Babywearing 101 - Information and Resources
This thread has been rebuilt from its original version. If you have links to add to the list, please send me a PM. Please feel free to reply to the thread with helpful information for parents new to babywearing! :)
Many thanks to Aija (quikeye) for creating the original thread.
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BABYWEARING RESOURCES:
http://www.thebabywearer.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/babywearing
http://groups.yahoo.com/babywearingSWAP
http://www.mothering.com/discussions...play.php?f=245
http://www.askdrsears.com/html/5/t051100.asp
Where can I buy a carrier?
Mei tai, asian baby carriers (abc)
Posted by quikeye - 02-24-2005
A mei tai, ABC, etc sling is based on the traditional asian baby carrier-- it is a rectangle sized piece of fabric with 4 long strips of fabric (straps) sewn onto the corners. That's the basic of it. The 2 straps closest to the waist are tied together while the top straps are either crossed in front or worn rucksack style (when wearing baby on your back), or crossed across your back when wearing babe on your front.
The ABCs take a little getting used to, as you have to learn to tie and get babe nicely situated inside. It takes a little more work than the pouch/single shouldered carriers, but the abc's have some great pluses:
* Many say that abc's are more comfortable, ESPECIALLY for larger babes. The abc distributes weight across your weight with the bottom straps and also across 2 shoulders instead of one like a sling.
* Babe can easily be worn on the back, freeing up your range of mobility as far as your arms are concerned. It is possible for babe to be worn on the back in a sling, but a babe on the back in an abc is securely tied in & not going anywhere.
* Since they are tie on, they have a large range of sizes-- so 2 people could wear the same carrier no problem.
A few drawbacks to the ABC style:
* Takes more getting used to than a sling, at least in my opinion. Tying is important, and I didn't feel comfortable getting it on outside of the house like I did with my pouches.
* Timing. It takes longer to physically put one on, which is a HUGE deal if you ahve a crying baby, esp one who fights you to get in. :)
* Not great for babes with little to no head control. This is solely MY opinion, as I know there are mamis who've used abc's for babes under 4 months. Mine had his head lolling around and resting/staybg still against the shoulder strap, which I didn't like. Also, young ones have to be worn with their feet tucked in against you, since they arent large enough to have their legs wrap around your torso, so it can be uncomfortable for some.
Please feel free to add anything about ABC's by replying to this post! Thanks :)
What is the best carrier for a newborn?
Posted by quikeye - 02-24-2005
What is the best carrier for a newborn?
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IMO, the best sling for a newborn is a pouch style or a ring sling; I never liked using the asian baby carriers for my little one when he didn't have head support. Wraps are also supposedly great (never used one, yet). I'll talk about the pouches & ring slings:
To decide btw them-- take a look @ the differences... There's both the look of the carrier (ring slings have rings, extra fabric; pouches are trimmer to the body but don't have the adjustability of both the rails like a ring sling does-- even though pouches are adjustable & I've found them to be adequate for me), as well as adjustability of each. And of course fabrics/materials.
The body type (over one shoulder, around the body) is pretty much the same for both-- although if you choose a RS, you'll want to read up on "shoulder styles" (will the shoulder of the RS be pleated or not, fanned, etc... if you choose a RS, you may want to find out which ones have what type of shoulder, and do a search in these forums or on another babywearing board about shoulder types)... Some pouches have a "trimmer" shoulder, meaning there is less fabric going over the shoulder cap & onto the top part of your arm-- I prefer the trimmer shoulder of my Mom and Me to the wider shoulder of the KKAFP, but that's just my opinion.
I think that with a ring sling nursing will be more discreet, if not easier as well. (Hypothetically speaking, since I haven't actually used one). A RS will have the extra tail fabric to cover you up, and you'll be able to easily loosen the RS to gain more room for babe to nurse in. I used my mom and me (MnM) for nursing but didn't quite like it-- I found it too difficult to do on a regular basis (I just take him out to nurse discreetly). But, adjusting an adjustable pouch is more difficult than adjustaing a RS-- since the snaps will be in the back. (Except the new adjustable pouch by zolowear.com ... those look cool!) I also tried nursing him in the MnM when he was only 5 weeks old-- I may have more luck now since I don't need to support his head/my breast like I used to.
Head support will be easy in both a RS & a pouch-- a pouch can be offered with "rails" (an extra, thin layer of padding around the edges of the pouch for extra support)-- I often used the rails of my MnM to hold ds' head up when ds was "sitting"/reclining in the pouch but didn't have great head control yet. I don't think RS' have rails, maybe a custom one would. But both will offer more than adequate support for a newborn's floppy head up to a hip carry for an older babe.
Both will be easy on-easy/off-easy, both will hold babe high & tight to your chest His size probably won't matter with these style of slings; for now, babe will be totally inside a sling & unless he was physically too long to be inside, I don't imagine it would be a problem for any of these.
A great article on pouches v. ring slings:
http://www.thebabywearer.com/article...sAndSlings.htm
When my son was new we used a pouch-style sling. It is really easy to use, really little learning curve, and can hold babe in a "cradle" hold that mine especially loved to sleep in (we called it the miracle pouch-- super fussy going in and sleeping within minutes.) I still love my pouches since they're so easy to get on and babe in; when I know he's going to have a meltdown I always reach for the pouches 1st (going to the ped for shots, etc...) Also when he was fussy I could just throw it on and go-- nothing to tie on.
*Some brands to look at: Mom-and-me pouch (MnM), Kangaroo korner adjustable fleece/cotton pouch (kkafp/kkacp), Hotsling, Chic Papoose, Maya wrap adjustable pouch, Tentoes pouch, Zolo adjustable pouch, Mamma's milk pouch...
A ring sling is also along the same lines, but a little different style (instead of being adjustable by snaps or zippers, a ring sling is tightened by using a metal/nylon ring where the fabric is pulled taut and can bring the size and position of the sling up.) I never took to the style/fabric of the ring slings, so I don't really know 1sthand about them... but a LOT of people love theirs.
*Zolo ring sing, Rev. Jan's ring slings, Maya wrap sling...
A wrap may be another option-- a long piece of fabric with stretch/give is wrapped around the body and babe is wrapped inside Too cute! I haven't tried one yet, but they look super supportive (necessary for a newborn's floppy head).
*Hug-a-bub, Ellaroo, Moby wrap, Didymos, Girasol, Storwichen (sp?), Rebozo (generic name)...
These all can be used past newborn-hood. We moved from our cradle hold to a semi-cradle/semi-sitting up, to kangaroo carry with the pouch. (You can make the same transition with the above slings as well, and then move on to a hip carry as well. Though I don't know how good a wrap would be for a hip carry...? Perhaps wraps are better for newer babes? Don't have one *yet* so I can't speculate...)
There's also an abc (asian baby carrier)-- I didn't use my abc until ds had some head control (4 months). When I tried him in earlier, he didn't like having to both face me and have his legs scrunched up/buddha style inside the abc-- and his head would still wobble even with the material holding his head from behind and would sometimes droop against the straps. For me I didn't like it with a new babe, but some moms/dads do like them and use them w/ new babes.
*Kozy carrier, Freehand carrier, Podegi (generic name), onbuhimo (generic name), "ABC"/mei tai (generic name)...
My suggestion is to decide what type of carrier appeals to you initially, and then decide which maker of the carrier you like. (My example-- I knew I wanted/liked pouches best by the way they looked & appealed to my personal taste, so I decided to buy a mom-and-me based on the reviews and Jen's great customer service/awesome product. I then bought a cotton pouch from chic papoose to compliment the different degrees of weather here, knowing I liked the type of carrier...) I never liked the ring slings much (too much fabric for me), so even though they are beautiful/comfortable/appropriate for a newborn thru toddler, I just never even looked @ them.
Please feel free to add anything about THE BEST CARRIER FOR A NEWBORN by replying to this post! Thanks :)
