Category Archives: Babywearing
Googly Eyes
The things I googled today–
- postpartum hair loss
- “the language of the brag”
- placenta teddy bears (because people have totally lost their minds)
- postpartum hair loss prevention
- acorn squash recipes
- drops like stars
- Great Lake Swimmers
Highlights of the day–
- Celebrating with Natalie at her blessingway
- Getting to eat a piece of cake by Makesha
- Visiting with friends
- Lunch with my parents
- Eating crusty bread with butter. Loads of butter
- Having a sweet, sleeping baby tied to me
- Driving 10 miles without Cedar crying (she likes B93.7 so I cranked it)
Lowpoints of the day–
- Cedar screaming as I sat down to lunch with my parents
- Crying as I unsuccessfully try to calm Cedar
- Being jealous of everyone who doesn’t have a baby tied to them
- Thoughts of simply driving away toward the mountains as Scott drove home with the girls
- Listening to B93.7
My Many Colored Days
Babywearing while eating = check
Dropping cereal on baby’s head = check
Eating cereal that was dropped on baby’s head = check
Babywearing while loading the dishwasher = check
Close baby’s dangling feet in the dishwasher door = check
Babywearing while pumping = check
Babywearing while going to the bathroom = check
Babywearing while sweeping, making bread, doing laundry = check
Babywearing while blogging = check
Change a diaper = check
Nurse the baby = check
Smile at the baby in the bouncy seat for 10 minutes = check
Babywearing begins again = check
What have been your more memorable babywearing moments?
Different as night and day
Night: Cedar is a dream when it comes to nighttime parenting. She nurses to sleep around 10pm. Then she wakes at 3am and nurses lying beside me. She wakes again at 6am for more food. And I believe her deepest sleep happens between 6:30am and 9:30am. She does not have crying fits at night. She only grumbles a bit for food when she wakes.
Day: There are Crying Fits. She will not nap lying down. So I wear her in the wrap which wears me out! My body hurts after wearing a baby for most of the day. I’ve tried to stealthily lie down and carefully untie the wrap in bed. She wakes in a Crying Fit. Our day goes like this:
Eat
10 minutes of smiley time in the bouncy seat
Crying Fit
Wrap while walking/bouncing for 15 minutes
Sleep in wrap for 2-3 hours
10 minutes of smiley time
Diaper change
Crying Fit
Eat
Repeat.
The WORST part is that she hates the carseat. So I don’t want to go anywhere because my sweet baby will be screaming in the backseat. And no, she will not take a paci. So far. We’re 30 minutes from everywhere. Any tips for carseat peace? I’ve tried white noise and rolling the windows down and different music styles. I even tried Rush Limbaugh. But then I was screaming.
I look forward to nights.
2.50 plus tax
That is what I paid for my favorite wrap. I love when people stop me at the store to ask where I got “that.” And I say, “Well, it is just a long piece of cloth!”
Here is how you can make your own long piece of cloth:
- Go to the fabric store.
- Pick out some jersey knit fabric (I found it for 1.00/yd).
- Buy 5 or 6 yards depending on your size.
- When you get home, cut it in half vertically.
- Give one half away as a gift to a pregnant friend.
- Now you have a wrap. The edges of jersey knit roll so don’t bother sewing the edges.
Seriously, I do not know how moms of newborns function without a wrap. It is my number 1 ranked mom gear. I can hold and bounce a fussy Cedar in my arms and she will continue to fuss. But if I put her in a wrap, she almost always settles immediately into sleep and I can write thank-you notes or wash diapers. Or blog. The added perk is that after 15 minutes or so in the wrap, she is in a deep enough sleep that I can usually unwrap her and lay her down.
Want to learn how to use a wrap? Come to our next babywearing group or google instructions online.
Smothering
My first negative babywearing comment this time around:
I’m at the grocery store wearing a snuggly sleeping newborn in a moby wrap (as shown here by Scott). A concerned citizen approaches me.
Concerned Citizen: “I hope you’re not smothering that baby.” (heavy emphasis on “hope”)
Me: (chuckle) “No, I’m not.” Great comeback, huh?
Concerned Citizen: “Well, I hope not.”
I wish I’d said “I hope you’re not going to eat all the junk food in your grocery cart.”
Postpartum: the good, the bad, and the ugly
Having survived my first day alone with a 3 year old and a newborn, I am–if not settling into–at least, accepting my new normal.
Here are some highlights from my first two weeks:
Husband: Aside from being the best birth partner on the planet, Scott played host to our visitors, cleaned house, had special daddy/daughter dates with Norah, brought me 156 million cups of Mother’s Milk Tea, made delicious breakfasts, and was the all-around hero of the story.
Family: My family is incredible. They have fed me, cleaned my house, and picked up strange items I needed at obscure places (my mom went all over Greenville searching for myrrh, no-sugar added coconut water, and vegetarian capsules). And check out the wonderful cloth wipes my mother-in-law sewed. Yes, she embroidered “Cedar” on them. I bet I have the only personalized bum wipes in town.
Friends: I knew my friends were wonderful but wow! First, this food chain idea is the best.postpartum.gift. EVER. Period. We’ve been supplied with a delicious meal every night–beginning with mom bringing our traditional Sunday feast over after the birth. I’ve had friends drive 45 minutes to an hour to bring a meal! It has blown me away. And Cassandra drove from the far side of the world to give me a day-after acupuncture treatment! Spoiled. Utterly spoiled. And Scott keeps saying, “Wow, you have great friends!” Yes. Yes, I do.
Placenta: When Carey heard I had more bleeding than expected, she swooped into action to arrange for my placenta to be encapsulated by our friend Crystal. I had wanted to do this but felt I would be too busy with my “galactagogue plan” to take time to do it myself. The placenta is rich in nutrients, vitamins, and hormones that can assist the body in recovering. And many people believe that it can prevent or lessen the effects of postpartum depression. In some studies, it has shown an 86% success rate in increasing milk supply. So bring on the placenta.
Diapers: Having never cloth diapered a newborn (we started late with Norah), I have been pleasantly surprised at how smoothly that has gone. She hasn’t worn any disposables. I was worried the meconium would stain. It didn’t. I had two grassy green stains (from the chlorophyll supplement I’m taking) that disappeared after I put the dipes in the sun for a few hours. Magic.
Breastfeeding: This one is a day-by-day. I had breast reduction surgery 12 years ago. There have been days I supplement an ounce or so with donated breastmilk based on signs from Cedar and her weight. I’m using a syringe and feeding her with it while she is latched and actively nursing. I prefer this method to the SNS. I weigh her almost daily with the same scale we used at birth. I definitely have more milk than I did with Norah. It takes two weeks for domperidone to reach maximum effectiveness so I’m hopeful my supply will continue to increase. I increased my domperidone dosage from 90mg/day to 120mg/day this week. Unfortunately, the domperidone causes horrible headaches and the only thing that helps is a cup of coffee. Do I give my child caffeine so that I can continue to make milk? Yep. I’ve been reading that the headaches fade with time. So we’re still in a wait-and-see place. But I’m hopeful. And regardless, I know I’ve done everything I could. I feel really positive.
Babywearing: Hoorah for wearing babies! Cedar loves being worn. So far, the Maya ring sling and the Moby wrap have been her favorites. I didn’t expect to use the ring sling much since I prefer wraps. I would have gotten a prettier sling. I’m disappointed that she doesn’t like the My BabyNest. But that is why I have so many products–she might like it next week…
In other news, I’ve been pooped on 4 times and peed on 3 times. I’ve realized I need more nursing tanks. I spend most of my day nursing. I’m writing this blog entry with a sleeping baby snuggled to my chest in a Moby wrap. I love it.
Advanced Prehistoric Babywearing
I know, I know. The title sounds oxymoronic.
You might remember that my toddler loves for her dinosaurs to babywear. See last year’s post.
Today, we were startled to discover the baby torture device carrier she rigged for her long neck. If you look closely, the mother dinosaur is wearing three babies using a headband, two ponytail holders, and a carabiner.
Not that I Ever Use Motrin
When I first heard that Motrin was bashing babywearing, I thought the momsphere was overreacting. And since I apparently don’t have some component installed on my computer that would let me view the commercial online, I put it out of mind.
Then. Then, I read the transcript for motrin’s “I mean, in theory, it’s a great idea” commercial. Are you serious? Insensitive on so many levels. Don’t companies realize that it is never a good idea to question parenting choices? Nothing makes women angrier than someone (especially a corporation) questioning their choices. Motrin actually has a computer animated mom saying that even though babywearing hurts, it makes her “look like an official mom.” Good grief.
For the record, lugging the heavy carseat carrier = backache.
Using a simple piece of woven cloth to support my baby in my arms = sanity.
By the way, women have known this little ”theory” for hundreds of years. Long before motrin…
Psst…want to see more pictures of mamas and papas sporting comfortable carriers? Check out our local babywearing group’s gallery.
ETA: Thanks to a massive backlash, motrin has removed the ad. It will still run in ads that have already been printed. If you want to see the fuss and missed the motrin.com link, find it here on youtube.
The Rebozo Way
Early in our marriage, Scott gifted me with a lovely sarong from his sojourn in Canada. I’ve used it as a skirt and as a swimcover. It found a new use when I became a babywearer. While caring for my 7 month old cousin yesterday, I pulled it out again. Most of my carriers are loaned out right now so the sarong was my best bet. He fell asleep in only a few minutes. You can see instructions here.
Meanwhile, check out that vein in my arm! My midwife-in-training friend is already eyeing my veins for clinical practice. Yikes, that one is a monster.
