August Babywearer of the Month!

 Meet Ariel!

 

How were you introduced to baby wearing?

Local mamas encouraged me, and the fact that I knew I would need my hands free to chase Kaydee (my 2 yr old) 

How has baby wearing changed your life?

It has made this deployment so much easier by keeping Quinn happy and loving on her- and still being able to keep up with day to day functions. 

Favorite carrier: Tula for sure! I'm all about the convienance of a SSC- and the comfort of the brand. 

Currently in your stash? currently only ssc- I have a standard circles du Solei Tula, a standard full WC girasol ardent cream weft, a beco butterfly. 

Previously owned: a full WC Lisa, a half WC yellow deag, a semi ardent purple weft, a handmade cottonlike moby wrap, a moby, and a no name ring sling. 

What was your biggest struggle?

Trying to learn wrapping! Lol 

Still a work in progress 

What do you wish everyone knew about baby wearing?

It's not just for crunchy hippies!  

It's convienant, great for babies, great for older siblings, and an excellent bonding experience.

(pics to come)

Babywearer of the Month!

Get to know Liz!

Hi! I'm 24 and was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA. I joined the Air Force out of high school and got stationed in CA after basic training. Only a few weeks later I met my husband and less than a year later we were married. Shortly after I became pregnant with our son and left the military. Since my husband was (and still is) active duty we remained in CA which is where our babywearing journey begins...

How were you introduced to babywearing?

When Sonshine was born we had been given a Snugli. I wore him a total of twice in it and both times was extremely uncomfortable so I never picked it up again When he was about 5 months old, while I was look into cloth diapers I stumbled upon carriers and decided to give an Ergo a try.

How has babywearing changed your life?

Around the same time I got my Ergo my husband deployed. I was a young new mother who suddenly had to take my baby EVERYWHERE. He was too heavy for his infant carseat but hated sitting in carts so I wore him. It amazed me (and others) how calm he was and would often fall asleep while we were shopping. I decided to look into this babywearing stuff more and later got a mei tai from Nuzzleme Creations. I got a wrap eventually but got frustrated with it and it was left untouched for a long time. I became pregnant with Rosie and delved even deeper into the babywearing world just soaking in information. I decided to dive into wraps and bought a few different ones and a ring sling and practiced with Sonshine. I discovered with the right support and practice wrapping was comfortable, fun and easy.  We moved to South Georgia back in October and was asked to speak at the Moody (AFB) Mommas meeting about babywearing. There was so much interest I began the South Georgia Babywearers and start having playdates, helping organize local events and teaching moms all about babywearing!

What's your favorite carry/carrier?

O My! I'm not sure I could pick just one!! I default to Double Hammock or Ruck carries most days. I always have trouble picking which wrap though since I truly do love everything I have!

What's currently in your stash?

I currently have a Beco Butterfly II "Ever", Nuzzleme Creations UMC MT, BBSlen Pineapple Med. WC Ring Sling, Didymos Pink Punkte 2, Oscha Starry Night Raven 2, Didymos FHI 4, Girasol Snow Rainbow 4,  Natibaby Grey Silk Dandies 4, Hoppediz Timbuktu 6, Didymos OS Lago dyed Plumberry 6, Ellevill Zara Origional dyed hot pink 6, Oscha Roses Aphrodite 6, Oscha Starry Night Orchid 6, EasyCare Prism 6, Natibaby Lutea Sky 6, Natibaby Green/White Tulips 7, Wrapsody Bali Breeze "Presley", Wrapsody "Stella" and an Oscha Roses Eros Toy Sling. I know my stash is currently quite large but both my husband and I wear them plus I teach and I know that my local babywearers really appreciate being able to try out different fabrics, styles and sizes.

What has been your biggest babywearing struggle?

I'm not really sure...I did struggle as I mentioned before with wraps before really learning how to wrap. I struggle with any negativity that comes my way too. I handle it but that doesn't mean it doesn't bother me.

What do you wish everyone knew about babywearing?

OMG it makes life SO much easier! I've survived two deployments, a tdy, and taking two kids ANYWHERE all because of babywearing! I wish everyone knew that babywearing can be super comfy, easy and fun! There are two things that solve 99% of the cries or meltdowns in my house and that's milkies and uppies! <3

One Year!

Rosie is ONE! and so is our blog! I'm a little late writing this due to all the chaos of her birthday and party! My parents came down to help celebrate and we all had a great time! Her party was Minnie Mouse themed- just like my first birthday was! We had the fabulous AK Photography take her birthday pictures and despite the usual non-cooperative Sonshine we managed to get some amazing shots!

I can't believe how she's grown!! One year of breastfeeding and babywearing with my Rosie! She dug right in to her cake (homemade! my mom and I did pretty well I think!) and her presents! Sonshine has since then decided all the presents were actually for him though! My parents got her/them a wagon which has been a HUGE hit. They also set up the light table for us! All that is left is ordering the plexiglass top!

Although in the meantime it is still a train table- we also hope to paint the back sides of the train table top with chalk paint! I really look forward to all the cool things we can do with the light table! I know I've been taking lots of notes from Play At Home Mom.

We have our local babywearing playdates this week and I look forward to seeing and teaching my local mommas more about wearing. I also hope to do a video this week for the Ruck carry for you!

<3 Sonshine & Rose <3

BOLD

I saw a post the other day on Facebook - something along the lines of "Raising a boy is not for the fainthearted".

I Agree.

But raising girls isn't for the fainthearted either.

Honestly, parenting period isn't for the fainthearted.

Fainthearted: Adj. - lacking conviction or boldness or courage

I don't know a single fainthearted parent.We may be fainthearted as a person...but never as a parent.

I say this because I wanted to share a story of something a friend of mine did recently. She was traveling and while at the airport witnessed a woman yelling at a young mother for nursing her baby. What my friend did next speaks volumes to me about the kind of woman she is and brings tears to my eyes.

She walked over and sat down and started nursing her baby next to the other mother.

That lady who was yelling? I wish I could of seen her jaw drop as she walked away! 

I applaud you my dear friend! YOU made a DIFFERENCE in that young mother's life! 

And all of you? maybe...just maybe this story will give you the courage to stand up to anyone that bullies you or another mother for taking care of their child. Don't be fainthearted friends <3

***UPDATE 8/14/2013***

My dear friend received a message from that young mother recently and she has made it to 6 months of nursing and is going strong thanks to my friend who supported her in such an awful scenario!

And here's a picture of Rose yesterday thanks to sweet big brother who gave her CHOCOLATE while mommy wasn't looking:

TuTu Cute: A Baby Monsters Boutique Review

Hi everyone! A few weeks ago a lovely mama friend from Baby Monsters Boutique sent me an ADORABLE Ladybug tutu outfit and I decided since I still had Rose's Ladybug wings from Halloween and dug up some red and black polka dot Babylegs that it would be super cute as one of her outfits for her 9 month pictures with A K Photography .

As you can see Rose doesn't exactly enjoy having wings...or anything on her head...a constant battle between the two of us since I absolutely ADORE headbands and even have a few matching ones for the two of us. However the tutu dress was extremely impressive as it held up amazingly to Rose's tugging and attempts to destroy it! It came with a cute matching flower that could be worn on the dress or put on a headband. My little Ladybug looked so sweet!

Baby Monsters Boutique has a lot to choose from so go check her out! She's very affordable and amazing to work with!

And...Rose wasn't the only Ladybug in the house...Sonshine decided he really liked it too...

Hey there are boy ladybugs too!

It's SPRING?!

I've been SO busy! Time just got away from me!! So let me recap what's been happening since this new year! I've lost 21 lbs total so far and have been pretty good about logging on MyFitnessPal and going to the gym almost every day when we go get daddy from work. I've been working on getting the South Georgia Babywearers group going and our lending library together.

We also traveled to see some family and my parents spent some time here with us. Sonshine turned 3 earlier this month and we had a LOT of appointments for him since he was transferring from Babies Can't Wait to the school system for his speech therapy. Speaking of which Sonshine has been progressing SO well! I hear him talking to himself right now as he looks for a missing toy piece and now he ran over to me to tell me about the eyes he found (Mr. Potato Head's). Last night after I read him his story, while we waited on Daddy to come in after putting Rosie down, he came over to me and starting singing (a jibberish song) and stroked my face- something I've done to him countless times- he then kissed me. Then, after I told him "I Love You", he responded "I ove ooo too" in his sweet little voice. It wasn't the first time he's told me that but it melts my heart every time- I've waited a long time to hear those words from him and it took almost three years to hear them. Sure I knew he loved me- he has said it in many other ways over the years but hearing it is just the best. <3

So now Sonshine goes to "school" once a week for two hours. He had his first day last week and absolutely LOVED it. They said he said all his letters (he may not talk much but he has those down pat!) and got the hang of the scissors really quick despite not ever having used them before (and now he tries to steal MY scissors when I'm using them). We've also been doing a lot of activities here together.

Practicing his letter shapes (templates can be found at Play At Home Mom and we used these dabbers from amazon )

We got to color on the windows and see the light shine through the different colors (we used Crayola Window Markers with Crystal Effects which wiped off VERY easily when we were done)

We also planted some herbs and veggies together with Bobo (my mom) and Sonshine LOVED getting to put the seeds in!

 

 

Anyways I'll be making more of an effort to post and look forward to getting out of the house for lots of fun summer activities for my babies! <3

 

2013: Bring it on!

Do you have new year resolutions this year? of course you do! I know I have them every year! Every day even! They rarely get achieved though...although maybe I don't give myself enough credit- it HAS been a crazy 5 years since I graduated high school and joined the air force. I went through Basic then to California where learned Korean and I met my husband and married him a little less than a year later! Then I got pregnant, left active duty, had Sonshine, went through a deployment, got pregnant again, went through another deployment and had Rose. Then we moved cross country...that's a pretty crazy 5 years for me! SO this year...although we will be busy I WILL achieve my goals!

1. I would like to get down to a healthy weight again- I've already started losing and look forward to making my goal which is set at 145lbs (high end of "healthy" BMI) and my best friend's wedding (yayyyy!) will be later in the year so I HAVE to look great!

2. Plan two AWESOME parties- Sonshine's birthday will be Phineas & Ferb themed- with a huge emphasis on his favorite- Perry and Rose's birthday will be Minnie mouse themed- just like MY first birthday was!

3. FINALLY get Rose's nursery together and Sonshine's new room

4. Start couponing and meal planning to save us money- I was couponing before I got pregnant with Rose and hubby deployed but lately (especially with the move) I only grab the coupons they have at the store. I have, however, been meal planning more but I'm still not very good at it.

5. Organize the house- its still pretty chaotic since we moved in and then the holidays happened.

That's it...it's a lot for me! 

I have a lot to look forward to this year too! Rose still has a LOT of first's coming up- she will start walking this year and have her first birthday! She will also be getting the rest of her teeth and hopefully start growing some beautiful blonde locks! Sonshine will turn 3 and hopefully, with the help of a speech therapist, start communicating a lot more. 

I also plan on doing a lot here on Sonshine & Roses! I'll post more babywearing videos, babywearing info, recipes, my house, and anything else I want to share! So I hope you'll join me this year and thanks for a great 2012!

Our Year: 2012

It's been quite a year here! We started off the year with a deployment and pregnancy. In January we found out at my gender party that our Rose was indeed a girl!

In Feburary not a whole lot happened...some playdates, Hubby had a birthday (which he wasn't here for) and I was still making a baby!

In March my handsome little Sonshine turned 2, I was still baking the bun in my oven, my mom came to visit (and we had a fun photo shoot with my amazing friend Melissa Posilero Photography  below), and we enjoyed lots of rain with our fun rain boots and umbrellas!

In April we celebrated my 23rd birthday, enjoyed a beautiful Easter with my beautiful friend Vanessa and her family and then Vanessa throw me a GORGEOUS baby shower!

In May I met up with J. Vendetti Photography for my maternity pictures and we picked up my mom at the end of the month so she could be there for Rose's Birth.

In June I spent some time enjoying having my mom around and my last few days with only one child.

Before Rosie came out to meet all of us! She was born on the 11th at 10:08pm and weighed in at 8 lbs 2oz and 20.5in! be sure to check out Rosie's birth story here. Then we spent the rest of June enjoying every second of her! Logan is a wonderful big brother, J.Vendetti Photography did her pictures again and we TRIED to send the hubby a NICE picture for father's day (this was the best we got!)

Then July came around and FINALLY my family became complete again! My hubby got to meet Rose just an hour after she hit 1 month old! We also celebrated Rose's first 4th and spent the rest of the month hanging out (we went to the zoo!), babywearing, being silly and just figuring out how to be a family of 4.

August was FULL of fun with two babywearing playdates with the PAXbaby family- one at the Jelly Belly Factory (yayy for free jelly beans!) and one at a park where I got to meet tons of my lovely babywearing friends in real life! Rose also hit 2 months old.

In September a sweet friend of mine had her little girl and so Rose got to meet her little friend J. Rose hit 3 months old. Then we spent the rest of the month getting ready for our big PCS cross-country and then finally we started our long drive by heading down to San Diego where we got to spend some time with a high school friend of mine and her beautiful family.

October started off with us making it to the east coast, spending some time at my parents and visiting the local children's museum there. Then we arrived at our new base and found ourselves a new house to call a home! We also enjoyed the air show, Rose hit 4 months and celebrated her first Halloween. Sonshine was Thor and Rose was a ladybug and we went trick or treating on base.

November started with a haircut for Sonshine followed by Rose hitting 5 months old and a trip to the Grandparent's for Rose's first Thanksgiving!

We ended the year with lots of Christmas festivities! We put up the tree and stockings, Rose hit 6 months old, we made cookies, and took family pictures with AK Photography. Both kids were blessed with some FANTASTIC Christmas gifts this year and then we all went out for dinner to celebrate our 4th anniversary. Tomorrow Sonshine has an evaluation with a speech therapist and then we will ring 2013 at our beautiful home together for the first time since we rang in 2010.

How was your 2012?
<3

Babywearing Videos: FWCC & DH

Hi Babywearers!

Here are a few videos to get you started as requested by my local mamas! (please remember I'm not perfect and neither are my videos!)

Front Wrap Cross Carry 

(FWCC)

Perfect for newborns and a great starting carry for new wrappers or even if your toddlers wants some snuggles!

I also did a double hammock (DH) with both my 6mo old and my almost 3yo for ya'll! The double hammock is great for your first back carry because even if something isn't perfect baby is still nice and secure!

Remember to practice over something soft like a bed or couch and in front of a mirror if possible!

Double Hammock (DH) with 6mo old

Double Hammock (DH) with almost 3yo

There you have it! Practice, Practice, Practice! Feel free to ask any questions and next time I think I'll show ya'll how to use a Ring Sling and how to nurse in a FWCC!

<3

Babywearing: Decoded

What's that mean?!

Types of Carriers

RS: Ring Sling

WCRS: Wrap Conversion Ring Sling

MT: Mei Tai

WCMT: Wrap Conversion Mei Tai

SSC: Soft Structured Carrier

HB: Half Buckle

FB: Full Buckle

WC: Wrap Conversion

Carries

FWCC: Front Wrap Cross Carry

FCC: Front Cross Carry

SCC: Short Cross Carry

T2T: Tummy to tummy
KH/KC: Kangaroo hold/carry
SFCC: Semi-front cross carry
PWCC: Pocket wrap cross carry
CC: Cradle carry
CCC: Cross cradle carry
HCC: Hip cross carry
PHC: Poppins hip carry
RHC: Robin's hip carry
CHC: Coolest hip carry
CHCC: Coolest hip cross carry
BWCC: Back wrap cross carry
DH: Double hammock
SH: Single hammock
GBC: Giselle's back carry
JBC: Jordan's back carry
RTUB/ RUB: Ruck tied under bum
RTIF: Ruck tied in front
RRRR: Reinforced rear rebozo ruck
WPBC: Wiggle-proof back carry
TC: Taiwanese carry
TIB: Tied under bum
TAS: Tied at shoulder
CB: Chest belt
TB/ TT: Tied Tibetan
CCCB: Candycane chest belt
TIF: Tied in front
FFO: Front facing out


Sites:
BabyCenter.com: BBC
DiaperSwappers.com: DS
TheBabywearer.com: TBW
NaturalMamas.co.uk [UK site]: NM
Babywearing Love and Support: BLS

Other Random:

DH: Dear Husband
DS: Dear Son
DD: Dear Daughter
SO: Significant Other
PPD: Postage Paid (typically seen after price to say whether postage is included or not)
FFS: Free For Shipping (you would just pay shipping)
GUC: Good Used Condition
VGUC: Very Good Used Condition
EUC: Excellent Used Condition
EEUC: Extremely Excellent Used Condition
Sub/Subbing: Commenting on a post in order to follow (mobile often can't click "follow")
ISO: In search of
DISO: desperately in search of
AP: Attachment Parenting
CIO: cry(ing) it out
OT: off topic
FTM: first time mom
CD: cloth diaper
Didymos: Didy
Beco Butterfly II: BBII
Girasol: Gira
DW: diamond weave
RR: Double Rainbow (made by Girasol)
COTW: Carry of the week
HSA: Highly Sought After
HTF: Hard to find
ETF: Easy to find

Babywearing: Size me up!

There are sizes?!

What size do I need?!

Yes woven wraps come in sizes. They are:

Size 2 (referred to as a "Shorty"): 2.6 meters (8.86 ft/102.36in)

Size 3:  3.1 meters (10.17ft/122.05in)

Size 4: 3.6 meters (11.81ft/141.73in)

Size 5: 4.2 meters (13.78ft/165in)

Size 6: 4.6 meters (15.09ft/181.1 in)

Size 7: 5.2 meters (17.06ft/204.72in)

Size 8: 5.6 meters (18.37ft/220.47in)

 Typically an average sized person can do any carry in a size 6. Plus Size mamas may need a size 7 and petite mamas can usually get away with a size 5. The typical stretchy wrap (i.e. moby) is made to be "one size fits all" and is about the size of a size 8 woven wrap. 

Why would I want more than one size?

Different carries can use more or less wrap- for example doing a Ruck tied under the bum (RUB) (pictured above on right-pink polka dots) takes a lot less wrap than a Double Hammock (DH) (pictured above on left and with boy in middle picture). If you were to do a RUB with a size 6 the tails (what's left over after you tie the knot) would be so long you would trip! Babywearers often choose to have a couple sizes in their stash so they can do all the carries they like. A shorter wrap is also nice to have when wrapping somewhere (like a parking lot or muddy field) because the tails don't drag on the ground.

Do I NEED more than one size?

No. Typically one wrap in the size that allows you to do any carry you'd like will work (5,6,7)...you may need to get creative with tying the tails for shorter carries but it can work.

Babywearing Link-it-up

Hey! This past weekend I did an "Intro to babywearing" presentation for my local momma group and it went fabulously! I decided it would be easiest for me to make a blog post including a lot of links for everyone to check out so here we go!

Proper positioning:

Spinal Stress in Infants

Thinking beyond the Bjorn

FAQ's on proper positioning

Hip health in infants

Position matters

 9 reasons not to carry your baby facing out

Benefits of Babywearing:

"4th Trimester"

Dr. Sears on babywearing 

The Babywearer's list 

10 reasons to wear 

Facebook Babywearing Related pages (includes makers and retailers):

 

PAXbaby 

TULA baby carriers

Beco Baby carriers

Boba carriers

Oscha

O & A

Kokadi

Didymos

Babywearing International Inc
Natibaby

Birdie's Room

Sustain.able Sprouts

ObiMama

Carry Them

Wrap Your Baby

BabyHawk

Ellevill

Sleeping Baby Productions

Babywearing Safety

Granola Babies

Marsupial-Mamas

Risaroo

Retailer Sites:

Wrap Your Baby
QuirkyBaby
FrogMama
Risaroo
Marsupial Mamas
PAXbaby

Facebook Groups:

Babywearing Love & Support
Babywearing 102 

also search for your local babywearing group:
South Georgia: Here

Tallahassee:Here 

Sacramento: Here

Others: Here

There are many more of course and as I think of them I will come back and add them! also feel free to comment with any! Thank you!

PAXbaby giveaway

Remember PAXmama Jillian? well she's doing a 10,000 fan giveaway over at PAXbaby! Go here to enter: a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to show her some love! <3

Coast to Coast

Hi everyone! SO much has happened in the past month or so! We left Cali (I miss you mama's!), stopped down in San Diego to visit a high school friend and her beautiful family! Then we headed over to Tucson to visit with some friends from tech school and their lovely daughters both of which are only slightly older than both of my kiddos!

 Then we stopped in Austin where the kids got to meet their Aunt Courtney for the first time before finally heading to stay with my parents for a little while! About two weeks ago we finally made it to our final destination in Georgia and worked on finding ourselves a new home! We were very blessed to find a beautiful home! 

Just sharing a few pics :) I have LOTS of plans for making our new house into a home for us and I know I'll be sharing everything with all of you!

The hubby started back to work this week as well and so far things seem to be MUCH more relaxed- something both of us desperately needed!

And of course this move was made much, MUCH easier by always having a nice, warm, cozy place for the babes to chill!

That's all for now! Feel free to join me on instagram! @sonshineandroses

Wrap me up baby!

I explained a little in this post about babywearing and today i'm going to give you the basics on the different styles of carriers!

First up we have the stretchy wrap- the one above is a boba wrap (formerly sleepy wrap) but moby is also a popular brand. They are snuggly and t-shirt-like and perfect for newborns. They tend to get saggy around 15lbs though and should never ever be used in a back carry (check this video out).

Next is the Soft Structured carriers (SSC's)- the most common and easily found are the Beco (left), Ergo (right), and Boba. There are TONS of other SSC's out there- these are simply the more easily available kinds. (also please note that there are counterfeit ergos- do your homework and don't jeopardize baby's safety!) These carriers have buckles to adjust and are fairly user friendly. They aren't the best for newborns although it is possible to use them with an infant insert. They can also be used in front, back and some allow for hip carry as well although they can be confusing for hip carries.

The Mei Tai (MT) is similar to SSC's except instead of buckles you tie the staps. They can be used in front or back carries. The one above with the dinos and birds is my custom Ultimate Mama/Man Carrier from NuzzleMe Creations (they do AMAZING work!) and the green/blue MT is a Hopp tye we tried on at a playdate. Other common ones are BBtai and Babyhawk. They are easily adjustable between wearers and are easily rolled up and stowed away. For the most comfortable wear with SSC's and MT's you want baby to sit in the carrier and have it go knee to knee which distributes the weight better making them much lighter feeling and is easier on both wearer and wearee's bodies. This is part of the reason carriers like bjorn are so uncomfortable and heavy after baby gets bigger.

Ring slings are great for easy in and out making them fast and easy for quick trips or toddlers who only like to be up for short spurts. Both slings above are wrap conversion ring slings (WCRS) meaning they were made from woven wraps (BBSlen Pineapple on the left, PAXbaby exclusive Girasol double rainbow in the middle and Jillian, owner of PAXbaby, has a easycare #1 on her shoulder). Check out Sleeping Baby Productions if you find a wrap you want converted and she often has very affordable slings made in other materials- she does fabulous work and is very reputable.

Woven wraps are the most versatile and are comfy from infancy through toddlerhood (and beyond!). They can have a bit of a learning curve since there are TONS of ways to wear them but you can easily do front, back and hip carries. They come in different lengths/sizes- most recommend starting with a size 6 if you're average. Check out this handy chart for different carries and youtube. (BabywearingFaith and PAXbaby are great!) Some wrap makers are Girasol, Storchenweige, BBSlen, Dolcino, Kokadi, Didymos, and Natibaby.

(Wraps in photo above: top row: Natibaby Bamboo turquoise diamonds, Storchenweige Vicky, BBSlen Prunella. 2nd row: Ellevil Zara dyed Hot pink, Girasol Snow rainbow, Didymos Pink Punkte. 3rd row Didymos Old Standard Lago dyed Plumberry, Girasol Amitola Azafan weft, and Snow rainbow again)

This was just a little intro to the common different types of carriers and I hope it helps! If you have any questions feel free to ask!