Ann Arbor Babywearers, Spring Fun Together!

They grow so fast. this is Julian by Didymos

Companionship is a wonderful reason to come to Ann Arbor Babywearers!

Happy guys in a Maya Tie Brand  Mei Tai

Teaching and Helping each other is a passion for some of us.  Everyone at Ann Arbor Babywearers is a teacher with something to offer, but the certified Volunteer Babywearing Educators are there especially to help with learning back carries.

Success is so awesome

5 Holunder-Aqua Indios by Didymos, worn 5 different ways left to right, 5 years old in a re-enforced Rucksack carry, 9 months old in a ruck tied tibetan, 2 years old in a double hammock, 20 monthsish in a DRS2S, and another 20ish months little girl with a pony tail, in a double hammock tied at the side.

Renee is mastering all of her advanced skills and is doing an amazing job teaching others. She will soon be testing to become a VBE I think, making her an official group leader, though like many at our meetings, she has been helping and teaching for months.  Its a parents helping parents atmosphere.

Trying out our group Sleeping Baby productions ringsling with Kyle’s help.

BB Slen Paprika is beautiful on these ladies, right? They were just trying wrapping and I think they are in love.

Here is a typical post meeting packing up crazy moment. I spy and Onya Outback Carrier!  Its the most welcome new addition in our library.

And last but certainly not least, Miles, our beautiful Elephant Ears own Baby of the year. Thanks to his mama for letting me wear him through a blissful lunch  We cant wait for him to come to work with his mama tons this summer!

A Picture Song of all of the Twin Baby Nursing/Babywearing Positions I Have Ever Seen

I wanted to collect and keep in a single post pictures of twins nursing and nursing while babywearing.  Everything I’ve ever seen work for anybody during my time working with twins and twin parents.  Check back at the permanent sticky page at the top of the blog for updates!  Twins are a special gift with tons of success to be found in the challenge of raising two babies at once.

The first position I have seen work very often is called the “laid back” position. It is great in bed with pillows for support or as shown here in a glider, using the arm rests for support and with the footrest up.

Gravity works for you as it holds the baby to you and the pulling is reduced because baby is no longer fighting gravity to hold their head up. Baby feeds more upright reducing gas intake, and head support is provided by the sides of moms arm. mom should be well supported and relaxed, able to fully enjoy nursing.

Little boy is cross cradled and little girl is in a bit of a football hold. this one is good with littler babies.

Babies 5 months and up can often sit up and nurse while facing mom, sometimes holding the breast themselves

Here a Ringsling is helping me burp an hold one baby while nursing the other. The large Dutalier Cadenza really helps support all of this tandem nursing activity.

Here I am nursing one while wearing another in a Monte Grano Glider. My sling is an Elephant Ears exclusive Girasol.  I tucked the tail of the ringsling out of the way to reveal the baby and the nursing position , but the tail is great for coverage if you desire it.

Here I am using the sling for one baby, and getting her latched on while little boy waits for a minute.

Now baby boy joins in, and the sling allows you to relax and occasionally adjust a latch or a foot or grab a swig from a water bottle.

Here we are with a baby in a high rucksack carry on my back in a woven wrap. The scenario for this baby is, she just ate and now is thinking about falling asleep.  I put her on my back in a wrap and now I am hands free to feed and tend to her brother.

Say that the baby on your back got antsy and wouldnt let you sit there and nurse. you can step into a ringsling, spread it over the back over the babe, and load baby 2 on the front and you can nurse while walking around and swaying to soothe the baby on your back.  There is a video instructional for this move in my twin link on the sidebar.

Make sure if you are going to use a pillow to nurse, that it brings the baby all the way up to your breast level, not forcing you to hunch over. I’m not a big fan of nursing pillows, but I am a big fan of variety. It can be nice to have at the begining to use as shown, when the babies are really little to do a double football hold. Babies have their feet pointing back toward the back of the chair, fully supported on the U shaped pillow. A nursing pillow like this Little Star or 2 regular bed pillows will really help with this. Most Moms of twins that I go to are not finding their pillow to be helpful for very long. I actually have taken 3 various pillows away at the mothers request this year on home visits because the mothers felt they were totally unused.  I think it really depends on who you are.

I hope to continue to build this resource as I walk my path helping many moms of multiples along my way.  Please feel free to comment and I will post pictures of any new positions as the surface.

Tandem Nursing is an amazing adventure.  I am so glad to have walked this path, though not as a mom of twins, as a mom of children close in age, and I hope to support anyone on this journey, or hoping to be.

Happy Wearing!

Becca

The Great Cloth Diaper Change – April 21st, 2012

For those of you that dont know what The Great Cloth Diaper Change is, please read the details here: http:\www.thegreatclothdiaperchange.com

Elephant Ears was an official host and we were so proud to be raising awareness about cloth diapers and trying to make the record books!

Before The Great Cloth Diaper Change, set up and roped off,  in the baby registry department of Elephant Ears.

 

So many wonderful families came from all over to participate, and Liz, our cloth diaper specialist worked hard at making sure everyone had an appropriate diaper and a safe place to change their baby.

Before the change everybody holds up their diaper!

Afterwords, all of the bums are squishy and cute.

Lots of activity means tuckered out babies.

Zephyr fell into that category.

This beautiful mamas was wearing a Beco butterfly. Her bub was so happy in there!

 

Thank You to everyone who signed up and made The Great Cloth Diaper Change at Elephant Ears an amazing and fun event!

 

 

 

 

The ABC Show, April in Las Vegas

In April I attended the Las Vegas ABC (All Baby and Child) Conference/Trade Show.  It was so wonderful to see our vendors and meet with some of the wonderful members of the BCIA (Baby Carrier International Alliance).   It was wonderful to have a meeting discussing how to safely sell baby carriers.

I really enjoyed all of the time we had with the Onya Baby Family as well!  They are such groovy wonderful innovative people!  3 Cheers for Babywearing Taking Over the World!!

I saw this beautiful mama and baby in their babyhawk outside in between the educational sessions.

The Executive Director of the BCIA Vesta Garcia did an excellent job introducing the retailers to the basic principles of babywearing safety, with help for her beautiful model in a Maya Wrap Ringsling.

Thank you to the wonderful panel of retailers who were their to answer product specific questions.

I stood up for a moment and talked about how to tell if a baby was properly positioned and breathing freely. Thanks so much Vesta for the wonderful opportunity.

There was a ton of this for most of a day.

Tons of this networking jibber jabber in the evenings. I got this pic from a photographer they had hired to be at the ACB Conference.

And a little Trade Show fun at the end. This play yard by Joovy is pretty big and purple, eh? The unconventional shape made it very big inside.

Look Who’s Home!!!

Thats Right!  Quick Update!!

Look who has been home for a few days now and came in with his beautiful family to see us at Elephant Ears!

 

Now that one brother is home from the NICU, these parents are focused on the three of them helping his twin brother pull all of his strength together and join him at home.

All of us involved in this journey, would just like to say, that Babywearing has been such a gift during the transition from hospital to home.

Please send all of the thoughts and comfort that you have to spare – to little baby twin brother, who is still to come home to his family.

My your healing be swift.

 

The Baba Sling – Its a Ringsling With a Buckle Instead of a Ring!!

I have finally got my hands on a new sling called The Baba Sling.   And let me tell you, it is pretty cool.  I’m not about to chuck out my ringslings as I really enjoy the on the fly adjustability of the rings on front.  However the Baba Sling is really great and totally useable in all of the proper positions and adjustable and safe.  It is perfect for someone who wants a very simple clean look and a fast hip or front carry, and doesn’t mind getting used to setting up their sling in advance and just like any carrier with a buckle, adjusting it between users.  I had a  wonderful time playing with it with my friends 4 week old baby and I found it fully adjustable and wonderful when used according to directions.  See the video links below for the little baby and how he looks in The Baba Sling.

Kyle and I  agree it is comfy. But for us, since we are dye hard ringslingers, its hard to get used to the adjustments being on the back. It is best used by setting it up before you put it on and put the baby in.  Check out the video below on how to adjust it and load the baby.

Here is the link to my new set of videos on how to adjust and use a baba sling with a 4 week old baby.  They are now found in the ringsling section of my videos.

http://s391.photobucket.com/albums/oo353/morse_family/babywearing%20instructional%20videos/Ringsling%20Instructional%20Videos/?action=view&current=M4H01525.mp4

and one on how to take the baby out!  It’s really fast and  easy!

http://s391.photobucket.com/albums/oo353/morse_family/babywearing%20instructional%20videos/Ringsling%20Instructional%20Videos/?action=view&current=M4H01526.mp4

Here is Zephyr, looking beautiful in this red sling from Daniel at The Baba Sling UK. Thank you Daniel!!!

Sometimes in rising to meet a challenge, we find deeper love than ever before.

Each baby and parent combo is totally unique and special to me.  Each one is a challenge weather it be physically, logistically, or as in this story, emotionally.  Each family is a joy in my life that brings me a gift of experience so I can better serve the next one I encounter.  I think last week on this visit, my heart grew a little bit bigger.

This story is about beautiful twin boys, born early (around 26 weeks) who have been in the NICU, and the warrior parents by their side.

Lately I had the experience of working with a wonderful family who's babies were in the Brandon NICU Unit in University of Michigan Hospital. They called me up to help them master their wrapsody wrap with one of their babies, who is soon to be going home for the first time

For these parents of 2 preemies, the first taste of parenthood wasn't at all like they dreamed, and yet they have risen to meet their challenge with such grace. Mama is pumping here after a great session of breastfeeding, and daddy is topping big boy off with a bottle. As these little guys approached their 40 week gestational mark this guy was 7'9" this day.

Good Job to all! Mommy, Daddy and Brandon NICU Nurses and Doctors, look at those cheeks!!!! Mom and Dad were anxious to wrap. The both had purchased Wrapsody wraps before the birth and had attended Ann Arbor Babywearers in preparation to wrap their boys. On this day we could only wrap one baby, and our main goal was to take him over to visit his brother and to have some family time. Our other stated goal was to get both parents comfortable with their wraps and snuggling with their baby.

Mom went first, in Wrapsody Jandrea. We all agreed that she felt secure and relaxed in a front wrap cross carry, (as much as was possible) and the suggestion of daddy wanting to try was put off to later. I have noticed sometimes in my work with parents of preemies, that Babywearing can be a great way to help give the parents, often for the first time, the feeling and experience that they expected parenting to bring to them. A taste of having things be "normal" or as they expected, even for just a while.

As soon as we were done relishing in how awesome it felt to be wrapped up together, we took him to visit his brother. Mama said how nice it was to be able to hold both her babies as close as possible at the same time. It was a magic time as we all focused our energy and love on this little boy who needs our thoughts. Many nurses were following and watching us, they were all so loving and helpful.

Daddy finally convinced mommy that it was a good time to switch. Mom had a nice long talk into that isolette about how it was time to heal up really strong and come out to us, because mommy and daddy expected to have 2 babies to wrap, and he was so wanted and loved!!!

Daddy explaining to the nurses how the wrap feels and why he loves it. They were so interested, and more nurses were behind me watching.

We just popped his monitor down through the wrap and poked it out the bottom and wrapped over it. It worked really well

I brought them a ringsling as well, just to play with, and i gave them a little lesson and left it there for them to use, just in case they needed another tool in their belt.

Babywearing was a high point in these parents day, I think we all agreed on that before I left. Mama was right with both her boys, up close and I could tell that her spirits were lifted.

I am wishing with all of my heart, that everyone who reads this will send a thought out to this family.  This is their wish, that and to share the gift of babywearing with other parents that are on this type of  journey that might feel that it could help them.

Thank you so much to this  Mama and Daddy for sharing your family’s brave story with us.  Our goal was to show how beneficial babywearing can be in a NICU setting at the right moments.

I will update on this family as it is available.  But for now, Send your good thoughts and prayers.

Babywearing With Becca and Attachment Parenting International, API Downriver/Detroit

Last week I had the honor of going down to talk a little bit about babywearing health and safety at API Downriver/Detroit.  It was so much fun to meet new mamas who are excited about babywearing and being close to their little ones!

We were at a wonderful location called The Guidance Center. It was an amazing facility!

Their leader was a beautiful sweet patient mama. She fell in love with a Scootababy, pretty much as soon as I arrived.

These mamas had all kinds of beautiful carriers, and tons of wonderful questions! This mama had an Easycare #1 Ringsling by Sleeping Baby Productions, and wanted to try it on her back.

We had wild success. These Mamas were so into trying new things! Ringsling Back Carry is actually the first video I made, with a little baby Judah and it was fun to teach it again

This beautiful mom-to be gravitated toward a ringsling. This one is Rastamama Girasol, my very favorite. Then we all started in on the ring sling love!

Ringslings are still awesome past the age of 1. So snuggly!!!

This mama had this beautiful Earthy Rainbow Sleeping Baby Productions ringsling, but wasn't happy with it when she walked in to the meeting. Tweaking how you use your ringsling ever so slightly, can change how you feel about it entirely. These 2 were in heaven after a few tips. Check out my video series on ringslings on the sidebar if yours is giving you trouble

Did I mention that I had such a great time with all of these smart interesting mamas? I can't wait to go back downriver and see them all again!

The Amazing Things I See At Ann Arbor Babywearers/Babywearing International of Ann Arbor.

The experience of sharing babywearing in a peer to peer helping environment is amazing.  Watching parents help eachother, with unique, yet universal problems, in their own personal way, is really inspiring and wonderful to see.

Beautiful sling, mama, and baby , right?

This is our library TaylorMade mei tai, and some happy ladies inside!!

Everybody needs help. Even Yours Truly. Thanks Dayna (in geckos negev by didymos)

4 months old in an Infant Adjustable Kinderpack with a mesh solerveil panel for keeping cool in the summer.

Everybody comes to learn. Moms, Dads, Grandparents, Expecting parents, Aunts, Uncles, and Caregivers.

KIds of all ages need babywearing for all kinds of reasons. Comfort, transportaion, safety, and Fun! Just to name a few! Green Wool Fish is great for big kid wrapping

 

I love this Proud nursing mama in Robins hip carry in a Zara Ocean by Ellevill

 

I love this carry!! (robins hip like the picture before) check it out in my wrap videos link on the sidebar This is Natibaby orange linen Sweetplace.

Beautiful excecution of a Robins hip carry, in a Jade Brown Dyed by sweet overseas mama. Perfect for these two awesome people! I love how this carry keeps the baby a bit out of the way but they are still right in front of you for easy monitoring

These two beautiful ladies got snuggled in nice and comfy in their Sakura Bloom Double Silk Ringsling

I think that they were really truly happy and at peace in there.

Sweet 2 week old heaven in a Sleeping Baby Productions Ringsling in single layer linen.

Boba carrier for a Nap, 7 months old, yummy fingers

Beautiful Mama, and 16 month old boy-girl twins in their wrap converted mei tai with hybrid straps.

Perfection in a Moby Wrap at 3 weeks old.

Chatting hands free without chasing anyone around It's amazing when you think about it.

Cotton Striped Katja by Didymos

Snuggling under 2 months old in Sleeping Baby productions linen ringslings

By the end of Ann Arbor Babywearers we always have happy parents and sleeping babies. Everyone has always learned a little something from someone in attendance to help them along their parenting journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Home Visits For Parents of Multiples With Becca. Babywearing, Breastfeeding, Problem Solving, Logistics, and Loving Support.

 

Parents Who are blessed with multiples have special challenges.  They are exciting and fun challenges though, and Babywearing can be a big help when it comes to fighting off the post partum blues, breastfeeding, getting two babies to sleep at the same time, Feeding one while burping the other, and getting chores done around the house to name a few.  People call me for help with these things and I have answers.  Over time I have developed many techniques of working with multiple infants to help parents accomplish the goals that they have in mind.

This mama contacted me with goals of wearing 2 babies at once. She is a mama of triplets and a 3 year old girl and she was looking to be able to use her hands again around her house, while still meeting all of her children's needs.

We put on her a meitai on the back with a ringsling over the whole thing. This is one of my favorite combinations

Here she is in 2 Mei Tai Carriers. I put baby girl in a carrier on my front while we talked about the pro's and Con's of different carriers. She fell asleep, and for a moment, we had 3 sleeping triplets. This big sister was very noise sensitive and was thrilled with our accomplishment. as was mama.

The Beautiful Twin Mama had her boys nursing happily one at a time, and many carriers that she wanted help with. I demonstrated her Wrapsody Wrap, her Sakura Bloom Ringsling and Her Babyhawk mei tai for her while she nursed away.

We worked with much success on Tandem nursing. She was wanting to start spending less time overall nursing and she was thinking nursing 2 would bea great way to do that! We used a biological nurturing position and a few pillows on each side of her. Success in small minutes at this age, increasing her comfort by improving the latch and her ability to control the babies positioning. We were definately moving in the right direction.