The baby(wearing) frame of mind...

As my due date quickly approaches (and I progress further beyond the point at which my first two were born...ugh), I am in nesting mode. With the help of my mother during her visit a few weeks ago and the understanding of my husband, I have been washing, folding, stacking, organizing, stockpiling, cleaning, arranging, installing and planning.

It began months ago with bigger purchases (an extra dresser to house the baby's clothes and provide a changing table in our bedroom, a glider for our baby nook, an awesome swing at a consignment sale, etc.), but years ago with the basics we used for our first two kiddos. Within a couple months of Katherine's birth I began a collection that continues to grow to this day. Anyone who knows me well knows about my obsession with baby carriers. It began with a couple of homemade ring slings made in desperation to (hopefully) calm an extremely colicky newborn. Katherine and I took to babywearing like ducks to water and even got daddy on board and involved Grandma and Uncle Lucas when they were visiting! What followed over the next five years was truly a lifestyle change. It began with the addition of the Baby Bjorn (which we used, but later sold at a garage sale when we moved on to better options), a pouch-style Hotsling, an Ergo Carrier (which my husband still loves), mei tai's from several people on Etsy, ring slings from two wonderful women with home-based businesses and an online presence (www.babyloveslings.com and sleepingbaby.net), and the Beco Butterfly.

For our newest little one I have my eye on the Boba Baby Carrier. I have heard great things about these carriers! I love the soft structured carrier style and the buckles make putting them on a breeze. I love that the Boba comes in an organic style made in the USA. One thing that sets Boba apart from the other soft structured carriers seems to be the option to use foot straps to add leg support for your little one, encouraging a healthier hip and pelvis position (the main reason we moved away from the Bjorn). An added bonus: the absolutely adorable Organic Boba in the Tweet pattern they have right now! That has to be one of the most adorable patterns out there.

Right now you can win a Boba Baby Carrier by entering several online contests. One of my favorite momma review blogs, Momma In Flip Flops 2 is blessing readers with one of these awesome carriers. A cool blog I just stumbled upon, Familylicious Reviews & Giveaways is also giving away a Boba to one lucky winner. Selfishly, I hope I win one!

Fake Empathy Gone Wrong

I woke up this morning to several tweets about a new ad appearing on Motrin's website. The ad campaign attempts to empathize with moms, saying "we feel your pain." Great concept, extremely poor execution. The ad at the center of the mounting controversy has a voiceover of a "mom" talking about how much of a pain it is to wear your baby and how she does it for her child, but only because it is fashionable and/or "supposedly" good for them.

Really? Generations of women across the globe have been wearing their babies for fashion? The countless women today that wear their babies do so based upon the idea that it is "supposedly" good for them? Really? You feel my pain as a mother?

I think not. Countless studies have shown real, measurable (i.e. proven) benefits to wearing your child. Even if there were NO scientific evidence that wearing your child was beneficial for the child I would wear my children. I wear them to be close to them, I wear them to comfort them, I wear them to comfort myself, I wear them because it is more convenient that a stroller, I wear them because it is easier than lugging around a baby in an infant seat, I wear them because I love them...I could go on.

I do not wear them because of scientific research (although it is nice when studies prove what moms have known all along). I do not wear them because it is fashionable (although we are blessed that mainstream culture has found it acceptable and that has increased the choices we have for carriers and accessories).

Motrin hasn't shown empathy, they have just ticked us off. Do you need proof of that? This morning when I first heard about this ad, other moms on Twitter were tagging their tweets with #motrinmoms. Curious, I googled motrinmoms (ironically as I was trying to decide which carrier to take with me to church) and got 50 results. This afternoon I refreshed my earlier google search and found 1,390 results. I think there is even a Facebook page now!

I hope that the ad execs get a virtual hailstorm of responses from us. I want to say that someone deserves a bad day tomorrow, but alas, nobody deserves a bad day. I just hope this is a learning experience!

I am proud of all of the moms and dads out there who have reacted to this ad. I hope that our responses will send a clear message to Motrin. We aren't idiots, don't insult us by treating us like idiots. Does my back hurt after a long day spent carrying my child in a carrier? Yes (how badly depends on the carrier). But to suggest that I do it for fashion or because there are merely supposed benefits is insulting.

Table shots...

My MIL had the greatest idea. When she wanted one of her kids to keep occupied when they were still in the just lay there phase she would put a comfy blanket in the middle of the kitchen table, lay them on their backs, and let them look up at the ceiling/lights/etc. She discovered with grandchild #7 that they would also enjoy looking at themselves in the mirrored tiles of her table!

So, while visiting there a few weeks ago we had a photo shoot (or two or three) on her kitchen table! Here are a couple of the best shots (that room gets great natural light as well):
Even a few short weeks later we are beyond our window where this works. He is perfecting the army crawl right now and I have no doubt he will be really crawling soon. Maybe it is time for something like the Stepping Stone Play Mat to capture his attention and get him going. MomDot has a review about it (and a giveaway!). Hmmm...maybe for Christmas, or would that be too late?

Not Yet, Please

Don't cut your teeth yet, Jack. The last week or so has found our little guy gnawing on fingers and chomping on a pacifier if its put in his mouth. If he can get his fists anywhere near his mouth, he practically growls trying to get them far enough in to chew on them. He has also been drooling like a madman.

I know that even if these signs do herald the beginning of teething, he may not actually cut teeth for a few months. But, he is not even 10 weeks old! Oh well, hopefully he follows his sister's lead and doesn't become a biter.

Anniversary Thoughts

Today is my 6th wedding anniversary. Some days I can't believe it has gone so quickly. Other days I feel like we've been married forever (mostly this is a good thing). I don't know if it is due to my impending anniversary or just because I am expecting kiddo #2 any day now and becoming introspective, but I have been thinking a lot the last week or so about what qualities I find attractive in a man. I am blessed to have found an amazing mate (husband, father, partner, believer) in James.

One of the many things I find incredibly attractive in my husband is his belief in babywearing. For those of you not well-acquainted with the term, check out http://www.thebabywearer.com/. Anyway, seeing a man hanging out solo with his children is extremely heart-warming to me. But, to see a grown man with no qualms about wearing his child really touches me. Whatever the type of carrier, that image really gets me going. Not only is my beloved comfortable with the concept of babywearing, he actively participates. One of my favorite memories of K's first few weeks in this world is James in the front yard raking leaves with K strapped to his chest.

In my opinion, a man's willingness to wear his child speaks volumes about the type of father he is willing to be. A friend of ours recently said that he wasn't sure how manly he felt wearing a sling, but he didn't care. I tried to assure him that it was attractive (to at least some women) to wear your children, but he still wasn't convinced it was quite "manly." Oh well, it may not be the hallmark of masculinity, but it is one of the things I find most attractive in a man.
Another attraction to my husband (also associated with his dedication to his child(ren)) relates to the task he is spending our anniversary accomplishing. He has enlisted the help of a friend of ours to dedicate a portion of our front lawn to K (and all of the neighbor kids). Months ago we had a friend help us hang a swing from the large tree in our front yard. The swing was not only a huge hit with K, but also many of the neighbor kids so a path has been worn under the swing where we are no longer able to grow grass. Instead of making futile attempts to re-seed, sod, or some other expensive effort my wonderful husband has decided that it would make more sense to lay a bed of playground mulch under the swing and around the tree to accomodate a small slide. Now, this may not seem like a huge sacrifice to some. However, pre-parenthood, my husband was known for actually mowing patterns into our lawn.
How sexy is it to see a man who has embraced fatherhood so completely that he risks not looking manly to wear his children and gives his front lawn over to a mini-playground!? Extremely...

Signing On

This blog is named in honor of my mother who spent countless hours in the wee hours of the morning writing letters at the kitchen table with an inconsolable, cranky, screaming baby (me) on her lap. Most of the letters were never sent, but the practice gave her something to do when nothing would calm me down and she knew she wouldn't sleep until I did. She later told me that she thought of publishing those many letters in a book she would title "Letters After Midnight." Now that I too have become a mother (to another screamer no less) and find that the only peaceful time I have to myself is after midnight, I thought the title only appropriate. So, this is for you Mom! I love you so much and have only just begun to realize how much you sacrificed for me.