Baby Wearing Wednesday!

On Monday, I was grocery shopping at our favorite Wegmans (not only do we have the best grocery store ever, but we have 2 within 10 miles) with my little man when, as his custom, he became fussy and obviously didn't want to be seated in the cart.  I was having a conversation with a random young grandmother missing her 2 grandkids out in California when I decided it was time for: The Wrap!  Standing in the middle of the meat section, I quickly went to my favorite stand by - the basic pop-in-and-out carry with a long woven wrap, the Front Wrap Cross Carry.  

This carry is also awesome because the babies can face in OR out.  At 9 months, Noah still likes facing in when he's sleepy so he can rest his head on me (and I love it, too!).

Not only was the grandmother impressed, but a store worker and new mom immediately came to ask me how and what I just did.  She said she watched me do that so quickly and easily and absolutely needed something for her 4 month old that always wants to be held.  

Just like advised to me, I tell curious moms to check out The Baby Wearer, which is the go-to for all advise baby-wearing.  But, then I usually give my 2 cents: go woven, not stretchy!  Again, I owe my coworkers Beth and Andrea for introducing me to this world!

Facing out in the Front Pocket Wrap Carry 

There are almost too many kinds of carriers to go in blind - luckily, my coworker, Andrea, offered me her Moby-like strechy wrap from Etsy to try when Noah was very little.  She showed me the most basic carry right at her desk how to tie it (sans wrap):

1. start holding the absolute middle of the wrap (everyone I have seen has a tag or something to show you the center) on your stomach.

2. Take the ends behind you, cross them over the opposite shoulders

3. Tuck them in the pocket you created with step 1

4. Cross them again and bring them to the back and tie.

That's it.  And it REALLY is that easy. She loaned me her wrap and it saved us for 2 nights of Noah wanting to be held to sleep, I wrapped him and we slept in our recliner - no worries about letting go!

At first, I thought the only options of these wraps were in what color - then I realized it's all about the fabric.  There are stretchy and woven.  The cost jumps with the woven, but in my opinion, it's worth it.  The stretchy wraps are just that - stretchy.  They will need to be retied after a shorter period of time and are not good for carrying heavier babies.  My woven wrap stretched out, but after about 4 hours of carrying Noah and taking him in and out several times.  A standard trip anywhere, my wrap stays nice and snug.

The next thing to think about with fabric is climate - I searched and searched for the best fabrics, carriers, carries, etc... knowing we would be going to Disney in June.  That's how I found my Gypsy Mama Bali Breeze by Wrapsody (no, they have NO idea I'm writing this - this is not a paid review, just one from Mom to Mom).  These are considered some of the lightest gauze, yet still woven and not stretchy.  They have many styles, even some waterproof and with SPF.  My other coworker, Beth, introduced me to a beautiful and now incredibly overpriced expensive German wrap - I don't think that would stretch out holding a 45 lb child, but it's also WAY to warm for a summer carrier.  

Wearing the Didymos Carrier.  Pretty and sturdy!

In my research and price comparison, I googled on over to Carry Me Away, a wonderful site with incredibly helpful and responsive owners who often do comparisons of carries and they have helped me a lot as well.  Plus, they had the best price of the carrier I wanted.  Win - win.  Since, I've emailed for questions about different carries with my current wrap and opinions of new a carrier.  Every time, they respond quickly and are very helpful and I plan to use them again if/when I purchase my next carrier (saving up!) to use for our January trip.  Even though my wrap is pretty much an all-in-one, I want something with buckles for easy on and off - and to figure out which has the least impact for my back in the days prior to the half-marathon.  

From personal experience, I will say one more thing - I was lucky enough to have been given a Baby Bjorn.  Noah HATED it.  And he LOVES his wrap (and even the Ergo carrier we borrowed once).  It wasn't comfortable for either of us - but for some reason, it's the most popular name.  Don't be afraid of the wrap.  It's easy, awesome, and comfortable!

Happy Baby Wearing!

~Jenn