Every Wrapper's Dream

Over the past few days something has changed in my house. No longer is it me chasing a running toddler if we are trying to leave the house, wrestling him into a wrap. Now if I take a minute to get dressed in the morning behind a closed door I hear, "back back mommy, back back." Now it is him chasing me down.

Miles has for a while now been very interested in carrying things on his back, anything from his little baby, to a fraggle or even his little cousin Elias (which tends to be a disaster). So Jesse and I are getting quite good at strapping his "baby" on to him. But truly I never thought I would see the day with my super independent boy. Yes he would gladly be wrapped and would love being up there, but never would he ask or think of it out of the blue.


So for now I will revel in these perfect moments, because I am sure they won't last long.

Confessions of a lazy wrapper

I am a LAZY wrapper. I don't like to learn new carries. I primarily use one length all day (a 3 usually) and I rotate Kangaroo (front), Ruck (back) and Robbins (hip) depending on how my body feels, what Elias needs or what we are doing. 

I check for safety, not perfection. 

A bit too much slack is fine by me (as long as it's not the top rail. See an earlier post where I learned its necessary to ensure the top rail is nice and tight for safety reasons). 

Knee to knee is a laughable goal with Elias to begin with. I can get it, but it doesn't last long - so usually I don't bother. 

A deep seat. Ha! I tuck the wrap into his pants and call it good enough. 

Moral of the story. I am a lazy wrapper! I am impatient and hasty and want to get out the door, not mess around with strand by strand tightening. 

Yet, I love wearing Elias. I do for hours everyday. So does my husband and my mother-in-law. The attachment, and closeness it offers is amazing. The ease and portability is wonderful and simple. The look/prettiness is super fun. So, to any other lazy wrappers out there, I just wanted you to know, you're not alone!

Frugal Wearing!

When I first started babywearing I wanted everything on the cheap, which if you know me now, I don't think you would ever guess that. But truly, most of my babywearing items have come "on the cheap". So here are a few ways that you can save some money when babywearing that I have used.

Homemade Mei Tai $45

After finding a second hand Ergobaby Carrier, much under retail, that didn't really work for me, I then began my quest on the search for the perfect baby carrier. The one that lasted for most of Miles' first year was a homemade Mei Tai. It was lovely, reversible with two beautiful quilting cotton prints and gray straps. Absolutely nothing fancy, but it fit me and it was comfortable. It cost $45 dollars for all of the fabric, thread and padding. And really if I had used a more grippy fabric for the straps, I probably
would have stuck with it.

Size 5 Girasol Chococabana $90

But I did use the fabric I did, so it left me looking for a more comfortable option. So I knew it was time to take the leap into woven wraps. The first wrap I purchased is a great starter option. I bought a well used Girasol, size 5. It was lovely, perfect to start with because it wasn't grippy, making tightening easy, and it had different coloured stripes, so it was easy to not get the wrap twisted. But above all it was $90 shipped to Canada from the US, and when I was done with it I was able to sell it for the exact same amount. So it went to another newbie wrapper.

Size 2 Didymos Indio Karibik $90

Something that I have been doing a lot lately to save money, is buying a wrap that is too big and cutting it to the size I want. Buying a size 7 or 8 can get you two short wraps, or a mid-length wrap and a ring sling piece. You then keep the part you want and sell the rest, for what it is worth. You could even sell just a piece of a wrap, there will most likely be someone looking to buy it. I have saved a ton of money doing this, because I am quite small, so I never want the longest wraps, but I can always cut and sell the rest, making the wrap I want a bit cheaper.

Hoppediz Osaka Size 8 ....to be determined the cost to me :)

Size 4 100% Linen DIY $30

The other frugal option I have used, is DIY wraps. And there are lots of different options for this one. The most popular is using Osnaburg fabric, it is sturdy, natural materials and not a huge cost. But once you are getting in to the longer sizes, the price is coming very close to what my steal of a deal Girasol was, so really it is about weighing your options. 

For me the only time I have done a DIY wrap is this past trip to Estonia. I wanted to get some fabric there to use as a wrap as a souvenir from our first trip with Miles. I bought two, a 100% linen and 65% linen and 35% cotton, total cost for two wrap $46. The cotton blend is breaking in really nicely, whereas the linen one still needs a lot of work. This is one thing to be wary about when making a wrap, that you need to be able to work with the fabric, I would never recommend the 100% linen that I bought to a newbie wrapper, it is just too difficult to work with. I feel that it would be discouraging, and they would think wrapping isn't for them. So just be aware if you are looking to go down this route, that the cheapest option isn't always best option.

Size 2/3 DIY Cotton/Linen blend $16 

Leg Straighteners? We Feel Your Pain!

Elias is a leg-straightener. No, that doesn't do it justice, he's a jumper. Since he was teeny, all he wants to do is jump. He is standing now, not walking so much as jumping (and falling). 

My message to the people - 

Group 1 - For all you moms who feel my pain, HI, *internet waves*. 

Group 2 - For all you moms who don't believe in "leg-straighteners", "leaners", "standers" and "jumpers" - don't be so overconfident in your own techniques to discredit a mum and her own acrobatic experiences! Honouring and trusting that each of our experiences are both shared and unique is usually a good place to start. Jamie is a GREAT wrapper. She doubted me at first, but time and time again that boy of mine put her in her place, just as she thought she had wrapped him into his place. 

Jamie has a lot of great strategies for dealing with Elias' squiggly ways. I'll let her elaborate- but the wiggle proof back carry really does work. 

First I need to say, most leg straightening is a phase, that can last a long time. 

There are a few strategies people teach dealing with this situation. The technique of "waiting it out", is a good one. It is where you get your baby on your back and hold the top rail tight, you then wait a few moments to let you baby settle down and then it is easier to get them in a nice deep seat. With this technique, when teaching I think it is important to remember that it doesn't work with every baby and being hard lined in this way of teaching can make a Mum not feel confident in her wrapping abilities.

Because sometimes Mums with the wiggly babies need a wiggle-proof carry, a carry that will make it impossible for a seat to be popped. And there is no shame in that, you are still a good wrapper even if you have to do a wiggle-proof carry.

So if your baby falls into the latter category, here are some wiggle-proof carries to peruse.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1u4ZL_vipGs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyuYAmWbex8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2t1USXvB6TQ 

No Stroller Necessary!

Top to Bottom: Argus Revo 2, Indio Karibik 2, Kalejdoskop Lila 5, Penumbra Shadow 2, Vatanai Solsbury 4

I am going photo bomb the heck out of this post, because my husband took some lovely photos! So I will start with the writing, so it doesn't get too jumbled.
If you haven't read previous posts, I will catch you up. I was a bit worried before we set off on a two week journey to Tallinn, Estonia for a friend's wedding that consisted of 2 planes each way which meant traveling for 24 hours. We were also going to be in a foreign place and I wasn't sure what the napping situation would be. But then I considered the hassle of lugging a stroller everywhere and the choice was made, no stroller for us.

It took a while to consider what I was bringing and for a while I settled on four. These are the reasons:

Artipoppe Argus Revo 3 meters, this is because this wrap is amazing all around for me. It is my perfect size, in between a 2 and 3. It is the softest wrap in existence I am pretty sure. And it looks awesome as a scarf when my toddler wants down.

Didymos Indio Karibik 2.5 meters, this came because it is a great beach wrap and it is the only wrap I can rebozo in, because it is short. Plus it is so squishy!

Linuschka Kalejdoskop Lila 4.2 meters, this came because I figured when I need to wrap and walk for hours, the 100% linen would be amazing in the heat. (and it was)

Vatanai Solsbury 3.6, this came because it is like a second skin to me, the perfect wrap for front sleepy snuggles and a go-to to get a good carry.

That was it and yes it is excessive, but I think I have been clear that I am a wrap addict. Then suddenly a new wrap had to be added, a last minute purchase (oops my wrap addict is showing).

Pavo Penumbra Shadow 2.7 meters, this had to come for three reasons, one: it was new and exciting (I got it the day before we left), two: it was the only wrap that matched the outfit I was wearing to the wedding we were going to and three: it has some pretty amazing reviews on its wrapping qualities.

So five it was, and man I don't regret bringing that many at all. Revo was probably used the most because it was thin and airy for the heat, but provided lovely support. Karibik was beat up a bit on the trip, it was used to tie to high chairs, as a beach blanket and rocked the rebozo and ruck. Lila was everything I wanted it to be, I can attribute my lack of sweat on a few days to it. Solsbury was comfy and cosy as it always is and it looked great with one of my outfits. And Shadow was all and more I was hoping, I used it on both travel days. That meant it was consistently worn for 24 hours straight and my shoulders and back could not thank Pavo enough, there are no words for how amazing this wrap is.

As for being stroller free it was perfect, at no point did I feel I was missing it, in fact I really have no idea how we would have traversed the cobble stones of Old Town, Tallinn in it. Babywearing saves the day yet again!

First wrap nap of the trip, on the ferry to Vancouver from Victoria

This kind of sleeping didn't last the whole way, I could have used it at hour 7 on our 10 hour plane ride.

We made it, and on the first outing I used not one but two of my five wraps!

I forgot to pack the Mei Tai for my husband so this is his foray into wrapping, I must say he killed the kangaroo!

Look at those sleepy eyes!!

Shadow got lots of love!

Nothing better to comfort a sad toddler than a little wrapping!

Dressed up babywearing!!

Miles accompanied me as I read a poem at the wedding!

Tightest chest pass I think I have ever gotten! I love Revo so much!

These are the smoothest of the cobbles, so a stroller didn't stand a chance!

Nothing better than this!

International wrap meet-up, no matter where you are there is always one person to geek out with. In this case just one.

The benefit to wrapping a toddler, is when they inevitably want to walk, your wrap fits in a bag and you can hold their hand and enjoy it, instead of pushing a stroller!

There was a lot of sleeping like this!

Too Hot for Buckles

So we are back home and ready to post away, today Rhianna is going to talk of her travels in the heat!

To start out on the right foot, let me acknowledge to the masses that I don't do well in heat. I sunburn with 75 sunscreen on. When I lived in Melbourne I spent a day under the bed dying as it was the coolest spot in our house. When we went to Mexico I spent days indoors in air conditioning and nights outdoors, if I could help it. So with this in mind, we headed to Hawaii a couple weeks ago. 

Not a huge surprise that it was too hot for me. But that's not the reason for this post. It seems a lot of people talk about blends being good for summer etc. I thought some might find my opinions useful (keeping in mind that I'm on the extreme end of spectrum). 

Lesson 1/Buckles: I brought the SSC thinking it would be cooler. False. I found the weight of it and the bulkiness to be just as hot as anything else and a bit too cumbersome for my too hot brain. 

Lesson 2/Wrap Sizes: long wraps were not an option. Single layer carries only, meaning short wraps only. 

Lesson 3/Blends: I think the carry is far more important than the blend. I had a thin cotton, thicker cotton and 100% linen wrap. The difference between these three choices were quite minimal. I do think weight made a slight difference as I preferred my linen option over the thicker cotton. 

My humble verdict: If you are like me and meant for more chilly climates, and you're worried about a trip or the summer heat and babywearing, I would take a short wrap (for me that's a 3). I would be less fussed with fiber and more fussed with the density of the weave (does it feel like it will be breathe). And lastly, just know that despite all of this, I was still really hot. 

SWEATING at 9 am the first day. Ruck was definitely the preferred carry for the week. 

  Ruck, 100% linen

I didn't love a front carry in the heat, but trying to get him to nap on my back can be difficult. Almost as difficult as trying to get him to leave his hat in...

This photo is special because Elias had officially been on the outside as long as the inside! No rave reviews for buckles in the heat though.