I’m in love! I can’t believe that it’s taken me until my ninth baby to use a wrap style carrier, but it’s amazing! I’m so thrilled to have found something so easy to use, comfortable for the baby and easy on the back.
I first saw someone using a baby wrap when I was pregnant with my fifth child, and though I thought it looked like a good idea, it didn’t occur to me to pursue getting one for myself. I had a sling, and that worked well enough for me. The wrap also looked kind of funky, in my opinion, and seemed complicated. The sling hasn’t been something I’ve used much for the past few kids, though it was invaluable with my third baby (who is now almost 13). But for my last two babies, we had so many hands wanting to hold them that I didn’t really feel the need for a baby carrier, so it didn’t matter much that I didn’t have an effective one to use.
Now that I have this new wrap, I really feel that I missed out on having one with my last babies, because it makes it so much easier to take care of a baby. I received this wrap (called a Sleepy Wrap) as a gift from an online friend – it’s amazing how we can connect to others through the internet without ever meeting them. She finished using it for her baby boy and thought I might enjoy it. She was SO right. I’ve really wanted to buy a wrap for the past few months, but kept thinking I could make one myself for a lot less than $40. But I wasn’t feeling very motivated to make one, and I didn’t.
When she emailed to ask if I was interested in the wrap, I couldn’t believe it! There really was nothing I could think of that I wanted for this baby except for a wrap, and this was just so perfect! As I sit here at the computer, the baby has been snugly against my chest the whole time, sleeping in the wrap. Especially with two toddlers, I really appreciate being able to keep the baby close while having the use of both hands. This morning, he woke up at 5 and though I went to bed early, I lost track of time when I got caught up in a new book I’m reading (Atlas Shrugged – fascinating and thought provoking – I read 500 pages since yesterday afternoon, and am almost halfway through it) – it was 2 pm when I realized how late it was and turned the lights out. Facing the day with three hours of sleep would usually make me feel like crying, but I just got up, stuck the baby in the wrap, read my book while standing for a short while, and he was asleep before long. Then I sat down in the recliner, leaned back, and with him still in the wrap fell back asleep myself! Everytime he began to stir, I’d just slightly rock the recliner; I got another couple of hours of sleep like this.
Not only am I enjoying the wrap, but my kids are, too! We’ve only had it for five days, but so far five kids have tried it – dd8, ds10, dd12, dd14, and ds15. Ds15 didn’t enjoy it because the baby happened to be hungry when he used it and was crying. I told him to try it another time after he’s been fed. The other three all loved it – it was so cute to see dd8 sitting on the couch after our yom tov meal, reading her book with the baby cuddled up to her in the wrap. Dd12 took the toddlers for a yom tov walk while carrying the baby in the wrap (dd14 told her she was embarrassed to be seen with her and wouldn’t go along with them if she wore the wrap – “only mothers are supposed to wear wraps in public”), and also wore him a bunch in the house.
Tonight dh and I went to a curriculum fair, and we took only the baby along. I had him in the wrap the entire time, and it made it so easy to keep him content (he slept soundly the entire time) while shopping and shmoozing with the homeschool moms selling stuff. (And yes, I got loads of good deals – my dh asked me if he should look for anything in particular. He was glancing through some brand new curriculum at brand new prices, and I told him, I don’t buy stuff at those prices. My target price is free or almost free! We spent $15 and got five boxes filled with books, a bunch of videos made by the Feature Films for Family company (I very much like those because they are clean and have good values – I have a very hard time finding videos that meet my standards but those I’ve so far aquired from the thrift store have been good), and also got some nice odds and ends, like a low power microscope, tupperware picnic container, chemistry set, game of Candyland, and a few homeschooling cassettes. The kids will have fun unloading everything in the morning, since they were asleep when we got home.)
Something I like about this particular wrap is the stretchiness of the material, which holds the baby close and doesn’t work it’s way loose. I’m far from an expert on other wraps – this is the only one I’ve ever used, but it works for me and I’m very appreciative to have it!
Avivah
It only took me three kids to make a wrap! I “made” one out of five yards of gauze cotton. I was lazy and didn’t even hem the edges. The stretchy ones (like yours or a Moby) are reported good for little-littles as you can just pop them on and off with out too much adjusting. I used the non-stretchy material so I could get more time out of the wrap. My only gripe was that I didn’t make more of them in different lengths, so I didn’t always have SO much material to deal with (not every variation on a carry needs 5 yards of material). I got rid of them when I moved to and from Japan. I make a new sling for each kid and will make new wraps too (gotta find that time!! Maybe while the kids are in camp this summer). I bought a DVD to help me with all the types of carries (Tummy 2 Tummy) and it was very helpful to see a person slowly doing the carries, you could go on http://www.thebabywearer.com and watch their videos to see real people wrapping their kids (the learning curve is steepest with a wrap).
Almost all our curriculum fairs are on Shabbos here, so I am missing out on a lot of cheap stuff 🙁
I used a hybrid type of wrap, somewhat gauzy and somewhat stretchy, it was called gypsy mama and my daughter lived in it for a good six months. It was the only way I got anything done. I remember watching videos on youtube about how to wrap it. They have snipets of the Tummy 2 Tummy video.
I am baffled at how you have the energy to stay up with a newborn and read. I remember being utterly exhausted.
When you say your baby woke up @ 5 am you mean after he woke and nursed several times during the night, right? I (and you) know I don’t have great sleepers, but I am just wondering.
Don’t be baffled at how I find time to read – I told you, it’s just a lack of discipline! 🙂 I conk out on the recliner in the living room at some point midday if I’m really wiped out – I don’t usually sleep for a long time, but it’s enough to refresh me and keep me going for the rest of the day.
The baby was up at 5 am, after being up at midnight and then 2 am. So far his pattern seems to be midnight or 2 am, sometimes both, and then 5 am. Very doable. Now I need to make myself take advantage of the time he sleeps in the later part of the evening, from 9 – midnight, and use part of that for sleeping myself.
Wraps shouldn’t be so hard to make — from what I hear you don’t even need to sew 😉
If you want a stretchy material, get jersey sheets when they’re on sale (or use old ones)…I think I read somewhere online you can cut in half lengthwise, and you end up with 2 — one to wear while you wash the other 🙂
I haven’t tried it myself, but I’ve definitely heard from others how well it works.
My lifesaver this time has been my mei tai…like you, I used a sling, but I wanted something where I could wear my baby on her back. But I didn’t think $80 sounded reasonable for my budget.
I got a used one from thebabywearer.com FSOT for $25 (namebrand, goes easily for $80 type) and love it. I have since bought homemade ones for around $25 from etsy.com…mei tais are sewable, but I’m not very good at sewing, and this is sturdy canvas and such that is just not worth the headache for me. For $25, I have a versatile carrier that can be worn front, hip, back, etc for baby – toddler (I wore my 2 year old on my back while making supper once) comfortably. It’s not bulky, and for me the learning curve is less than a wrap (or even my ring sling!) — just tie the waist straps, pop in baby, tie shoulder straps and good to go.
Enjoy the wrap!
Is this “sleepy wrap” different from the “moby wrap”? I have a moby.
From what I understand, they’re very similar, but the Sleepy Wrap is made of a stretchy material. Many people say this provides better support because the baby stays in place and the baby moves down with time when in the Moby, but I don’t have any personal experience with the Moby.