Extra NINO Pics

*Make sure to read the entry right below this one first to get the story!

The joy of the Moby wrap is that it fits anyone of any height or size. Here are some pictures of Daddy wearing Molly, and also a pic of lovely Aunt Gretchen wearing her!





The joy of the Moby wrap is that it fits anyone of any height or size. Here are some pictures of Daddy wearing Molly, and also a pic of lovely Aunt Gretchen wearing her!

N.I.N.O. - I did it!!!

For those who don't know: NINO stands for "Nine-In-Nine-Out" and refers to an organization/group who support "baby-wearing" or using slings and wraps to carry babies during the first nine months of their lives. There is a TON of well-documented, positive research about the benefits of baby-wearing, and the NINO group is a support group.

As for my story, Aaron and I used a sling for the first few weeks of Ben's life, but we didn't really know what we were doing. It wasn't super comfortable, and we somehow came up with the strange idea that we shouldn't use it too much because it made him sleep "too deeply for too long" which we worried would make him sleep less at night. (Keep in mind that this was our colicky infant we were talking about!! Here he was, sleeping contentedly in a sling whenever we wore him, and we took this as a bad
thing!!??!!) So after about 4 weeks, we never used it again.

Well, sometime after Ben was quite a bit older and before we were pregnant with Molly, I heard about the NINO organization. I looked it up to see what NINO stood for. When I read "Nine-In-Nine-Out", I was incredulous. I thought, "sure, maybe we could have worn Ben for a few more weeks, but there is NO WAY HUMANLY POSSIBLE that someone could wear their baby until they are nine-months old!! No way!".

But as Molly's birth got closer, I starting thinking about the logistics about holding a newborn and still being able to play with a 2-yr-old. So I did a little further research (Thanks Mothering Magazine Online - MDC!), and talked to some mamas who had been there and done that, and decided that I should give baby-wearing a little more of a try the second time around. Though I knew my first step would be to find something more comfortable than the Target brand sling we had used for Ben, which had since been recalled for it's habit of breaking!!

So, again after much MDC and other research, I decided to purchase a Moby wrap. Now, I am not kidding at all when I say this: this Wrap was a life-saver, back-saver, arms-saver, Gift from God Above to mothers!!! I used it almost daily for SIX MONTHS!!!! It was the single biggest factor in me surviving the transition from one child to two. I could wear Molly in the wrap, asleep or awake, facing front, facing back, and even laying down, and still have 2 arms free to play with Ben.
Then when she was bigger and really only wanted to face forward, I switched to a Hot Sling (which is so easy to find now that I actually bought mine at Target!) She could be cradled in it first, and as she has gotten older, I now use it to hold her on my hip so my arms don't get tired. Especially on walks outside, in the mall, or at church when I need to sing.

So, I just had to write about this experience, and share my own joy and surprise that, though I have never actually joined an NINO group, I have actually worn a baby for 9 months, and, in fact, since I just wore her this morning (her 10-mo-birthday) while I was vacuuming, I see no end in sight!

Enjoy some pics!

I'm back!!

So sorry that I have been MIA lately. First of all, things were crazy with cousin Anna’s 1st birthday (Wow! Can she possibly be 1 already!!? What a wonderful girl!), family visiting, and the Thanksgiving holiday. Then, much to our delight, we have been without an internet connection for over a week. AT&T was supposed to update our account. Instead, they deleted it. And, apparently, what took one mouse-click to turn off, takes 8 days to turn back on. Argh!!! Anyway, we are back on-line as of this evening, so I am going to try to put together a blog or two that I have been wanting to write over the past couple of weeks.

Here are a couple of highlights:

-Molly learned to clap last week! You go girl! She loves to show off her newest talent. Its so funny with babies...how one day they can’t do something, and then one day they can! I’m so proud of her getting this.

-Ben tried out a Montessori Preschool that we are considering for next year. Aaron and I had to visit and observe first, and then, on another day, I took Ben back and he participated in the preschool morning for 45 min. It went pretty well, but we still have some discerning to do. It’s hard to know if this style of learning is the right choice or not for preschool. We’ll see what happens.

-Molly also learned to wave to herself in the mirror last week. She will sometimes wave to Daddy or Mommy, but she mostly prefers to wave to herself;)

-Ben has been more creative and imaginative than ever. His thought processes are really getting complex, and his pretend play skills are developing a ton. He is also staring to “get” playing games together like Bingo and Candyland. Not always…and I don’t try to push the idea of a “winner” versus a “loser”, but he is following the process of the games more and more.

-Molly has also learned to click her tongue in imitation. She continues to babble all of the time, and it is so fun to watch her enjoy making a noise intentionally. She loves the attention and praise that she is getting. Its amazing to watch a baby as her little mind “turns on” in developing language and motor skills…to watch her discover that she can affect our reactions and her environment. She is a wonder!! And I love this age!! It’s my reward for surviving another newborn;)

-Ben can pedal a tricycle. This is probably something that he has been ready for for ages. However, we just didn’t have a trike. So I never knew if he could or not. Well, my mom had one in her basement, and he got it out, got on, thought about it a bit, and took off riding around the room like an old pro! I was so proud of him. This was one of those skills that I knew other kids his age were doing, and I felt a nagging sense of neglecting him by never getting around to giving him the chance, but now I see that he can do it perfectly, and I am so glad that he’s so good at it! Indoors, at least. I think next spring and summer are going to be great for some real riding!