? Should he be "sitting" in the X? (Because his legs definitely hang down.)

[evinmom]

Originally Posted by lalemma

Should he be "sitting" in the X? (Because his legs definitely hang down.)

Yes. If he is in a sitting position, there won't be as much pressure on his spine like with the Bijorn style carriers. I spread the fabric widely under baby's bum up to the backs of knees which forces baby to sit rather than stand if that makes sense.

[lalemma]

AHA! Yes- that makes perfect sense. I haven't been spreading the fabric under his butt. Thanks!

[flapjack]

Clare, take a look at the gauze wraps (calin bleu often sell them cheap on ebayUK). I have a BBW, which coped with River as a newborn in the days when my FIL would turn the heat up to 27 degrees.

OP, keep the ergo for a few months until baby grows into it. I love my babyhawk, but one of its weaknesses is the length of the straps- if it's raining outside, it's hard to tie without getting the ends wet when jumping out of the car to go to xyz place. Soft structured carriers like the ergo are great for that because you can just clip and go.

And for the record, I have a stretchy wrap, a gauze wrap, a baby hawk, a wilkinet, two ring slings and a pouch- and I don't consider myself a serious baby wearer at all. They all fulfil different uses over the time of carrying baby, though, and I can see us using them all- pouches may not work for us now, but it will do next winter when he's up and down every few minutes and learning to walk.

[Adasmommy]

Got the first video up: nursing cradle position in a front cross carry:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTS3wd2BbV8

[Marlet]

With DD1 I only used a ring sling. I am a bonafide ring sling addict/lover. I make my own though so I can't tell you which is a "good" brand. Right before DD2 was born I did make myself an onbuhimo and used that a bit but overall it wasn't my style (like a mei tai but only 2 straps...where the bottom ones would be are rings). I think it mostly the construction of it though and plan on tweaking it.

DD2. Oh where do I begin with that delightfully ornry child. As an infant she needed up and down so much that I ended up getting a pouch made for me (by a mama here...I did a trade with her and she used a pattern online....on Jan's site I think?). I wanted to use my ring sling so bad but after a month of constant in and out and subsquently constant rethreading I got tired of it and went the pouch route. She loved it (and still does). We did try a homemade wrap there once she got older and I liked it but in the end she was a pouch girl so it got very little wear.

DD3 doesn't care. My ring sling is out of comission (and I have yet to find *the* perfect replacement fabric). I go between my pouch and my homemade wrap. The girl is made for a wrap. I so prefer wrapping her that I just bought a Vatanai off a mama on DiaperSwappers.

My preference is still a ring sling (going on 5 years of continuous wearing.....haven't had a break between kids ). It's light weight (well mine are though I have had a thick one) and doesn't cover a whole ton of your body. We've lived in all sorts of weather (the Northwest, MidWest, and more Southern) and thats the one I go for consistently. I know though, that they can be super uncomfy for people and can be difficult to find your particular carry with. DD1 was pretty universal in it...I even got her on my back before.

[Marlet]

I just realized that makes it sound like I have a ton. I don't. I currently have 1 pouch and 1 wrap. I need to replace my ring sling too, after 4.5 years worth of use I wore a hole in it.