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Wednesday, April 18, 2007

More on Sling Happiness

Photo: Inside the glow of the parent-baby sling bubble

I finally figured out how to write something on our own blog! My kids and I got together with Sierra and her kids today to take some pictures for our website (which will be up soon!) and I was reminded of how much I like to put my kids in slings, as big as they are getting. I haven't used one for a while because I am letting chronic back problems heal, at least for a while, and also Jacob, at almost 21 mos. is old enough to walk around by himself. But putting my "babies" in the Bundle Bug gives me such a feeling of closeness with them...and them with me! How can I tell? Well, because of how we nuzzle each other and by their immediate sense of comfort in the world.

Eliana, who weighs about 32 lbs. still fits nicely into my sling facing me, her now-long legs dangling by my side and her arms around my neck. As long as she leans into me and I have the fabric pulled way up on her back (to support me well enough), I am quite comfortable and have even carried her through airports while I pushed Jacob in a stroller. Jacob can still face out into the world or into his most comforting, number-one person--mommy--and even fall asleep there while I walk on for miles and hours doing what I need to do. If he started out quiet and reserved in a new environment, he starts to coo and babble when I put him in the sling, enjoying his new viewpoint from up high. Even after an absence from the sling of many months, he finds himself quite at home. I also loved that when Jacob was tiny, I folded his legs up just like the Bundle Bug is designed to do, and though he was scrunched up into a ball, he loved it because that's how babies find themselves in the uterus--it's actually comfortable for them.

So, I found an old picture of Eliana in the sling with me--she's about 9-10 mos. in the picture and now she's 3 1/2! Slings carry babies from newborn baby seed pods to grown-up-acting toddler size. The first sling I ever had was a Maya Wrap which was given to me for free by someone who was just passing it along. One of our goals is to get as many donated slings as we can, from as many companies or parents-passing-them-along as possible and offer them for free, like mine was given to me...spread the word, as we want everyone who wants one to have one and we'll offer a sling class with the giveaway, too. I was so happy that someone gave me the opportunity for such a delightful experience with my children--one that I hadn't even heard of. We want to provide that for all of you, too.

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