You see, my neighbor recently gave birth to a baby girl two months ago, the youngest out of three kids. For at least four times a day for the whole two months, I would hear the baby wailing through my front door (I live in an apartment block) every single time the mother baby duo went out. Naturally, I thought nothing of it for the first few weeks, since babies do have the tendency to cry more often than not during the first few months.
One day (last week), after two months of listening to the same cries four times a day, I decided to peek out of my peep hole, hoping to catch a glimpse of why the little angel was screaming on top of her lungs. Then I saw it... Poor little bubba was in a pram.
Now don't get me wrong, there's absolutely nothing wrong with placing a baby in a pram when going out, lots of people do that. But personally, I've never been a pram/ stroller person. In my humble opinion, it's a very unloving way of transitioning your child from the safety of a mother's womb into the real world, I am all for the notion that a baby needs as much skin to skin contact with her mother (and/ or father) to strive (emotionally) for at least the first three months, also known to many as the fourth trimester.
With that notion in mind, I've always been a proud baby wearer from the very beginning of my parenting journey and have been very lucky that my husband is extremely supportive in that aspect. I had a Baby Bjorn carrier original, Peanut Shell pouch, and Jumpsac Baby carrier throughout my almost two years of babywearing.
My first babywear gear was the Peanut Shell pouch that I used since Little Miss Bébé was seven days old until she was about six months old.
I love love love my peanut shell pouch. It's not adjustable so you really have to measure your size properly before purchasing it, but it also means it's hassle free. Just fold it, put over your head and one side of the shoulder, put baby in and you're good to go! The whole process takes less than a minute, and no adjusting needed. It's very convenient for breastfeeding as well, as you can see from the second picture (yes, I'm also a huge breastfeeding advocate).
Then after she outgrew the Peanut Shell, I got the Jumpsac Baby even though I had the Baby Bjorn first as a hand me down from my sister. The Baby Bjorn wasn't comfortable for Little Miss Bébé (she cried and struggled to get out of it every single time I used it) and it wasn't comfortable for me nor hubby either. So I did a little scout around and fell in love with the Jumpsac instead. Little Miss Bébé loved being in it, heck, even my hubby loved wearing her in it. We wore her everywhere, to the wet market, shopping mall (whenever she needs her nap), traveling throughout Taiwan and Australia, etc. It is a very very comfy carrier. It's a pity I didn't take lots of pictures wearing the Jumpsac, but here's one of it with hubby wearing bubba in Taiwan.
And a picture from the Jumpsac Baby's website, the exact one that I have. (Yes, my hubby is metrosexual enough to wear a ballerina shoe designed carrier. haha)
But when it comes to the topic of baby wearing, the argument that you will spoil your baby will never be too far away. Different books and different people will give you different advices, but I think your best bet is to go with your heart. I've baby wore my baby for as long as I can remember, and I have no regrets about it. It helped me cope better as a new parent and kept me very in tuned with my baby. Sure, people who know Little Miss Bébé will tell you, 'oh, but she's very clingy to you'. Well yes, she's very clingy to me, but it didn't stem from me babywearing her, it's just how she is as a person. I know lots of mother who babywear their kids and they weren't clingy at all. Heck, I know mothers who've never baby-worn their kids and their kids are clingy. So baby wearing does not equal to clingy-ness, but it does equal to parenthood sanity! lol. And you'll be glad to know that Little Miss Bébé is starting to come out of her shell lately, playing with kids and singing at music school. I guess every kid develops differently at their own pace, so unless you keep your baby in a dog cage or feed them alcohol at 2 months old, screw whoever who tells you that you're parenting the wrong way. Because every parent wants the best for their children. And no matter how you (assuming you are a perfectly sane human being with rational thinking) raise your kids, they will grow up and THEY WILL BE FINE.
Having said that, babywearing is not for everyone. But I find that babywearing makes parenting easier and helps me keep my sanity while I'm on the go. Babywearing never fails to calm down my baby (usually within a minute) every single time she's in distress.
So if you're a new parent and your baby is frequently unsettled, why not give babywearing a go? After all, the best thing you can wear on you, is your baby.
Bébé Mommy
xoxo
Good inspiring reads.
"Why African babies don't cry"
http://hippiehousewife.blogspot.com.au/2011/02/attachment-parenting-series-babywearing.html
http://wrapyourbaby.com/blog/2013/05/babywearing-ballet/
