The Sling Diaries, Sakura Bloom Slings' Babywearing Mother Manifesto

        I recently discovered something that I should have been aware of ages ago: The Sakura Bloom Sling Diaries. For those of you who are like me and have not heard of The Sling Diaries, they are a type of motherhood manifesto sponsored by Sakura Bloom Slings. About every six months or so, a new group (usually around 15 or more) of mothers and their children are chosen to contribute their photos and diary entries, one each month for a half year of their lives. 

A photo from one of The Road Is Home's diary entry for Delight.

        The diary entry may contain any number of words and may be written in any style, but must portray the overall theme as well as a monthly sub-theme, and also include pictures.. I am truly fascinated by this project, which fits me too perfectly to not audition for the next round of diarists being chosen next month. So, I have been putting together a small diary entry on courage, as per Sakura Blooms' guidelines, and I'm going to reveal a bit of it here, with you:

"Now, you reach for my face knowing it will one day be your own, and wrap your tiny limbs around me. And I feel your strength. I see your courage each day, with the trust and love that you already exhibit. You meet my gaze and smile a toothless smile. You are already so much more brave than I, and you will only continue to amaze me with your own fearlessness." -excerpt from Babywearing It Out's Sling Diary entry for Courage

        I am very excited for this opportunity andI hope that Sakura Bloom is too. This is only an excerpt of my entry and I'm only withholding the rest in order to not jinx myself, as this is an audition.
        I encourage other babywearing and especially sling-wearing mothers to audition as well, the deadline is May 1st (so very soon!) and the guidelines are on their Instagram: @lovesakurabloom. My Instagram is @babywearingitout , just in case you'd like to follow my photo adventures, and this weekend, see my full entry.

        Also happening this weekend is The Great Cloth Diaper Change, and I will be attending for my first time in Denver, Colorado tomorrow! My family is so excited not only to take part, but also to meet more parents like us in Denver. You can find a list of where you can participate tomorrow here. As always, I will have a new blog post about it up on Monday. Have a lovely weekend and tell someone how much you love them.

Why Aden and Anais Swaddle Blankets are the Ultimate Babywearing Accessory

There are a million and one ways to make use of an Aden and Anais swaddle when you have a baby, and I have started to realize that they make the ultimate babywearing accessory.

Channing Tatum here demonstrates my favorite use of and A & A blanket as a hood for a wrap, along with how to be an adorable babywearing father.

I bought my first A & A swaddle while I was still pregnant with my first, just to see what all of the hype was about. When you become involved in baby-related groups on Facebook and mommy sites, it is almost impossible to avoid the market saturation that Aden and Anais has created. Everyone and their mother (literally) seems to have a stash of these muslin and organic cotton beauties for their little one. And for good reason because, as I have learned in the first months of being a mother, You should ALWAYS keep a blanket on your person. From spit-up to cuddles, this is the ultimate light, airy all-in-one blankie. Oh, and did I mention I'm totally obsessed?

Here are my top uses of an Aden and Anais swaddle as a versatile babywearing accessory:

1. Makeshift Hood and Sunshade Most newborn carriers lack a much needed hood attachment, like the popular Moby for example. And with a newborn's sensitive skin, sunburn is to be avoided at all cost. A hood also works as a sunshade for when you snuggled baby falls asleep while babywearing and you need to be in the sun or even indoor light.
2. Nursing Cover I hear mothers everyday complaining about how hot and heavy the blanket they use to discreetly nurse in public is, and everyday those mothers are encouraged to use Aden and Anais as a substitute. I personally believe in the mantra "You don't want to see my breast when I feed my child, put a blanket on your own head", but when you are around family, or simply uncomfortable with whipping a boob out in front of people, these swaddles are your go-to cover.
3. Infant Insert Most baby carriers fit infants around twelve pounds and over (unlike wraps that adjust to fit smaller babies) and offer something called an infant insert as a kind of full-body cushion that helps a smaller child fit correctly in the carrier. However, instead of spending money on top of the actual carrier itself, an A & A swaddle, rolled as it comes in it's package and inserted between the legs of the infant for height and another behind the neck for support, works just as well and is just as safe when properly used.
4. Neck Support As mentioned in the last use, a rolled swaddle will work perfectly as a neck support in a wrap or carrier while babywearing. Especially as a newborn, babies have very little neck strength and need help holding their head steady when they are upright.
5. Bib and Drool Guard A lot more carriers nowadays are including a removable drool guard to protect the carrier's clothing from large "drool pools", as I like to call them. I have found that an Aden and Anais blanket wrapped either around the babywearer or the.... babywearee? works just as well for soaking up any fluids leaking from either person.

Now I know you're just itching to ask where you can find some of these miracle swaddles, and I'll tell you "www.AdenandAnais.com, of course!" You can also find lower prices on gently used swaddles on Facebook Buy/Sell/Trade groups.

American Baby magazine's Babywearing Safety Controversy

       

        To the untrained eye, this May cover of american Baby magazine may simply depict a modern mother wearing her infant while taking a stroll. However, the babywearing community is ablaze with talk of how incorrectly the child is wrapped. Of course, in a modeling/photo shoot environment they aren't exactly looking for the manual for the wrap in order to showcase it correctly. In fact, like most new mothers or simply new-to-babywearing mothers, it was probably just a moment of "I can do this myself". Unfortunately, this incident has made American Baby slightly less reputable as far as where they're gathering information from.

        Fortunately, the backlash from their cover caused American Baby to make a public apology which hopefully reaches those parents who are babywearing beginners and have seen the photo thinking it is the proper way to carry a baby.

        Here is the apology statement that American Baby released on Monday:

Thank you for your messages about our May cover. We love that American Baby has such well-informed fans, and we regret that the infant pictured wasn't wrapped properly. We're studying up on the technique now and will use what we learn to plan a story on baby-wearing safety in an upcoming issue. Please keep reading—and commenting on—AB!

Sincerely, 

The Editors of American Baby

        In the next issue of American Baby, they intend to include a spread about how to safely babywear, which is a great step forward and will hopefully encourage more parents to learn about how to keep their baby close. Let's just hope they include TICKS guidelines:

T– Tight, The importance of a sling or carrier being tight is to hold a baby safely against the wearer, it supports the spine in a straight-upright position and stops baby from falling out of the wrap or carrier accidentally.

I– In view at all times, Seeing your baby at all times allows you to be constantly monitoring your child’s breathing and general demeanor, you will have the ability to make sure the chin hasn’t dropped and they are happy. You will also be able to check temperature and feeding cues.

C– Close enough to kiss, This is greatly important also, as the lower the child the less you will be able to tell about your child, placed in an upright position you should be able to lower your head and kiss the top of babies head, if you are unable to do this, then it’s advised your re-position your child higher.

K– Keep chin off chest, if your child is tight, in an upright position and spine is curved with legs in the squat position the likelihood of the chin dropping is unlikely, this is the most optimum position for safety, development and comfort. The rule of thumb is a child should have a gap of roughly 2 fingers width underneath their chin.

S– Supported back, the tightness of any carrier will be crucial in the support of a babies spine, it’s also important not to over tighten. The carrier should be tight enough to keep the child against the parents body without a gap, but still have the ability to slide your hands into the carrier with ease if needed. Generally in an upright position, if the carrier is adequately supporting the spine the chin will not drop, but its important to follow all the steps carefully.

        There are many more aspects to safety when wearing your child, however these are the most basic and most crucial, if you feel unsure if your carrier supports these guidelines it is advised you seek further advise either from your local sling library, babywearing consultant, or babywearing group. Never be afraid to ask questions!

        Also, here is a side-by-side photo of a correctly wrapped infant just for kicks:

The one thing we all have in common is Mother Earth

        The one thing that everyone has in common on Earth Day, is hashtags. I mean, Mother Earth, totally meant to say that. 
        Many Earth friendly businesses celebrate Earth Day by doing giveaways or releasing new products, like gDiapers and their new Great White gPant for Earth Day 2014 :

        Or, like Apple, raised awareness for sustainability by leading by example.

        My family celebrates the prosperity of Earth each and every day by cloth diapering. The amount of waste produced by one child from birth to potty training with disposable diapers was a sacrifice of our environment that my husband and I were not willing to make. Sure, it means a few extra loads of laundry and extra measures to ensure the longevity of all products involved, but overall it is the only choice for me and my family.
        There are many steps I intend to take to be a greener in the future with my current child and those that follow:

1. Making my own baby food.

        I love Wean Green's small glass cubes as sustainable storage for homemade baby food. More and more, I see the prices of smaller pieces of tupperware rise, but with glass, storage will never have to be replaced. They easily switch over to simple snack holders for toddlers and older children too!

2. Unpaper Towels

        The unpaper towel is essentially a roll of around 12 towels snapped together placed around your ordinary paper towel holder, made with cotton terry cloth and either cotton printed fabric or stain resistant fabric and are completely washable and completely reusable. Thinking about how many paper towels my family goes through makes me a little bit sick when I'm trying so desperately to reduce our footprint. Unpaper towels were the answer to my unasked question. I never knew they existed until I started cloth diapering, and like my diapers they are both pretty and functional. But mostly... Ooooo pretty! Imagine my surprise when my husband actually agreed to use these in place of his precious paper towels! Now to convince him on "family cloth". More on that story another time...

And finally...

3. Wetbags and reuseable trash bags

        Along with unpaper towels, I never knew these beauties existed until I discovered cloth diapering. A wetbag is the go-to waste storage for a cloth diapering momma like myself and Planetwise is my favorite brand. I own a long wetbag that hangs on the wall by my changing station by a picture hook as well as a pail liner that I use for my dirty wipes. They are completely waterproof and hold in all of the lovely odors that a child can produce. They also make smaller bags for on-the-go cloth diapers and snack bags for older children.

How are you being green all year-round?