By Cheryl Bac
E-mail Cheryl Bac
About this blog: I'm a wife, stay-at-home mom, home cook, marathon runner, and PhD. I recently moved to the Silicon Valley after completing my PhD in Social Psychology and becoming a mother one month apart. Before that, I ran seven marathons incl...
(More)About this blog: I'm a wife, stay-at-home mom, home cook, marathon runner, and PhD. I recently moved to the Silicon Valley after completing my PhD in Social Psychology and becoming a mother one month apart. Before that, I ran seven marathons including Chicago and Boston. Exercise is an integral part of my life. I hope to one day go back to long distance running and tackle the New York City Marathon. Right now I run after my one year old son. Although I am a stay-at-home mom, we are rarely "at home." My mom also stayed at home with my brother and me. She warned me that, although rewarding, it can be isolating. So, with her help, I learned the importance of getting out into the community and meeting other mothers. On the rare occasion when I am at home and have a hand or two free, I squeeze in time to scrapbook. As a new mom, many challenges are thrown my way. I hope my opinions, triumphs, and struggles help experienced parents reminisce, new parents cope, and parents-to-be get an honest glimpse of what the first years of motherhood can entail.
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At the end of our hospital stay, our nurse gave us a difficult time because we didn't bring a "bucket" car seat for our newborn. Instead, we chose to take her home in a convertible car seat. Although our nurse was a proud mother of multiple children herself, she was shocked that my newborn's car seat didn't come with a handle. She asked me how I would take her to the grocery store or the mall.
Well, I would most likely wear her.
While wearing my daughter, two people have already commented that they had mistakenly thought I was just wearing a backpack reversed while pushing my son in his stroller. And were quite surprised that I actually had two children with me. Others do a double take when they realize "there is a baby" in my carrier.
I find it quite easy to take care of a baby without a bucket seat. Especially babies who enjoy being held. At the first signs of crankiness, I can immediately start rocking or bouncing baby. Rather than waiting to hear baby stir when little one is "parked" near me or on the other side of the room.
When I was pregnant with our son, I did look into buying an infant car seat. But I discovered that many new mothers seem to have a love/hate relationship with them. Yes, it is great not to wake baby when he/she falls asleep in the car. But... the carseat is heavy. It bangs into your knee. It is clunky. It can get hot and baby sweats a lot in it during the warmer months. It is annoying to snap into place. It is usually outgrown extremely quickly. And eventually baby needs to switch to a convertible car seat anyway.
Of course you can babywear and use an infant car seat. Many parents do. But sometimes the convenience of "just leaving baby in the car seat" seems to stop some from transferring baby into their arms or into a front carrier.
If you would like to babywear more and want that extra "push," there are many heartwarming babywearing stories online. One that touched me most is written by a mother whose toddler passed away from cancer. Even if babywearing is not for you, maybe
her thoughts will help you understand why some parents choose to wear their little ones.
