Baby Containers

For centuries women carried their babies on their body.  Then one day in 1733, an English garden architect invented the first known stroller that was pulled around by a goat.  It wasn't till the 1900's that they became so popular in the West.  The great bonding opportunity found in baby wearing started to disappear.  But now its coming back!  To the left is a picture of me trying out by Lucky Baby Sling when Baby A was less than a week old.  I had my doubts about it at first because she looked so squashed in there.  I think maybe it was actually too big for her at first because by week 3 she was fitting in it well.

Here she is in it a lot more comfortably.  She is 2 and a half months old... and 15 pounds keep in mind!  Your baby may look differently in it.  But basically you can tell if she is comfortable or not by if she is squirmy or fussy when she gets in it, or if she is looking zen as my friend Julie S would put it. ;)  As the baby grows there are different positions to put her in to hold her.  Check out the Lucky Baby site to see more about it.  

Now we also got a backpack style baby carrier like the one below but she was not content in it at all.  An occupational therapist spoke to a group of mothers I meet with bi monthly about these things.

 She said as I sat in my chair to slump forward and curl my arms into my chest a bit... then in opposition try arching my back backwards in my chair with my arms held out.  Obviously the first was more comfortable and soothing.  The same goes for your baby.  When he is in a curled up position as the sling provides he will be more soothed and cosy and possibly even fall to sleep.  While carrying your baby in the front of your chest where he looks out will put him in a very alert position just as when you sit up with your arms and legs separated and hyper extended.  So this is great for keeping your baby alert probably, but its usually just best to keep that baby calm and relaxed in your arms.  But the OT suggested one more problem with these front carriers.  She said many children are starting to walk with this cowboy waddle.  Their hips are being distorted at a young age causing some developmental issues.   Now if you have been doing this with your baby already- don't freak out!  It's okay.  It is awesome that you are keeping your baby on your body where they can feel your warmth and protection and chances are you aren't going to mess up your child.  It might just be time to put that carrier away for a while.  OR consider getting a simple sling or try a wrap made from 6 yards of cotton gauze cut in half the long way.  (Look on youtube and google for videos on how to do this- I haven't tried it yet myself.)

Something the OT also was concerned about for babies these days was the overuse of infant car seats.  She and her colleges call them baby containers.  Parents put their babies in the car seat and tote them around in their car, get to the store where they carry them in the car seat in the cart, then when they get home keep them in the car seat for nap time and when they wake up they'll even feed them in it.  The baby spends most of its day in the car seat... only to be taken out to be put in a bumbo or baby jumper.  Keeping babies contained like this all day can cause developmental delays.  Its important to let the baby lay around on the floor for tummy time and play time and be held to learn to hold their bodies and necks up.  So a good rule of thumb is to try to keep that baby in the car seat only when it is required by law.  

With that being said, there are those days when Baby A has gone crazy all day long and we go for a drive in the car to the grocery store and she finally zonks out!  Okay, I'm not going to risk waking her to put her in a sling.  I'm going to take that quiet time where I can get it and stealthily transfer her car seat from car to grocery cart or stroller. 

Which somehow brings me to where I started- strollers.  Are they a baby must?  Not at all!  Take a look at the movie "Babies" and you'll see a healthy baby boy growing up in Africa with out a stroller.  So if you don't have room in your car our house to keep a stroller you can skip it.
  

I have two strollers that were both given to me in my slight protest because before I had the baby I was hoping to depend solely on my slings.  


One is a snap n go.  This can lead to TERRIBLE habits of baby containing, but when used in extreme moderation it can be nice.  Sometimes I even push it around when I have my baby in the sling when I'm shopping and need a place to put my purchases and diaper bag... and my coke (it seriously has two cup holders).  Not to mention on hot summer days I don't like having to put the baby back in a hot car seat so its nice to bring it in even if she isn't actually in it.  

The other stroller we haven't actually gotten to use much because she is still a bit too small.  It is a jogger stroller made by Columbia called the FunRun Jogger.  The only time Baby A has been in it was when Chris gave it a spin around the block while she sat in it very awkwardly.  He thought it felt great and is looking forward to some jogs with her when she is big enough.

Believe it or not, I have more on baby containing, but that's enough for one blog entry right?  Email me if you have any thoughts or questions!