Babywearing Guest Post: Jill

[Today's guest post comes from my friend, Jill. I have known Jill for over 20 years now (how time flies!) and we've been through various life stages together. She owes me since I introduced her to her husband. :) ] 

Baby Carriers

For Melanie

     When I had my first baby Maddie, in February 2010, I received a carrier to borrow from a family member. It was an over the shoulder sling pod kind of thing. It was pretty horrible actually. I’m pretty sure these were recalled or discontinued or something. [Mel says: Yup, they eventually were.] I only put her in it twice for 2 reasons, 1. I felt really uncomfortable and felt like she was being suffocated as I held her and 2. She HATED to be carried/cuddled/swaddled and generally confined to any small space.

OMG MOMMY! I’M SUFFOCATING! 

     The next carrier I used was a gift from Melanie and Dan. [Mel says: This one is called a Mei Tai, pronounced "may tie". I bought it from a WAHM on Etsy.] It worked really well, but Maddie was way too independent and did not like to be confined to a carrier. She would wiggle herself out of it and cry and scream to get free. It was ridiculous. She was ridiculous. Believe it or not, she was an amazing baby and didn’t need to be held, she loved to sleep for 14 hours a night and take 3-4 hour naps in the day, and walked by herself at 8 ½ months, so....slings were not really something we needed for her.

     My second baby Emma, was completely opposite. She is the biggest snuggler ever, and I honestly don’t know what I would do without my slings. I would say if you have more than one child around, they are absolutely necessary. I use the carrier that I got from Mel and Dan around the house a lot with Emma. It’s nice because it is easy to put on, easily adjustable, and she can look around and move her hands. I can exercise with her in this one because it is light and breathable. She fit in it as a small newborn and will fit in it through toddler age I think. It is super comfortable. Downsides....hmmm....I seriously don’t have a real downside. I like this sling a lot and it is easy to use if you only need it for a shorter period of time. I don’t use it for longer periods of time, just because I feel like the moby is more supportive to my back since it restricts her movements.

     With Emma, I also bought a Moby wrap. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this wrap. It was especially useful when she was a tiny newborn because it just hugs the baby to you and she is completely supported. It was like I had a newborn duct taped to my body. Except it is way more comfortable than being pregnant! I still use it now when I am working with her. I live/work at a group home and sometimes need to help out with direct care. I can lift and care for other people easily when I have her in the moby wrap because she is wrapped up so snuggly to me. She falls asleep in the moby a lot. It is versatile and you can carry the baby in different positions, but I haven’t really tried another way yet because Emma is so content with the one way. The downside to this wrap is that it does have a learning curve. It can be kind of complicated at first and you have to learn how to use it for it to be beneficial to you. Once I learned and practiced putting it on several times, I was able to put it on while holding the baby without having it drag on the floor. [Mel says: Wow! I always dragged my wrap and I didn't hold the baby while I put it on, haha.] But....it did take me several attempts. Another downside is that it is WARM. very very WARM. If you are moving around with a baby strapped to you with yards and yards of fabric, it is bound to get hot, so it’s not really ideal to use it in the summer months when it is really humid. I anticipate using this sling well into Emma’s toddler years. [Mel says: once Emma hits about 25 lbs and/or gets more wiggly Jill may find that the Moby keeps getting loose and opt for a woven wrap instead.]

 

[Mel says: Emma's a bit low here, but we'll forgive Auntie Manda. Jill normally wears her "close enough to kiss".]

As far as nursing goes with these slings, I was one of those people who didn’t care who saw my boobs while I was nursing, and my boobs are way too big to be dainty and hands free. I always had to hold onto my boob with one hand while I was nursing so I didn’t really get the hang of nursing in a sling. I don’t think you could nurse in the sling that Mel and Dan gave me and be super discreet about it, but you could easily nurse in the moby if you have tiny boobs and no one would ever know.