Q&A Guest post- Holly

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babies, baby wearing, babywearing, Berkshire, blog posts, blogging, Bracknell, Bracknell Sling Library, Bracknell Sling Meet, carriers, close caboo, guest blog, Guest Q&A, handwoven, lenny lamb, natural parenting, Reading, sling, sling library, sling meet, slingdad dom, slings, wraps

My name is Holly, I’m 33 years old and I live in Reading with my husband, 23 month old daughter and 4 cats. I am also a working mum so I juggle being a police officer with looking after my crazy toddler and running our local baby wearing group and the facebook pages ‘reading baby wearing UK’ and ‘reading babywearing walks & socials’

 

How did you get into babywearing and did you plan to wear your baby when you were pregnant?

I hadn’t thought much about baby wearing until I started going to homebirth groups when I was pregnant. A lovely lady called Zena who hosts the meetings (wife of the famous Slingdad Dom) showed me lots of varieties and the close caboo caught my eye. From then on it was something I thought I might do for convenience; little did I know how it would take over my life!

 

What’s your favourite wrap/carrier you’ve ever owned and why?

I don’t think I can choose a favorite carrier but my top 3 are:

1 – close caboo because it is so easy to use, super comfy for baby and wearer and also a reasonable price.

2 – lenny lamb ergonomic carrier, specifically the lace patterns but vanilla lace is by far my favourite. In my opinion they are the most well designed and manufactured SSC. They are extremely adjustable and gently padded and come in so many beautiful prints and colours.

3 – my hand woven wraps. Honestly woven wraps tick all the boxes; versatility, comfort, appearance…. Yes they do take some mastering but once you get the knack they are simply addictive and can be used from birth to toddling and beyond. I still carry my BIG girl in my wovens and we both love it.

 

If money were no object, what wrap or sling would you own?

If money were no object I would get a custom hand woven wrap made by Little Fellows (based in UK) or Mad Hatter warped and woven. It would have pastel rainbows and sparkly thread in it.

 

What do you like about babywearing?

I love baby wearing for so many reasons; convenience (easy to throw in your bag/car/wrap round your neck as a scarf when not in use), space saving (no need for bulky buggies etc.), the huge variety of styles and patterns you can get, the closeness and bond you get with your baby and the magic of the carrier in calming a tired or teething or poorly baby.

I also love how, when they are little and just need cuddles all the time, it gives you the chance to clean/cook/have a pee whilst they stay just where they want to be. I am also in love with baby wearing because it can be a wonderful social activity; I have met so many friends at the local walks and the support they offer is priceless.

 

What do or did you find hardest about babywearing?

The only struggle I have had with baby wearing is the frustration when you are trying to master a new carry, especially in a woven, and you just can’t crack it. I also find it hard not to spend my whole wage on slings every month lol!

 

Does your partner join in with the babywearing?

My husband doesn’t babywear although he did when she was small enough to be in the caboo and he saw how cosy she was and wanted her to sleep on him. I wish in hindsight I had encouraged him more but because I was learning too and she is my first baby I wanted to do it all. He is now unsure his back would cope (he has back issues) so he leaves it up to me.

 

What kind of comments do you receive when you babywear out and about?

I can’t recall getting any direct comments about baby wearing for a long time now but when she was young I got lots of lovely comments and smiles; it really is magical because babies just don’t cry in slings like they often do it buggies.

 

Baby wearing is one of my favourite things about being  a Mum and I would encourage any carer to give it a try. I am so proud to be able to help other people to safely wear their children.

 

 

Thanks to Holly for her input to the local babywearing community- the Reading babywearing group and the Social & Walks groups that she runs are great social places to chat about slings, sling libraries, meet likeminded local friends and learn more about babywearing. She’s always supported local libraries like ours and we love having people like Holly locally to us!

Q&A Guest Post- Jen

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2015, baby wearing, babywearing, Berkshire, blog posts, blogging, Bracknell, Bracknell Sling Library, Bracknell Sling Meet, carriers, guest blog, June, natural parenting, Reading, sling, sling library, sling meet, sling swing, slings, Wokingham, wrap, wraps

Hi I’m Jen, mum to Elodie, now a year old, and I’m a passionate baby wearer!You will see us mooching about town or walking along the river in my ever growing collection of slings.

I recently turned my passion into my living – I run Sling Swing in Reading and Wokingham. Sling swing is a fun, gentle dance class for parents and carers who wear their children in slings or carriers. It’s a great way to get out and meet new friends, to get a bit of exercise and introduce your baby to music and rhythm.

How did you get into babywearing and did you plan to wear your baby when you were pregnant?

I initially bought a mothercare carrier when I was pregnant thinking it looked useful, I didn’t know that was a bit different to a sling at the time. My cousin bought me a stretchy though and talked about the benefits, it all sounded a bit hippie to me back then but I figured it might be useful!

What’s your favourite wrap/carrier you’ve ever owned and why?

Definitely my stretchy, it got me through a really hard time and allowed me to bond with Elodie, I have such happy memories of using it and have lent it to 2 other friends so they can make good memories too.

If money were no object, what wrap or sling would you own?

I’m not actually a huge wrap buyer and am pretty happy just with what’s useful and comfortably but I have seen some beautiful Oschas!!

What do you like about babywearing?

So much, baby wearing came into its own for me when Elodie was only tiny. She was a baby who never wanted to be put down and so I started wearing her for practical reasons but it became so much more!

I found the early months very hard, I worried constantly that I was doing it all wrong (thanks to lots of unhelpful advice!) and was eventually diagnosed with post natal anxiety. I was lucky to get great support but really, baby wearing was the best treatment! When I wore Elodie she was calm, and so was I!I could get out and about, people would ask about my wrap or say how comfy she looked. I started to think maybe I wasn’t so terrible at being a mum (as I’d come to believe!) I would feel proud with my baby strapped to me – like nature intended it and despite all the “rod for my own back” comments I wanted to shout “look what I can do” as I wandered about the shops while stroking her back or seeing her look up and smile at me!

Baby wearing, is now a passion of mine and I recommend it to all my friends! I’ve made some brilliant friends through wearing and that’s really helped me feel more confident and just happier all round! I should add that I still love the ease of wearing, being able to go wherever we like with no stress about whether a buggy will cause us a huge hassle! I go into London a lot and it just makes everything so much more accessible!

What do or did you find hardest about babywearing?

Tough question! I guess just the, admittedly few, negative comments I still get. I am sensitive to them as they fuel the anxieties that really affected my first few months as a mum, but luckily, I’ve got great support from the Reading baby wearing group and others like this one, so I’m able to have a whinge and laugh it off!

Does your partner join in with the babywearing?

Yep, he loves buckles, our connecta is his fave, or “the red one” as he calls it!!

“The red one”

What kind of comments do you receive when you babywear out and about? Mostly just comments on how cute Elodie looks all snug etc, I once got chased down the road by an African lady wanting to know where my wrap (Lenny lamb) was from as it “reminded her of home!”

Thanks to Jen- we are really looking forwards to Sling Swing coming to little old Bracknell with a free taster tomorrow morning!

For more information check out Swing Sling Reading & Wokingham on facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/slingswingreadingandwokingham