What lead you to discover babywearing?

[GypsyGrin]

Nobody I know really babywears. I have one friend who owns an OTSBH, but never/rarely uses it because it makes her back hurt. I've got another friend who recommended the Baby Bjorn (which I bought & before I knew better threw away the box on even though it's still brand new. urgh - $120 wasted.) I had picked it up to use for her when walking the dog; that was the extent to which I planned to use it. My how things change. :

My love affair with babywearing came about because I had an emergency c-section. The 10lb weight restriction kept me from lifting her in her car seat (I bought a Peg Perego because it was rated high for safety; little did I know it weighed 10,000lbs), and once I could drive again I was most anxious to get out and about. I researched at home & my one of first driving excursions was up to purchase a moby wrap. Best decision EVER! There's been no looking back since then. DD spent a large chunk of yesterday in her mei tai, with frequent breaks. We got a ton done around the house, and I'd like to think some learning / development too . . . we sang songs and counted stairs every time we went up & down from the basement, for example. And I'd like to think that carrying the extra weight will help me lose some of this extra weight too!

So, what led you to babywearing? Is it a considered "normal" where you're at, or something you discovered? What led you to learn about it / try it?

[DigitalSuze]

Originally Posted by GypsyGrin

So, what led you to babywearing? Is it a considered "normal" where you're at, or something you discovered? What led you to learn about it / try it?

DS2 was/is very high needs -- I couldn't put him down! After several weeks of that, I was ready to lose my mind -- I had a general notion of babywearing (think Snugli), but the MDC boards really educated me.

I see people around wearing Baby Bjorns and that sort of thing, but that's about it. Every time I wear my mei tai to do the grocery shopping, someone will ask me where I got it! I've never received a negative comment about babywearing -- most people seem to think it's pretty cool!

[mothragirl]

a friend loaned me a maya wrap and showed me how to use it when alice was a few days old. i used the stroller that i bought 3 times before i sold it. it cramped my style.

[lilylove]

Originally Posted by mothragirl

it cramped my style.

A few years before I got pregnant with my dd, my mom had found a pattern for a padded ring sling. She made me one for my daughter. It was too big and I had a really hard time getting it comfortable, but it gave me a taste of what life with BWing could be.

[GypsyGrin]

i used the stroller that i bought 3 times before i sold it. it cramped my style.

Hee hee - I love that!!!!

I have a $350 jogging stroller I haven't used yet. Ooops.

[summerbabe]

They sell the Maya Wrap at the nursing moms store in the hosp where I work. I bought one for a friend of mine, she never used it, and gave it back to me when I got pregnant. My ds hated the cradle hold, and in general I have never gotten comf w/the ring sling even after he had the head control for other carries. But by then, I had read about babywearing in my Dr. Sears book and really wanted to do this as a parenting practice, so I was bummed out that the ring sling was not working for us. So I started researching on the internet and found out about all the other options. Now I love my mei tai, gypsy mama wrap, and pea in a pod hemp pouch. Maya wrap still gets no love. I also hate the stroller and only use it for my Stroller Strides exercise class.

[Chronic Chrissy]

Everyone here asks me if I made my wrap up myself, so I guess here I discovered it. There are other babywearers here but it's very rare to see one. Personally I always thought wraps were cool even when I wasa kid watching other cultures on TV. When I found out I was PG I remember seeing a pic of Angelina Joley(sp?) With a kidon her back in a purple wrap and I said I want that. Someone told me it was a sling so that's what I got. I just wasn't digging the ring sling so I went in search of what I found out was a wrap. Ever since I've been loving it.

[maternus.aeternum]

hrmm...
i guess it was something that i LOOKED for, because i never wanted to put my babies down.
so, i looked and i found, and now i don't HAVE to put my babies down for anything!!
not even a shower!

[GypsyGrin]

and now i don't HAVE to put my babies down for anything!!
not even a shower!

ooooh, tell me more! What sling is this? I'd love to be able to shower at my convenience rather than waiting for her to fall asleep. Do you have any problems with her getting soap in your eyes when you wash your hair? Did she hate the shower at first?

[maternus.aeternum]

well, you can get a solarveil Mei tai, a water wrap, or a water ring sling.

gypsymama.com has a water wrap.
attachedtobaby.com did sell solarveil mei tai's - i think they were sachi brand, i'm not sure.

and then lots of places make water ring slings.

also, comfyjoey has just come out with a pouch that is apparently quick drying, like cotton, feels like silk (not sure exactly what it's made from), in all these funky colours, and they would work too.

i prefer a ring sling because it's less fabric than a wrap or mei tai, and doesn't cover me completely.

i don't use many products AT ALL, so soap in his or my eyes isn't an issue, and i have almost hip-length hair so it's a lot to wash!

my babies have both loved water SO much. yossarian usually lays his head down and falls asleep while i'm in the shower. haha
or he sees my breasts and gets all crazy ravenous and nurses the whole time!

[GypsyGrin]

urgh - I *just* bought a mei tai that I love to pieces; think I can justify a solarveil one too?

Off to google!!!!!!!!!!

[Lynski]

With DS we bought an Infantino pouch type thing at Target. We got it for a crazy low price of like $5 or something, I think it was mislabeled. Freaks that we were we mainly bought it because of the price since we had no notion of babywearing. It was a life saver for our colicky DS. So when he outgrew that a friend made me a ring sling and when that was too heavy we got a mei tei.

DD likes to be carried, and with a toddler it's not easy. I have a birth injury so I can't use my left arm to carry her and sometimes I really NEED at least one hand. DD hated the slings and carriers we had already so that led me out into the world to find something different. People around here generally use a bjorn if they babywear at all, but I did see and Ergo last week and felt all giddy! I saw a mei tei on a mom (with a sleeping toddler in it : ) at the fabric store once too and wanted so badly to start a conversation, but she was checking out and I just couldn't figure out how without looking like a nut.

[NinaBruja]

did a yahoo search on baby care when i was 16 and nannying... found the ap motherlode and havent been the same since