Newborn, Infant, and Toddler Wearing

In traditional cultures, baby wearing was a common practice.  For modern-day parents, having the ability to wear your baby (or toddler) has numerous benefits, including:

• Promoting closeness between child and parent
• Freeing up the parent's hands to accomplish tasks such as cooking and cleaning
• Allowing children to feel secure in new situations
• Promoting calm and well-being in the child
• Giving parents the freedom to take part in activities such as hiking, dancing, and gardening

For me, babywearing has been a necessity.  Both of my children initially had an aversion to car seats and strollers, especially my firstborn. And as is common, both of my babies have been happiest while being held. Being able to wear my children has allowed me to meet their needs while still being able to do everyday things like grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning, and gardening.  Baby wearing has also been invaluable during air travel, hiking, and sightseeing.

With the exception of the last few months of my second pregnancy, I have been wearing children several times every week (and often daily) for over four years. I use a variety of baby carriers, depending on the age of the child and what activity I will be doing.  I thought it might be helpful to share some tips for wearing children at different ages (newborns, infants, and toddlers), wearing a child while pregnant, and choosing a type of baby carrier.

Tips for Wearing a Newborn
Newborns crave closeness with their parents.  It must be quite a shock moving from the womb into the relatively quiet and still world. My favorite way to wear a newborn is in a tummy-to-tummy hold.  This hold supports the newborn very well, allowing you to easily see the baby's face and make sure their airway is not restricted (this is especially important until the baby develops proper head control). My favorite carriers for newborns are the Moby wrap and the Beco carrier. 

My daughter really loved the Moby wrap (and indeed this is hands-down the most comfortable carrier for carrying children on the front of your body because it distributes the weight very well across your whole back).  I used the Moby wrap to take my daughter for lots of walks, to go grocery shopping, and to help her settle down and fall asleep (she was colicky for the first few months).  The Moby wrap also works great if you want to try kangaroo care (skin-on-skin contact) with your baby (the Moby wrap has good coverage so you could even leave the house and no one would know you weren't wearing a top).

I'm not sure why, but my son did not particularly like being worn in the Moby wrap.  He preferred the Beco carrier, which is a structured tummy-to-tummy carrier that can also be used to carry babies on your back as they get older.  My son was especially difficult to settle down to sleep, so I used the Beco carrier with him several times every day to help him go to sleep (and I still use it occasionally if he is having a hard time going to sleep).  It also worked great for taking him on walks while pushing his sister in the stroller. The Beco carrier is definitely great for babywearing novices, because it is foolproof to use (whereas the Moby wrap takes a bit of practice to be used comfortably). 

Wearing an Infant
Once babies develop good head control, there are more options for wearing them.  Tummy-to-tummy carrying is still a great way to calm and settle infants. In addition to tummy-to-tummy carrying, infants can be worn on your hip or facing outwards on your front.  My favorite carriers for infants are the Moby wrap, ring sling, and Beco carrier (for tummy-to-tummy carrying).

Both the Moby wrap and ring sling can be used for babies who like to face outwards.  My daughter loved being able to face outwards in the Moby wrap as we went for walks, to the zoo, or on airplane trips.  It is very comfortable for long durations of baby wearing.  With the Moby wrap, I was able to wear my daughter all the way through airport security and onto airplanes (although I think the flight attendants could technically ask you to take the baby out of the carrier, I had no problems using the Moby on multiple plane trips, whereas with the Beco carrier I was always asked to remove it). 

Once both of my children had enough head control, I transitioned to using the ring sling for trips to the store and running errands. Wearing babies on your hip instead of your front gives you much more freedom to perform tasks such as grocery shopping and cooking. The ring sling is wonderful because it can be put on and taken off very quickly.  The downside of using a ring sling is that it does not evenly distribute the weight across your whole back, so it can be a little tiresome to wear for an extended period of time.     

Wearing a Toddler
Carrying children on your front gets less comfortable as they get heavier and longer.  My favorite ways to carry toddlers are on my hip (in the ring sling) and on my back (in the Beco carrier). Once babies get old enough to ride on your back, the possibilities are endless! Wearing toddlers on your back is very comfortable and completely frees up your hands to perform other tasks.  I've worn toddlers on my back for digging holes, hiking, cherry picking, and even shoveling/moving buckets of manure to the garden. 

Wearing a Child During Pregnancy 
While pregnant with my son, I was able to comfortably carry my 2-year-old daughter until I was about 6 months pregnant.  Almost as soon as I got pregnant, I noticed that the ring sling and Beco carrier were no longer comfortable to wear.  For me, the best carrier to wear while pregnant was a mei tai carrier (which is similar to a structured carrier but has long pieces of fabric to tie instead of using buckles).  I carried my daughter on my back, and I could tie the straps either below or above the baby belly for comfort.
 
What Type of Carrier Should You Buy?
With the right carrier, there is no need to buy a stroller, and I found my children to be happier in a carrier than a stroller anyway.  Deciding what type of carrier to buy will depend on what activities you are likely to do while wearing your child.  For long walks, hiking, and sightseeing, carriers that distribute the weight over both shoulders are ideal (like the Moby wrap or the Beco carrier).  The ring sling is my favorite carrier for running errands, grocery shopping, or anytime I needed to be able to quickly take the baby in-and-out of the carrier.  

Each child and parent has different preferences.  If possible, check to see if anyone you know is willing to lend you a carrier for a week or two to get a feel for which ones work best for you.  Baby carriers make great baby shower gifts, too! 
 
Do you wear your baby or toddler? What are your favorite carriers?

This post is part of Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways, Monday Mania at The Healthy Home Economist, Fight Back Friday at Food Renegade, Pennywise Platter at The Nourishing Gourmet and Real Food Wednesday with Kelly the Kitchen Kop!
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Visit Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!
Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:
(This list will be live and updated by afternoon July 12 with all the carnival links.)

• Between Love and Fear: On Raising our Children Sensibly — Mamma Earthly at Give an Earthly discusses the fear factor in parenting and how she overcame it, despite societal pressures.
• really, when do i get my cape? — Sarah at small bird on fire is a working city mama trying to learn how to set aside her expectations of perfection and embrace the reality of modern parenting.
• Baby, Infant, and Toddler Wearing — Child wearing is part of Sarah at Nourished and Nurtured's parenting philosophy. In this post, Sarah describes benefits of child-wearing and gives tips for wearing babies, infants, and toddlers (even while pregnant).
• First Year Reflections — As her daughter's first birthday approaches, Holly at First Year Reflections reflects on how she and her husband settled into attachment parenting after initially doing what they thought everyone else did.
• Making an allowance — Lauren at Hobo Mama welcomes a guest post from Sam about the unexpected lessons giving a four-year-old an allowance teaches the child — and the parent.
• How to be a Lazy Parent and Still Raise Great Kids — Lisa at Granola Catholic talks about how being a Lazy Parent has helped her to raise Great Kids.
• Philosophy in Practice — Laura at A Pug in the Kitchen shares how her heart shaped the parenting philosophy in her home.
• What is Attachment Parenting Anyway? — Gaby at Tmuffin describes the challenges of putting a label on her parenting philosophy.
• Of Parenting Styles — Jenny at Chronicles of a Nursing Mom talks about how she and her husband tailored various parenting styles to fit their own preferred parenting philosophy.
• Moment by Moment Parenting — Amy at Peace 4 Parents encourages those who care for children (including herself) to explore and appreciate parenting moment-by-moment with clarity, intention, trust, and action.
• Maintaining Spirituality in the Midst of Everyday Parenting, Marriage, and Life — Sarah at Nourished and Nurtured shares her perspective on finding opportunities for spiritual growth in every day life.
• Parenting Philosophy — Lily, aka Witch Mom's parenting philosophy is to raise child(ren) to be compassionate, loving, inquisitive, and questioning adults who can be trusted to make decisions for themselves in a way that avoids harming others.
• Long Term — Rosemary at Rosmarinus Officinalis thinks about who she would like to see her daughter become — and what she can do now to lay a strong foundation for those hopes.
• Connection, Communication, Compassion — She's come a long way, baby! After dropping her career in favour of motherhood, Patti at Jazzy Mama discovered that building solid relationships was going to be her only parenting priority.
• My Parenting Inspirations - Part 4 — Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama looks at her biggest parenting inspiration and how that translates into her long-term parenting philosophy.
• A Parenting Philosophy in One Word: Respect — Jenn at Monkey Butt Junction summarizes her parenting and relationship philosophy in one word: respect.
• Knowledge and Instinct — Kat at Loving {Almost} Every Moment believes that knowledge and instinct are super important … as are love, encouragement and respect. It's the ideal combo needed to raise happy and healthy children and in turn create meaningful relationships with them.
• THRIVE! — The Sparkle Mama wants to set a tone of confidence, abundance, and happiness in her home that will be the foundation for the rest of her daughter's life.
• On Children — "Your children are not your children," say Kahlil Gibran and Hannah at Wild Parenting.
• This One Life Together — Ariadne aka Mudpiemama shares her philosophy of parenting: living fully in the here and now and building the foundation for a happy and healthy life.
• Enjoying life and planning for a bright future — Olivia at Write About Birth shares her most important parenting dilemmas and pours out her heart about past trauma and how healing made her a better parent.
• My Parenting Philosophy: Unconditional and Natural Love — Charise at I Thought I Knew Mama shares what she has learned about her parenting philosophy from a year of following her instincts as a mama.
• An open letter to my children — Isil at Smiling Like Sunshine writes an open letter to her children.
• My Starter Kit for Unconditional Parenting — Sylvia at MaMammalia discusses her wish to raise a good person and summarizes some of the nontraditional practices she's using with her toddler son in order to fulfill that wish.
• Responsiveness — Sheila at A Gift Universe has many philosophies and goals, but what it all boils down to is responsiveness: listening to what her son wants and providing what he needs.
• Tools for Creating Your Parenting Philosophy — Have you ever really thought about your parenting purpose? Knowing your long-term goals can help you parent with more intent in your daily interactions. Dionna at Code Name: Mama offers exercises and ideas to help you create your own parenting philosophy.
• Be a Daisy — Becky at Old New Legacy philosophizes about individuality and how she thinks it's important for her daughter's growth.
• What's a Mama to Do? — Amyables at Toddler in Tow hopes that her dedication to compassionate parenting will keep her children from becoming too self-critical as adults.
• grown-up anxieties. — Laura at Our Messy Messy Life explains her lone worry concerning her babies growing up.
• Why I Used Montessori Principles in My Parenting Philosophy — Deb Chitwood at Living Montessori Now tells why she chose Montessori principles to help her now-adult children develop qualities she wanted to see in them as children and adults.
• Parenting Philosophies & Planning for the Future — Momma Jorje considers that the future is maybe just a fringe benefit of doing what feels right now.
• Not Just Getting Through — Rachael at The Variegated Life asks what truths she hopes to express even in the most commonplace interactions with her son.
• Parenting Philosophy? Eh... — Ana at Pandamoly shares the philosophy (or lack thereof) being employed to (hopefully) raise a respectful, loving, and responsible child.
• Parenting Philosophy: Being Present — Shannon at The Artful Mama discusses the changes her family has made to accommodate their parenting philosophy and to reflect their ideals as working parents.
• Who They Will Be — Amanda at Let's Take the Metro shares a short list of some qualities she hopes she is instilling in her children at this very moment.
• Short Term vs. Long Term — Sheryl at Little Snowflakes recounts how long term parenting goals often get lost in the details of everyday life with two kids.
• Parenting Philosophy: Practicing and Nurturing Peace — Terri at Child of the Nature Isle sets personal goals for developing greater peace.
• Yama Niyama & the Red Pajama Mama — Part 1: The Yamas — In part 1 of a set of posts by Zoie at TouchstoneZ, Zoie guest posts at Natural Parents Network about how the Yoga Sutras provide a framework for her parenting philosophy.
• Yama Niyama & the Red Pajama Mama — Part 2: The Niyamas — In part 2 of a set of posts by Zoie at TouchstoneZ, Zoie explores how the Niyamas (one of the eight limbs in traditional Yoga) help her maintain her parenting and life focus.
• Our Sample Parenting Plan — Chante at My Natural Motherhood Journey shares hopes of who her children will become and parenting strategies she employs to get them there.
• Philosophical Parenting: Letting Go — Jona at Life, Intertwined ponders the notion that there's no right answer when it comes to parenting.
• Unphilosophizing? — jessica at instead of institutions wonders about the usefulness of navel gazing.
• Parenting Sensitively — Amy at Anktangle uses her sensitivity to mother her child in ways that both nurture and affirm.
• how to nurture your relationships — Mrs Green at Little Green Blog believes that sometimes all kids need is a jolly good listening to …
• Philosophy Of An Unnatural Parent — Dr. Sarah at Good Enough Mum sees parenting as a process of guiding her children to develop the skills they'll need.
• Life with a Challenging Kid: Hidden Blessings — Wendy at High Needs Attachment shares the challenges and joys of raising a high needs child.
• Flying by the Seat of My Pants — Heather at Very Nearly Hippy has realized that she has no idea what she's doing.