Sunday 23 February 2014

CoTW: Front Wrap Cross Carry

This week's Carry of the Week is Front Wrap Cross Carry (FWCC).
 
I remember the first time I saw FWCC (it was also the first time I saw a woven).  I was at a crowded event and I had Hudson in the Moby wrap.  I ran into a woman who was in my mom and baby yoga class.   She had her baby in a beautiful woven in fwcc with the cross passes gathered at the sides.   It looked beautiful and made me feel like I was slumming it in my plain black Moby (not really).

I love this carry not only for how pretty it looks but also for the snuggles it allows.  For my fussy guy, this is our go to carry when he needs cuddles.  As long as Riel will allow it, I will wrap him regulstly in FWCC.  
 
This is a great beginner carry and its great for squishes.  You will need a 5+ wrap for this carry, depending on your size (I use a 6).  


Photo credit: Billi Grisdale-Briski
 
Wraps: top left - Natibaby UFO, bottom left - Pavo Hearts of Stone; right - Natibaby Gears Grassy
 
Check out Babywearing Faith's instructions for FWCC:
 

Saturday 22 February 2014

Meet the BWA Board



Photo courtesy of Jo Ann Bonnick
 
 
Hello! I’m Jo Ann and my son, Joel, is 11 months old. I’m the President of Babywearing of Algoma.

 
Before my son was born, I knew all of the things I wanted for him, babywearing included. I researched carriers and thought they were too expensive (haha), so I did some more research and found a few mamas who had made their own. I’ve been sewing since I was a little girl and knew I could do one for myself. So I did. Along the way, I also decided to start making my own diapers. This led to me making some for other people, all this before my son was even born! I met a couple of mamas local to where we were living at the time that were using woven wraps. I thought they were beautiful! Thus began my research into wovens. I still thought they were sooo expensive, so I traded some mamas handmade diapers for my first two wraps. Thus began the spiral into where I am today.
 
Reading about and seeing all the gorgeous wrap conversion carriers brought me to sew up my first wrap conversion (again, trading diapers for the wrap I made it from).  With more research, I discovered a small community of WAHMs that made and sold wrap conversions to help them stay at home with their littles longer. I joined the Baby Carrier Industry Alliance to start things out right, keeping up with all the rules, and began converting wraps for other mamas. I now have a thriving wrap conversion business that keeps me busy when my son is sleeping. My first handmade carrier is now part of the BWA sling library and I have more wraps than I care to count!
 
In the previous town I lived in there was a very small community of babywearers. We started a local babywearing group, but it really struggled to get off the ground because it was such a small town. While we were still living there, I had advertised one of my babywearing pouches for sale on my Facebook page and surprise surprise! the mama that bought it turned out to be from Sault Ste Marie! We had just found out my husband got a job here and we were moving in November! Meg told me about the local group of babywearers and before I even went to a meeting, we were chatting online. Everything else seemed to fall into place and I ended up as President of our awesome group.
 
I love how accessible we are becoming to the public and I love to see babywearing in the ‘wild’. Its such a positive experience for any caregiver and baby, fostering a sense of security and closeness. I really believe happy babies are created from the kind of feeling both the parent and child get from that kind of closeness, and I love sharing that with other moms and dads.


 
 

Photo courtesy of Stephanie Danielle


Hi all, I’m Steph, Vice-President and Treasurer of BWA.  I have one little, a fiercely independent little girl named Olivia.  She will be one next week (where did the time go?!).

 
When you decide to start your little family you are suddenly immersed in this whole other world. There are names for every parenting style, you have to decide how you are going to feed your baby, what’s going to go on their bum, where they’re going to sleep, and so so many more things.  Babywearing was something I knew I was going to do from the second I starting looking into what kind of parent I really wanted to be.
 
I added a HotSlings pouch sling on my registry and thought I was golden! .. And then she was born.. All of these awesome things I thought I had decided and knew all about turned out to be partial truths or not fitting for us. Olivia hated the pouch sling with all the hate a newborn can muster. Obviously these babywearing moms (that I desperately wanted to learn from) were wrong .. babies don’t even like to be worn.. right?  Wrong, totally totally wrong. I reached out to local moms during late night nursing sessions and I found a small handful of moms who knew a lot more than I did and they started steering me in the right direction - linking me to facebook groups, inviting me and Olivia over for “playdates”, etc. 
 
At three days PP, a local mom messaged me and said I could HAVE her gauze wrap as she didn’t like the way it wrapped - if I wanted it, it was mine free of charge. OF COURSE I WANTED IT! So I scooted out to grab it and rushed home to my baby and put that wrap on the couch for the night. It was intimidating - what if I dropped her? What do I do with all this fabric? Where does it all go? So I headed back to the internet and reached out again, and after chatting and spending about ten hours watching YouTube videos - I had Liv up. I DID IT. I fell in love with wrapping my girl right then and there and set out on my acquiring and churning adventure. I’ve bought and sold a few carriers since then, and have a couple of wraps on hand now. I am not a mom with a massive stash but I LOVE what I do have.
I am so grateful to the women in our babywearing community.  I have learned so much through them and very much look forward to growing with them. We may be a small community, but we are steadily growing and have set out to spread the babywearing love here in Sault Ste. Marie.


Photo courtesy of Emily Rivard
 
I’m Emily Rivard, Recruitment Officer for BWA. I have 3 kids - my 7 year old stepson Gage, my 2.5 year old toddler Kai, and 10-month old baby Liam. I stumbled onto babywearing while researching cloth diapers on the Diaper Swappers forum when I was pregnant with Kai. I was intrigued and loved the idea, but my husband was still a student and I just couldn’t justify purchasing the Easycare 01 rainbow woven wrap I’d fallen in love with. I started researching DIY options, and made myself a ring sling and a mei tai and found myself immersed in an excellent community of women on Facebook (all of whom lived thousands of miles away).
 
Shortly before getting pregnant with Liam, one of those women contacted me and asked for my address. She was going through her stash and decided to “pay it forward” and send a couple of her wraps to mamas who didn’t have one of their own. I was in love. Almost a year later, a few days before my birthday, another mama in that same group messaged me to tell me that she was selling her Easycare 01 rainbow. I was so excited and quickly convinced my husband that it would be the perfect birthday present. I found another local mama who was interested in babywearing and paid forward the wrap that I’d been sent previously.

In order to find that local mama, I posted in our local mom’s Facebook group. I discovered that I was not the only babywearer in town! There were 2 other local moms who loved wearing their babies and keeping them close, and a handful more who were interested in it. Slowly, the interest in babywearing increased and we had a small group of moms and babies who wanted to get together and pet each other’s wrap and have a playdate where we could share our interest. Our group has since snowballed into the Babywearing Of Algoma we know and love. As Recruitment Officer, I still keep my eyes open and am constantly looking for babywearers who aren’t yet benefiting from our group.

Photo courtesy of Meg Deresti
I’m Megan Deresti, wife to Frank, mother to Helen, and Lending Library Coordinator for BWA. Helen is my first baby and at 11 months, she is amazing. Frank and I started wrapping her in a Moby Wrap when she was just a few days old. I loved wrapping, but as the summer approached, I knew I wouldn’t be able to handle the heat of the stretchy material. I mentioned my interest in finding a woven wrap to a friend who just happened to have a woven wrap in her closet that she never really used. She very kindly gave me my first wrap, a Didymos Standard Blue/Nature striped wrap, size 5. I dove in head first. Helen and I spent hours over our bed, in front of a mirror, watching youtube videos.
 
I proudly and happily wore her for a few months before I became aware of the community. I never really saw any other woven wrap wearers around, and I was always too shy to dive into deeper conversations from the few passing comments I got from other moms. I bought Frank an Ergo after Helen got too big for the Moby and while trying to sell it online (or trade it for a woven), Emily found me and very thoughtfully invited me to an early babywearing meeting. I am so glad she did.
 
Babywearing and the babywearing community have been a really important part of our lives. We love the closeness and comfort babywearing brings. It makes my attachment parenting instincts so much easier to implement. I didn’t have very many local mom friends before meeting the babywearing community here, these wonderful women have also made cloth diapering and nursing to sleep seem far more mainstream - it has been great to have other moms to troubleshoot with. I joined the board because I really feel like having a lending library is a huge asset to our community. I would never have splurged on a woven wrap had I not been given one to try. Now, 4 wraps in, I know that they are well worth the investment.
 
 
 

My name is Billi and I am the BWA Secretary and manager of this blog.  My first born son, Hudson, is now 3.5 years old, and I have a 6 month old boy named Riel.  

I was very slow to get in to babywearing, but I blame it on a lack of local resources (something BWA is trying to change!).  When Hudson was born, a friend from Southern Ontario (the same friend who got me into cloth diapering and attachment parenting) recommended I get a Moby wrap.  I thought $60 was a lot to pay for a piece of stretchy fabric (little did I know...), so I made one.  It didn't work well (wrong kind of fabric) so I bought a used Moby.  I loved it.  It made bringing Hudson along with me as I went about life very easy.  

Hudson was a very easy going baby and soon learned to crawl and that was it - off he went. When baby number two arrived, I was in for a shock.  Riel is a high needs baby. He needs to be  in my arms at ALL times.  Well this just wasn't going to work.  How was I supposed to take care of my busy 3 year old when I have this non-sleeping, fussy baby in my arms all day and night.  The same crunchy friend that suggested the Moby now suggested I get an Ergo, a carrier she said would make hands free even easier than the Moby.  So I got an Ergo, and had my first taste of confidence being mom of two.  Yeah, I got this.  I could comfort Riel while still having my hands free to make play doh transformers with Hudson.  

The Ergo was quickly sold to fund a Tula (heard it was a better carrier so wanted to try it), and since then several wraps have come and gone, and now here I am a board member of BWA and owner of a considerable stash of baby carriers.  Along the way I've learned so much, but I've had to search it all out.  BWA wants to normalize babywearing here in Algoma, and to provide the resources necessary so that busy parents don't have to spend hours searching for info on the how, where, and whys of wearing your baby. Stay tuned for next weeks feature on BWAs' growing lending library and how you can be a part of it.

Tuesday 18 February 2014

My Stash Monday:Jo Ann's Stash

Hello! My name is Jo, and I'm a self proclaimed wrap addict. Today I'm giving you a glimpse of my personal stash. Since I can't decide the order to put them in, I'll go in descending order of size.

First up is a size 6 Oscha Shui Long Celandine, 40% cotton, 40% silk, 20% linen. This is a beautiful grippy, soft, floppy, broken in wrap. I don't use this much anymore because its so long, but I love dragons! So it stays mostly folded in my sewing room for now. It’s a dye blank, so I may have to shorten and dye it this summer if I can’t find another set of dragons I like in a shorter wrap.

Next is also a 6, a Pavo Penumbra Lunar, 100% cotton. Another beautiful wrap that I haven't wrapped with more than a couple times. I got it at the same time as another 6 that I used extensively, so this one was not used much.

Size 5 Oscha Raja Brigid, 50% linen, 50% cotton. This wrap landed last week and I love it. It came at the same time my son outgrew his standard Tula, so its had quite a bit of use already and is breaking in nicely. I intended to convert this into a full buckle carrier, but now I'm not so sure... it may stay as our summer wrap.

Size 4 MoMB Wraps Handwoven Doctor Who Season 12.5, 100% cotton, named Nerva by the weaver, who is also a Doctor Who fan. This is a semi custom, part of a group of 7 wraps, each unique, inspired by the Doctor Who TV series season 12.5 scarf. If you're not familiar with Doctor Who, each season has the main character's scarf changing, stretching and losing stripes from events in the episodes. My husband is a fan of Doctor Who, so when the chance came up to get in with a group of mom's to get a wrap made into a season's scarf pattern, I jumped on it. Nerva still needs breaking in. She’s thick, cushy on the shoulders and is instant cuddly sleepiness for my son. Its definitely permastash!

Size 3 Oscha Rei Romeo, 46% bamboo, 54% cotton. This is also permastash. Romeo lives in my truck and he’s my go to wrap for shopping and quick trips around town, getting the most up and down use of all my wraps. I love this wrap for a few reasons. First (and the reason it's permastash) is our German Shepherd's name is Romeo and he's our son's best pal. He sleeps in his room if we leave the door open and he lets our son crawl all over him, loving him up. Second is it's buttery softness and amazing ease of wrapping with it. Its also very thin but supportive. When Oscha came out with this wrap, I wasn't quick enough to grab one from their stocking. A few months later I was lucky enough to find a mama selling one for what she paid for it. So yeah, its in the keeper category!

Size 1 Didymos Indio, 100% cotton, blue and white, fringed. This is an old wrap. I have no idea how old and the previous owner wasn't sure either. It popped up on a swap and I bought it for interest sake because it was super cheap and old. Its wicked short (88 inches or 2 meters) and I haven't wrapped with it yet because of that. Its also narrow at 24”, typical of older wraps I've been told. It makes a great scarf though!

And that's it! Sort of, but not really. In addition to being a wrap addict, I'm also a compulsive churner. All these nasty habits! ;) My personal stash fluctuates a bit from time to time, but this is the snapshot this week!



Photo courtesy of Jo Ann Bonnick

Sunday 16 February 2014

COTW: Kangaroo Carry


Welcome to Carry of the Week, overtired, grumpy baby edition! My name is Megan, and my 11 month old daughter Helen will by my wrapee. She is just learning to walk, and I’m guessing she is about 25 lbs, though we haven’t been weighed in a while.

I’d like to share with you the Kangaroo Carry today (it’s not the same Kangaroo Carry as shown in the Moby instructions).  It’s a great carry for sleepy babies as you can unwrap easily and hopefully transfer to bed with minimal fuss, though Helen won't even let me loosen knots without stirring. Its a good front carry that can be done with a whole range of wrap lengths, usually base size-2 and up, depending on how much reinforcing and tail you mind dealing with (base for most people is what you double hammock in, or Front Wrap Cross Carry in).  Actually just follow this link if you want to know more: http://paxbaby.com/woven-wraps-101-sizing/   I just squeezed it in using my Lila Hemp Indio, which is a long size 2. Sorry about the awkward selfies!


Photo courtesy of Meg Deresti

Here is the pass sequence:  With the middle marker at center of baby's back, create kangaroo/ruck pass on your front. Flip rails at shoulders (bring outside rail over the other rail toward neck which will create the right tension in the rails). Cross in back, tighten, tighten, tighten and tie under bum. If using a longer wrap, reinforce under bum and tie at your back.


Photo courtesy of Meg Deresti

My two favourite tutorials are linked below.

Babywearing Faith: http://youtu.be/8aK4A-HjNnw

        -I like her extra tips and tricks for getting things extra tight

Wrapping Rachel: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaLn69KE1vM

        -She describes how to use up length in a longer wrap


Photo courtesy of Meg Deresti

Friday 14 February 2014

Feature Friday: Babywearing Safety

Last week we highlighted all of the wonderful benefits of wearing your baby.  This week we want to focus on the importance of wearing your baby safely.  Whether you are wearing a newborn or an older infant, whether in a sling, wrap, or buckle carrier, there are a number of important safety precautions of which we should always be aware.

1.  T.I.C.K.S.  The School of Babywearing has developed the acronym "T.I.C.K.S" to remind us of some of the fundamental safety precautions when babywearing:  Fabric should be Tight; Baby's face must be in view at all times; ensure baby's chin is off chest; baby's head should be close enough to kiss; and baby's back should always be supported in its natural position.  For more on T.I.C.K.S. visit the School of Babywearing's site at:
http://www.schoolofbabywearing.com/Images/TICKS.pdf


Photo courtesy of Debbie Vanderloo

2.  Inspect your carrier.  Inspect your carrier to be sure that it is safe before each use.  Check the seams, buckles, fasteners, etc., to ensure that it is in perfect working condition.

3.  Consider what's within baby's reach.  Depending on where you have baby situated on your body, be mindful of what items will be within his reach.  Ensure all sharp or otherwise dangerous objects are stowed safely away from those reaching hands.  Also be mindful of baby's location in relation to your surroundings - ceilings, door frames, etc., can become hazards when you aren't aware of the distance between them and baby.    


Photo courtesy of Debbie Vanderloo

4.  Avoid activities that come with increased risk of falls.   These activities include climbing a ladder, riding a horse or bicycle, running, and moving on a slippery surface.  Remember, when wearing your baby, your centre of gravity is off.  Something that seems easy for your to do when you are unencumbered by baby becomes much more difficult when there is 20 or 30 lbs of baby hanging off your body.

5.  Support baby with arms when leaning or bending over.  This ensures baby's position doesn't shift and he doesn't slip out of the carrier.

 
Photo courtesy of Jocelyn Orr

For more information on wearing your baby safely, please visit the follow links:



Wear safely and carry on!

Tuesday 11 February 2014

My Stash Monday: Tuesday Edition!

Each week we will feature a Babywearing of Algoma member's stash.  If you are interested in sharing your stash on the blog, please email us!

Thanks to Emily Rivard for this weeks MSM.

***

Hi, my name is Emily and I carry two babies - 10 month old, Liam and 2.5 year old Kai. Today I’d like to introduce you to my stash of baby carriers. My stash is pretty minimalistic. I have a ring sling, mei tai, a woven wrap that I made myself, and a size 6 Didymos Second Time Travel.

My ring sling lives in the car and is used primarily for quick trips to stores that don’t have carts. It is perfect for tiny babies (which I no longer have), but I find that my shoulder gets sore if I have to use it for my 40lb toddler for more than 20 minutes or so.


My mei tai has become my daddy-carrier. My husband prefers to use it to carry Kai while I wrap Liam. If we each take a baby while grocery shopping it’s almost like we’re there alone! Mei tai’s are a great option for those wanting to babywear but intimidated by wrapping. It was definitely my gateway carrier.

 
My DIY woven wrap is made of a very thin woven upholstery cotton (not osnaburg - which is what I thought it was when I purchased it), and is a little bit longer than a size 6. I don’t use it often since
I find it digs into my shoulders and it’s difficult to tighten. It stays in my basement as my emergency carrier.

Finally, the love of my life, my size 6 Didymos Second Time Travel. This is our everyday carrier and gets the most use. I love the versatility of the wrap - I’m able to do front carries, hip carries, and back carries with it. Of all my carriers, it is the only one that I can use to comfortable carry Kai for several hours. The learning curve was definitely worth it.


Thank you for taking a peek at my stash today!

Monday 10 February 2014

Carry of the Week: Reinforced Ruck with Knotless Finish

Each week we will feature a new carry for all to try.  Usually these will be released on Sunday but this week some of us had sick kiddos and other challenges so we are a bit behind on things.
 
***
 
My name is Stephanie, and the itty bitty you see is Olivia. 
 
Today we're going to feature a Reinforced Ruck With A Knotless Finish!  The reason we do this carry so often around here is, in all honesty, for it's speed - getting Liv up and happy is time specific. We babywear primarily to make momma and baby happy; Olivia still wants to be carried, and so we do. 
 
I am using a size 5 woven wrap (Kokadi Erna im Wunderland) in these photos.
 
This carry can EASILY be done with a shorter wrap if you don't want to reinforce your ruck (ie. make another pass).  It's a matter of personal preference - I like to do a reinforcing pass because I like the security. Olivia likes to wiggle and pop her seat, so those extra passes mean that she poses no risk of falling or loosening the carry.
 
The reason I chose a knotless finish is because I think it's important to showcase the ease with which wrapping can be done. The fabric itself is sturdy and grippy - if you tie properly, and safely - you do not need to make knots with your fabric. I also like the knotless finish for ease of dismount; once Olivia has decided she wants to walk or run, it's again time specific, and in her mind fairly urgent! 
 
I leave you today with this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3XSk7tzt3A & a few silly photos of us! 
 
 
 

Friday 7 February 2014

Why Wear Your Baby?

Wearing your baby is fun and convenient, but there are many more reasons to wear your baby that you may not have considered.  Keep this list handy for those times when well-meaning friends and family comment that your constant carrying of your baby will result in him being spoiled and/or delayed in some way (it won't!).

In no particular order:

1. Physiological benefits.  Babies are born with a natural c shaped curve in their spine.  Babywearing supports this natural curve.  Babywearing also helps with the important formation of the first curve in the neck, something usually encouraged through "tummy time" but that can just as easily (and more enjoyably!) be accomplished through regular babywearing.  Another reason doctors promote tummy time is the prevention of plagiocephaly or a flat spot on baby's head; this can also be remedied by babywearing.  Additional physiological benefits to note are the regulating of bodily functions including breathing, digestive functions, and body temperature (read more about this at the Babywearers of Northern NJ blog, link below).

2.  Carried babies cry less.  Studies have proven that babies who are carried cry less (40% less!) than babies who are not carried for a good portion of each day.  In cultures where carrying babies throughout the majority of the day is the norm, babies' periods of crying are measured in terms of minutes rather than hours (as is the norm in the Western world).


                                                 Photo courtesy of Emily Rivard

3.  Brain development.  With all that time spent not fussing and crying, babies who are carried spend a good portion of the day in a state of "quiet alertness", a state which makes learning about their world around them comfortable and enjoyable.  Babies who are worn regularly observe and learn from the every day events that their parents engage in.  In addition to this, we know that babies senses are stimulated by touch (which is inevitable when carried); the closeness and contact that comes with carrying your baby further encourages healthy brain development.

4.  Bond.  Babies and their mothers often have an instant bond that is further intensified through the breastfeeding relationship.  Significant others and additional caregivers who also want to establish a close bond can do so through babywearing.  Some of the closeness and skin to skin contact that nursing babies share with their mommies can be had through babywearing.  In the sling or carrier, baby can become familiar with Daddy's (or Grandma's or babysitter's) voice, body temp, heart beat, etc.


                                        Photo courtesy of Meg Deresti

5.  Convenience.  Whether you have just one squish or a squish plus a toddler or two, you will find using a carrier is extremely convenient.  From navigating the grocery store with your squish safely stored against your chest, to pushing your busy toddler on the swings at the park while baby naps on your back, babywearing makes being a great parent even easier!

To learn more about the benefits of babywearing, have a look at the following sites:

Dr. Sears  http://www.askdrsears.com/topics/health-concerns/fussy-baby/baby-wearing/benefits-babywearing
Babywearers of Northern New Jersey  http://babywearersofnnj.wordpress.com/2012/12/