The Summer of Yes

Happy Blog Day, Midlands Babywearers!

As the month of May draws to a close and the thought of June and summer approaches, many of us are spending more time wearing our babies (and toddlers) than ever. Festivals, farmer's markets, vacations, errands, berry picking . . . there are plenty of opportunities to make use of those carriers. Whether you wrap, tie, or buckle, I'm sure you'll be doing lots of it this summer.

The more we wear, the more questions seem to come up, and I wanted to take this opportunity to go over a few I see commonly among our own community and those I (and maybe you) have seen on other babywearing pages, like Babywearing 102, Everyday Babywearing, Tandem Babywearing, and others. Most of the questions start out: "Can I babywear if . . . " or "Can I babywear when/while . . ." and the answer to many of these is yes. This particular post will offer brief answers to most of these (which usually is YES, you can!" and in future blog posts this summer, I'll delve into most of these questions more in depth.

Can I babywear while pregnant?

Jenna, rocking toddler wearing
while 30 weeks pregnant

Yes, you can! (Caveat - unless your doctor or midwife has put you under a lifting restriction due to pregnancy complications. In that case, please take your health care provider's advice over mine, or any other random person on the Internet)

How do you do babywear while pregnant? That depends. Have you been wearing prior to pregnancy? How did you do it when you are not pregnant? If you are already an experienced babywearer, continue as you did prior to pregnancy. Some adjustments you might want to make due to your growing bump are to wrap/tie/buckle above your bump whenever possible when carrying your toddler on your back. For some women, tying or buckling is more comfortable under the bump - try both and see what is most comfortable for you and your toddler.

Some toddlers are adverse to being on your back. Or they may decide to go on back carry strike. Or maybe you are not comfortable wearing your toddler on your back. You can still wear your toddler on your front, but of course it may become less comfortable/possible as your pregnancy advances. In these cases, you may want to move to a hip carry - ring slings are great for this, especially for toddlers that want up and down a LOT. Hip carries are quite safe while pregnant; as your pregnancy advances, you may notice the babe in the womb adjust his or her position when you carry your toddler on your hip - unless your heath care provider shows concern over your baby's position, I'd continue to wear your toddler as long as you are comfortable doing so.

Can I babywear if I'm plus sized?

Ashley and T
in a toddler/plus KP

Most people know they can babywear while plus sized; this question is usually a little more specific regarding certain carriers or lengths of woven wrap. As a plus-sized mama myself, married to a big and tall daddy who babywears, trust me, Yes, you can!

Plus-friendly SSC/Buckle carriers - Kinderpack, Olives and Applesauce, Boba, Tula, and many others are plus-size friendly
Brands I'd avoid: Ergo (unless you buy the extender), Lillebaby (unless you are on the borderline plus-size end), Baby Bjorn, and most others that you can buy in a store. I recently tried on nearly everything you CAN buy in a store in Columbia, and while I could buckle every carrier, it was a near thing in many cases, and I'm *only* a size 16.

Plus-friendly Mei Tai - the Infantino Sash, Babyhawk, and Catbird baby all work fine. Many Mei Tai makers (WAHM or Etsy, etc) offer different strap length options for plus-sized wearers, which make this carrier a great option.

Woven Wraps: You can use any size woven wrap. Yes, even a size 2. Your base size (what you can do most carriers, including a FWCC or Double Hammock in) is probably a size 7 or even 8. Yet, you can and should try other sizes. Wrapping with a woven wrap is much less daunting when you can use less fabric. In a size 2, you can wear on your front in a rebozo carry, on your back with Ruck Tied Under Bum or Rear Reinforced Rucksack Rebozo (RRRR), and many other options. Size 3 will let you do all of those and others, with different tie off/finishes. You can use a size 4 for most hip carries and most of the shorter back carriers, and a size 5 for all of those with a few different variations. Just because your body is bigger than average, doesn't mean your wrap collection has to consist solely of bigger than average wraps  - trust me - or better yet, come to a meeting and try a few sizes. You won't regret it!

Ring Slings: You probably want at least a size Medium sling. The benefits to a size Large or X Large is mainly in the length of tail. A longer tail is handy for a nursing or sleeping cover, wrapping the rings to cushion them, or just because it's pretty. Do not base your Ring Sling size on your shirt size! Pick one that's pretty and you'll love it.

Bottom line: Yes, you can wear any sort of carrier - the only limitation might be your budget (or your creativity, if you decide to DIY a carrier or two) I love seeing people of all sizes wearing their babies!

 

Can I wear while I travel? What do I pack?

Jennifer, at Disney

Yes, you can! Frankly, I don't know how anyone travels WITHOUT babywearing. In the airport, you may want to choose an option with no metal pieces, in case of x-rays, etc. Depending on the day, the airport, the mood of security, you may or may not need to take your baby off when you go through the various checkpoints, but being able to wear baby MOST of the time is still a great help when going to the airport.

What to pack? How much space to you have? - Just Kidding - I'm a minimalist, I don't want to pack everything I own, but I do want to be prepared. I'd pack at least one carrier per kid that might be worn, a water carrier if you are going to the pool or beach, and maybe a spare, just in case. Unless your baby or toddler uses or prefers a specific carrier, I'd pack my workhorse carriers that I know can handle a lot of use and abuse and nothing that needs babying, since you'll be using it in parking lots, airports, parks, and lots of other outdoor spaces.

Bottom line: a worn baby is a happy baby (most of the time), and everyone loves happy, traveling babies!

 

Can I wear while I work out?

Babywearing Yoga

Yes, you can! Actually, we are going to have a meeting just on this topic. The main thing to remember, or consider, is keep your common sense. Running, biking, horseback riding, and other very vigorous activities should not be attempted while wearing your baby. This is when the rule "If you wouldn't do it holding your baby in arms, then you shouldn't do it while wearing your baby" comes in handy.

That said, light dance, yoga, walking (even brisk walking), are all activities in which you can incorporate babywearing. It's a great way to keep your baby happy, add some resistance to your work out, and burn a few extra calories doing it! Come join us Saturday, June 14th or Thursday, June 26th to learn more about Yoga and Babywearing.

 

Can I wear both my baby and my toddler?

Melissa, using two woven wraps
wearing H on front and R on back

Yes, you can! Otherwise known as Tandem Babywearing, it's very possible to wear two babies, two toddlers, or any other combination at the same time. Now, this is probably considered an advanced skill - you want some experience wearing ONE baby before you go trying to wear TWO. Now, sometimes life throws you a curve - like twins - and you need to learn how to wear two babies at the same time in a hurry. Never fear, it can be done! just take it slow, ask for help if and when you need it, and you will be tandem wearing - like a boss.

How do you do it? Do you need one carrier or two?

You can wear two babies in one woven wrap. You need usually at least a size 6 (if you and your babies are small) but a size 7 or 8 is even better. You can use two woven wraps at the same time. You can use a ring sling and a woven wrap. You can use a ring sling and a buckle carrier. Or a mei tai and buckle carrier, or two mei tais, or two buckle carriers, or two ring slings . . . You get the idea. If you have two babies and two carriers, you can wear them both AT THE SAME TIME. 

The how really comes into play when figuring out the logistics. In general, I put the baby (or toddler) on my back that doesn't want to get down and up seventy million times. If you are using a woven wrap for the baby on your front, get that mostly pre-tied first (like a FWCC ), otherwise, put the baby and carrier on your back first, get them situated and snug, then add the front baby and carrier. Since it's much easier for the one in front to be put up and down seventy million and one times, this is the kid I wear on the front (unless the other one is needing to eat . . . in which case, boobie baby has the front seat out of necessity. The boobs don't work from the back seat) This has been a life saver for me, I'll be honest. I do not love wearing 50 lbs of kid in the South Carolina heat, but I love knowing that I can, if I need to. It's a valuable tool to have in your toolbox.

 

Speaking of breastfeeding . . Can nurse baby in my carrier?

Katrina, nursing T
 in a buckle carrier

Yes, you can! It's not the easiest and most natural thing in the world (but neither was breastfeeding for many of us), but once you figure it out - you and your baby will be so glad you did! This is one of those things where it is so much easier to show you than to tell you in a blog, so please come join us this Thursday, May 22nd at the LDS Church on Broad River Rd at 10 a.m.  - we'll explain, demonstrate, and troubleshoot with you how to get you nursing in your carrier.

 

 

 

Have other questions? Speak up! Our Facebook group is almost at 300 members, and we love questions. One of us is bound to have an answer for you, I promise. I'm also willing to bet that if you are brave enough to speak up , you aren't the only one with the exact same question, the ones that aren't brave enough to speak up will be so glad you did!