5 Reasons why parents should ‘babywear’ & the 5 actual reasons why most parents do.

Parents interested in the theory about carrying their baby whether they’re new or not to the parenting club, will come across the same sort of information.

Without getting into a detailed bibliography, in a kind of readers digest style, it seems to come down to 5 main points why parents should carry their baby;

1) Creating a stronger bond with their child.

2) Carried babies will mature into empathic, selfless people who are completely intune and comfortable with their world.

3) Carried babies can develop a higher degree of emotional intelligence and develop social skills quicker than their ‘left alone’ counterparts.

4) Turns parents into their own ‘baby whisperers’ because parents don’t miss their baby’s cues.

5) Baby is far more settled, which in turn makes parents more confident, which in turn establishes a peaceful harmony of love, trust which in turn will lead to world peace, the end of all wars and life forever more will be a fantasmagorically wonderful Utopia.

OK, the last part of number 5 is a work in progress, but you get my drift? There are some truly wonderful benefits of ‘babywearing’,

Realistically though, I can guarantee you that  in any  home across the world where you find a new family, theory  is the last thing on that new parent’s mind. ‘Babywearing’ might have already been on the family plan in the beautiful bloom state of a first pregnancy, but once baby is born reality sets in.

It happens to be almost comical why most parents will get into ‘babywearing’ anyway.

The 5 real top reasons why parents ‘babywear’ anyway.

FIRST Reason

Babynoia – like paranoia, but at an entirely new level.

There’s no term in the medical encyclopaedia called Babynoia, but to all parents past & present, it is a very real phenomenon. The experience of thinking you hear your baby cry, even though you know baby is asleep, just as you want to do something important.

Take showering? Who hasn’t heard their baby cry the moment you step under the water? Or taking out the rubbish, checking the mailbox or while hanging up the washing.

If showering hasn’t messed with a new parent’s sanity, hanging out the washing will.

Particularly detrimental on the first timer, who may have checked on still sleeping baby a few times already, the ‘abandonment guilt’ side of Babynoia sets in.

Thoughts like ‘I know my baby is sleeping, but what happens if our pet cat/dog/hamster/mongoose lays across baby’s neck’ or ‘Did I leave the iron/heater/left the chips cooking and a fire is starting?’.

Who would have thought in their pre-baby days that hanging out the washing could be so stressful.

Most parents will eventually rationalise that anxiety by either,

* Ignoring it, but still hanging out the washing at Olympic gold medal speed,

* Deny it, what washing?

* Or chill it, by placing baby in the sling, hanging up the washing while swirling around, rocking & possibly singing made-up nursery rhymes about little singlets & cutesy clothes. Singing does amazing things for neighbour relations, if you have a good voice.

A curious thing happens after parents get a handle on the Babynoia, some go ahead and have another baby or few.

 The SECOND reason

Family Management - Why most parents go running to the cupboard to get their baby sling out of storage – more kids!

Life changes when there’s more than one. Parents might find themselves in similar situations like -

* Turn back on newborn & toddler for a split nanosecond only to hear a strange gurgling sound. Find baby in the pram choking on a mouthful of Smarties. Do all manner of panic induced Smartie extractions while toddler says “I was only sharing mummy”. Couple more incidences like that and you don’t need to be Einstein to figure out that new baby is much safer carried under your nose than left anywhere else for the time being.

* Toddlers have the uncanny knack of timing urgent toilet needs just as baby is about to be fed. Always happens.

Mums have to precariously hold baby on the breast with one hand, handle toddler clothing & potty placement with the other.  Or if bottle fed, have bottle wedged under chin. And not forgetting the wash hands war afterwards.

To outsmart toddler toilet timing, savvy parents have their baby already nestled in the sling just before feeding time.

This is what legends in feeding time are made of.  Breastfeeding mums have baby securely attached to the breast supported by the sling, can breeze through potty urgency with both hands free (bottle feeding parents can still have one hand free) like a cool, calm, ‘I have this nailed’ pro.

*Preschool drop off. Some older siblings are absolutely grateful to get a day away from a noisy baby at preschool. They almost can’t get into the school fast enough. I remember seeing one preschooler jump out of the car, race towards the entrance arms flapping in the air, screaming out “FREEDOM!”

OK, He might have been a happy freedom seeking chappy, yet some others, well… have adjustment or jealousy issues.

When this happens, it’s not the most pleasant part of the day for any parent. It can be very, very hard to walk, prise off leg & combat all the pulling & tugging & crying & screaming from an unwilling preschooler with a baby in one arm.  After a few ‘ground hog’ mornings like that, parents can have battle half won with baby in the sling, a few deep breathes & the resolve that this too shall pass.

The THIRD reason.

Vanity!

Chuckle all you like, but when it comes to hiding the post baby jelly belly, nothing hides it like a sling. One of the oldest vanity tricks in the book. To hide a plump belly, use a large tote bag, with new mums, it’s a sling.

By carrying baby in the sling out in public, attention goes straight to the baby and not on the new mum’s lack of Miranda Kerr post baby body.

In all my years of giving birth to my greatest creations, I have only ever seen one woman carrying baby out of hospital while wearing size 8 jeans. I would like to think that she was in fact a proud new aunty carrying baby out to the car for the new parents. There was far too much spring in her step to convince me she gave birth 48 hours ago.

Also, carrying baby, breastfeeding & eating right actually help to fast track baby weight loss anyway. Just not within 48 hours.

The FOURTH reason

Personal space.

And it is very personal. In regards to how much you care if every Tom, Dick, Harry, Nigel, toddler Timmy & dear old Edna touch your baby.

Well meaning people quite readily approach a pram or shopping trolley for  a peek at the most beautiful baby in that parents world, but they also inclined to start pinching baby’s cheeks, toes, while coughing &  spluttering without any thought sometimes.

When parents get to the point where they are sick of producing instant razor sharp talons while snarling out a matching Sabre tooth “STEP AWAY FROM THE BABY” roar, the sling becomes baby & public defender all in one. Almost newsworthy if you think of how a journalist would put the headline…. 

“Sling used as a diplomatic solution in a near hostile stand-off between a parent & a stranger’.

Having baby in a sling, people usually don’t cross the invisible boundary of

adult personal space; no more  unwanted touchy feelies or having to pin a sign on your baby’s chest that reads ‘Please do not touch the baby. Trespassers will be slapped’

The FIFTH reason

Mobility.

‘Have sling & go where no pram can go before you’

Sounds a bit Star Trekky, but all sling parents love this one. Impatient parents are empowered by the speed, often secretly snickering at parents encumbered by burdensome prams as they zoom past. Also on the travelling parents top priority list of must haves, not only is the sling a lightweight baby transporter, can be used as a change pad & a cover on dubious surfaces.

Use a sling, and you won’t be held at the back of the line for an elevator any more, even if you did get there first. How many able bodied people rudely slipping in just as the elevator door opens, does a pram burdened parent have to sneer at before realising a sling is far more practical to manoeuvre in a crowd. Pram rage can only get you so far. Not denying there is a certain amount of satisfaction in ramming ankles, but using a sling, a parent can slalom around the 2 legged ant populations with stealth.

How a baby sling can help you lose baby weight

During all the years I spent carrying my 5 children during their younger years in the sling, I managed to return to my pre pregnancy weight.

I was always on the go. Maybe that was it.
I put it down to our lifestyle, all that healthy eating, out & aboutness, pounding the pavement seeking new clients, running from not so willing prospective clients, chasing the parking- pick up the kids-get to uni deadline and the markets.

All with a baby in the sling, a suitcase and filled to the brim mother's bag.
All that accessory weight I was carrying around.
Other mums were going to the gym.
But I was never far from my size 8 jeans.


Shape? well maybe not so much... the boobs got bigger!

Almost 20 consecutive years of breastfeeding probably added to their size, but really, I have my mother's & grandmother's genetics to thank for that....Good on ya Mum!

When I inherited the nickname of Dolly Parton, I cut off my long blonde hair and dyed the last little bit red.
The strangest thing happened - my husband didn't notice that 12 inches of hair was missing, or that it was a completely different colour, but he did ask, "Are you wearing a new bra honey?"
He never did live that one down.

As much as no one, least of all my appreciative hubby, complains about the size of my voluptuous set of kahoonas, except for me, I'm proud of them & my tiger stripes (stretch marks) of courage too.
They've done some awesome work, truly awesome work.

Just as the kids are growing older, my body parts are sagging south too.

Whilst I've discovered the strangulating joys of shapewear, my size 8 jeans have been packed away.
For some time.

Its been a few years since I carried any of the kids around in the sling for hours on end daily.
Kids have this rather annoyingly bad habit of growing up.

Though I walk every morning, getting back before the family wakes up, which gives me my daily  pep boost, so that I can jiggy jig the Harlem Shake to an audience of none when making the families lunches in the kitchen.
But it hasn't stopped the weight from sneaking on like an uninvited party quest; no one likes those.

I know that going to the gym is like Brussels Sprouts; both are good for me
I don't like either, but I was doing both.
Until I had an accident that damaged my shoulder.

The type of accident you have when you stand on your husband's desk to install a new curtain rail.

An Ikea desk that hubby put together with a 'Mweh I don't need to connect the stabliser bar, it'll be right' after thought.
.
My life flashed before my eyes as the 2 computer monitors, printers, hard drives & all his other shiz coming crashing down on top of me at a furiously fast speed.
One chipped tooth, more bruises than Muhammed Ali after a few rounds and a left arm dangling uselessly later, I still managed to right hand text him 'You didn't put on the f%$King stabliser bar!"

My hubby had an idea once to make T-shirts that read "I can do anything, I survived Ikea instructions"
I'll add to that "I didn't survive my husband's Ikea project"

There went the daily gym visits, and much to my family's relief so did the awful  Brussels Sprout pie.

I had plenty of time to fill with extra bread, a Choc Top or few, a lot of sitting around and not much moving.

Summer hit and my size 12 shorts wouldn't do up.
I used up 2 boxes of tissues that morning.
My husband paled at every sob.

After 4 weeks of dieting, some weight started to shift, but not a lot.
I needed to do a type of exercise that my still recovering shoulder could handle.

Enter a personal trainer trainee from down the road who was dying to get in some experience & the hospital physiotherapist, they have me sorted.
But the weight wasn't showing much interest in budging, until I told the PT about my skinny years with the babes in the sling.

Her eyes struck open so wide I thought they'd pop.
"Of course, of course! the oldest weight loss trick in the book! carry the extra weight. The body works harder, burns more calories without the extra stress"

Since the beginning of February, PT has had me carrying a 10 kilo bag of potatoes in one of our discarded demo slings on my daily morning walks.

There's not a morning that goes past that I fear that one of the other regular walkers will want to stop to look at my 'baby'.
Its an odd thought I know, but there you have it.

But I did lose 7 kilos during February by using this technique, more than triple what I was losing before. My size 10 skinny jeans are little lose this morning, so I'm dancing the happy dance.
Actually I'm pirouetting between paragraphs.

Having spoken to PT further about this & our local Weight Watcher's team leader. By carrying around extra weight such as a baby/toddler in a sling or strapping on exercise weights and walking for at least 40- 45 minutes daily, will help you lose weight.
As long as your diet is a healthy eating one of course.

So get out & about, like our couple in the photo, or use the sling at home for the daily things that you do!

I'm off to find the trunk that holds my old favourite size 8 jeans.
I have a sneaking suspicion that it might be in the attic, and I haven't been in the attic since I watched The Grudge.......
Then again, there's always retail therapy to help with that!

When it comes to the Australian heat, baby sling fabrics are important

Australia is one really big spread of land.

There are climatic differences around the country, generally though, when our great Aussie summer hits, like it actually did this year....it's hot no matter where you live.


It's easy to add layers & rug up for the cold, but when you're down to just underwear, not much more can come off. It's important to keep baby & you cool too, especially when you're carrying them.


Bubba Moe Slings have always been very mindful of the heat factor, that's why we are so strict about the fabric we use.

The big difference between us and other brands is the fabric. Every print we use is specially selected to cater for the Aussie  heat, especially the top north end of Australia, where it's the hottest.

When it comes to searching for a baby carrier, the material it is made from is something that is often overlooked on the check list, unless you've had the previous unpleasant experience of a baby that has reacted to the synthetic carriers or overheated because the fabric was far too thick.

Really important to remember that when it comes to baby carriers & slings, they are like another layer of clothing on your baby.

100% cotton is always the best choice, but not all cottons are the best choice to use.
Many companies use Cotton Drill, which might be great for Europe, but far too thick for the Australian climate. A bit like wearing jeans on a summer's day, a bit sticky & sweaty.

We only use 100% lightweight aerated,  yet strong,  Supercale or Max cotton.

Supercale & Max cotton are like the Percale cotton used in good quality sheets, except it's a grade better; softer & cooler.

A set of real Supercale cotton sheets might cost you an arm, a leg & a small mortgage perhaps, but it's so worth the 'ahhhh' factor of bliss & comfort and the money invested.
There is nothing more heavenly than sliding into bed that has luxuriously soft sheets, and with Bubba Moe slings, baby gets that too.

Plus with these types of cottons, not only are they soft on baby's skin, they allow the air to move freely, which stops stale air from developing around baby.
Its a healthy mix all-round.

So when it comes to hot summer days, baby can be down to just wearing a nappy, when carrying them in the sling.

Enjoy wearing your baby this summer!

Hands Off The Baby

Do you ever feel like putting an invisible force field around your baby when out & about?

In particular – The Supermarket!

Ah! The ‘My Baby has far too many Fans” situation.

The peril of every parent who has a beautiful, gorgeous baby that draws attention like a bee to honey, which makes around 99% of the entire baby population. No wonder celebrities get narky at times.

The other day, waiting in line at Michel’s Patisserie (who make the best shopping mall Chai Latte by the way) 

I was playing Peek-a-boo with a fractious baby while mum was trying to order a birthday cake and some other delectable items.

There she was, looking so sweet, so adorable, sitting in a grocery filled shopping trolley…. I just couldn’t help myself. 

Actually I thought I was helping her mum, while I was locked in waiting for my own Chai.

Well, she had stopped crying and started giggling so I thought I was doing mum a favour in those few seconds, till she scolded me 

“CAN YOU STOP TALKING TO MY BABY!”

Oops. Gulp.

Red faced, grab now finished Chai, exit promptly, baby returns to crying.

 I was one baby entertainer too many for her mum that day.

OK, as parents we do enjoy the ego boast that comes with the compliments and the attention, why not? don’t we love our children?

But when its every aisle, every stop to study products, at the register, it does get too much, especially when it involves staving off wondering hands.

Elderly shoppers tend to be the worst in my experience, followed close by clucky women and the ‘grandparents in waiting’ crowd.

‘It may take a couple to make a child but it takes a village to raise the child’ primal instinct going on here, but do they have to suck on my baby’s first, just because she is so delicious they could eat her! Ewwwwwww!

I warrant that type of experience is a little too ghastly for words!

I encountered this when my first daughter was 3 months old. There she was laying on the baby seat of a shopping trolley, looking all things perfectly angelic, a full mane of little black ringlets, a pristine white frilly dress, I was gushing with all the maternal pride & deep joy I’m totally entitled to, when an elderly man stopped us in the bread aisle.

Nothing unusual, she had already developed a fan club following from the previous 4 aisles.

She had curled her little fist around his finger, smiling up at him; he started to kiss her little fingers then by surprise, started to suck on her hand. Um, Um, Um……. Excuse me mister,…..um……could you let go of my baby please…um sir…mister please…

“HANDS OFF THE BABY” even with that outburst,  I still had to  literally wrench them apart!

Up until that point I admit, I enjoyed people complimenting me on my beautiful, darling, drop dead gorgeous baby girl. She was!

However, I did feel uncomfortable when strangers proceeded to pinch her cheeks, pull at her toes (I thought leather moccasins might have stopped this from happening), poke her chest, play with her ringlets, rub her head, tap her nose (sometimes a tad too hard) or kiss her adorable arms. I also wanted to get my groceries done.

There were times I felt I needed to add ‘personal bodyguard’ to the growing list of parenting duties.

There seems to be no personal space when it comes to children.

By the sounds of it, most parents I’ve spoken to, can recount at least an ‘odd moment or few’ from their experiences.

I remember one mum in a our playgroup wanted to pin a sign on her baby’s chest “Nice to Look, Not Nice to hold” or “Warning – Baby bites”

I stopped placing my babies in the shopping trolley seat, or the pram and used my Bubba Moe sling permanently out in public.

When it comes to the effectiveness of adult personal space, Slings take on a wonderful subliminal brilliance!

An invisible cocoon shoots up when babies are carried in a sling. Strangers very rarely cross the line of adult personal space, which stops the ’I must touchy-feely the irresistible baby’ habit dead in its tracks.

I’ve often noticed a finger head towards a baby then stop as if repelled by some unseen force field!  Works every time!

Basically, if you want to stop all that uninvited physical attention that your superstar baby draws, carry your precious cargo in a sling.

In managing your baby’s public appearances, positioning is very important also.

The 2 positions I recommend for baby’s public engagement is the Lap & Hip Position.

There are specific reasons why!

Babies from around 6 months and hitting a peak at around 9 months of age, babies become very aware of familiar & unfamiliar faces.

Having a baby locked in a full frontal forward position (like most upright carriers) can be very intimidating for baby at this stage. Your baby can feel you, but cant quite see you fully and this can cause quite a lot of distress. Babies will, when socially distressed, ‘push’ their backs to their parent’s chest, turn their heads and almost force their cheeks to their parents, like a vertical stiff plank, before they start to cry. Crying is the last resort emotional resort.

This is why the Lap & Hip positions shown here, is the most developmental ideal.

Babies can still be chest to chest with their parent, yet still look forward as their confidence allows them at their own pace. So in strange & unfamiliar places, baby will turn to their parent’s chest for comfort before facing forward again. 

They seek reassurance from mum or dad that everything is ok.

If baby becomes too distressed or overwhelmed, a quick slide from the Hip or Lap position will have baby in the Snuggle hold (chest to chest) within a few short seconds with out having to remove baby from the sling.

Snuggle hold is often called the ‘comfort hold’. Unfortunately this quick manoeuvring can’t be achieved at all with stagnant or stationary uprights such as the Baby Bjorn or Ergo carriers, which means parents should consider their lifestyle when choosing a baby carrier that will suit them best.

If parent’s lifestyle involves lots of people congestion, such regularly using public transport or many social events, the benefit of using a hammock sling such as a Bubba Moe Sling would be an ideal choice.

Enjoy!

all photos either gratefully sourced from the web or from Bubba Moe's own gallery.

A Day in the life of a Supermum. Oh really!

How do Super Mum's live anyway?

Every morning at around 3.30am I wake up embracing the day, though it's still dark outside and the birds haven't started their morning song as of yet.

Drink a relishing tasty health tonic and escape into the shower.

Don my sport clothes for a 5km jog, travel another 2km power walk, add a 30 minute course of cardio aerobic exercise finishing with a dessert topping of a 4 lap swim.

Shaking my wet hair into a 'naturally dried, I don't need to do another thing to my hair because it's already awesome as it is'. Slip easily into my size 8, superlicious jeans, cup my boobs into a 10B bra and top that off with a stylish, 'you look yummy mummy hot' top.

With enthusiasm and gusto, make every one's lunches, pre-prepare tonight's gourmet dinner, unload and reload faithful dishwasher, clean an already clean looking house, lay out children's daily clothes, make son's power shake, hang out the laundry, pre-program the next load of washing, feed the pets, sit down with a cuppa to answer personal emails, answer online comments, finish social media strategy plan by the last drop of tea and head to work for morning start of 6.30 am.

SLAP!
Sorry about that, I was dreaming again.

Is life really that simple to traverse, yet we seem to think that other mums do.....the idealistic super-mum. The mums that seem to sail through life effortlessly, with beautiful well mannered children, vogue styled home, and an impressive income of her own. She has the Midas touch, everything is easy.

Last week, a friend asked me to watch a web-video on a 'Mogul Mum" who seemed to have it all, she is by all accounts on the surface a super-mum. Watching this well known personality speak about her success, I noticed her body language, her shoulders were hunched a little and her eyes, well, a little less than smiley.This is a woman with some personal troubles or just plain tired, but the talk was there, the hype was there, smacking of "Look at me, look at me, I am so successful". Oh really.

The last time I spoke at a parenting conference I was introduced as an inspirational super-mum, which took me back a little. Liking the compliment anyway, but I am as ordinary as the mum next door.

In reality, I wake up at around 3.30am with a groan. I'd love to meet 7am, I hear its a really good time.

Turn the light on, gasp at the state of the kitchen, make a cup of tea and turn the computer on.
Read emails. Lament at the still dark exterior......
Basically everything else above is the same minus the enthusiasm & gusto, the over achieving exercise routine, the size 8 body, preferred boob size, the hair and clothes thing too, but as soon as there is light, I do go for a 3km power walk and ho hum the joggers that zoom past me each morning. I wouldn't dare jog out of fear that my hefty cleavage will give me a set of black eyes. I'm still not trim.

Today's society expects all mothers to be superhuman, super trim and super good looking and super talented, super committed and super financially independent. No excuses.
Women everywhere are trying so hard to meet these standards and they are secretly killing themselves emotionally & physically to meet the demands.

I think about the generation of women that came before me, like my mum.
My mum's generation were the stay at home wives. Girls who worked in their youth to be typists, secretaries, check out chicks till they married and had kids.

The conversations that mum & her friends used have on their regular get togethers; the lounge room would be filled with ladies puffing away on their cigarettes, drinking their coffee and chatting about how stressful their lives were.
Guaranteed each mum in that lounge room spoke about their daily dose of Valium or diazepam (something that sounded like that), who's husband was having an affair, gossiping about who didn't clean their windows last week, what type of roast to make, the latest in knitting techniques and had anyone tried the latest craze, macrame yet.
No one spoke about their gym routine, because gyms didn't exist then.

It intrigued me as to why all of these women were on Valium or similar in the first place. Valium is a calmative, sedative, that was often prescribed to help the then modern mum through the day without breakdown.
Were children so hard to raise in those days?

The only hardship I can possibly think off for my mother was that I asked more questions than she could ever possible answer, but basically we were all kicked outside to have our own adventures till dinner time. It was great.

Fast forward to the now generation of mums, life is far more complex and convoluted, the demands so much higher, all striving to reach the super human everything, and we are doing it without the aid of Valium.

Conversations now centre around who has found the latest apps, their careers, latest business technology, cloud computing, dropbox, latest google find, FB updates, diet & exercise regime, websites, new retail stores and cafes, best new parties, music and sometimes if you listen very carefully or look at the body language, there is a little subtle hint of "I'm drowning in competition here".

Majority of mums work, so career paths are critical to reach supermum status rather than just jobs. One dear friend returned to work once her children started school as a 'check out chick' at a local supermarket, rather than her previous corporate role. "I love my job really, it's the school hours so I'm free to be mum to my boys, I dont have to worry about after school care. I leave without taking work home with me, it's ideal in every way but I'm embarrassed to mention what I do in the company of other women that have executive positions, because they look down their noses at me as if I'm not important".

In reality, women in front line roles such as retail & customer service are far more important to us on a daily level than one woman at CEO level of a major corporation that we would not normally affiliate with. Just imagine if there was no one working in the supermarkets, or no supermarkets at all, we'd be back to growing all of our own veges (which is fun), slaughtering our own chickens & cattle (which isn't fun) ourselves or standing in long, long queues.

Many mums have also become business owners. The new breed of mumpreneurs, have the added stress of single handedly building the entire infrastructure of their company from the ground up, continually pursuing business education. Elements outside the initial product or service, such as employees, marketing, social media expertise, presentations, meetings, sourcing, business & retail relationships; the list is endless.
Yet every week the benchmark lifts a little higher and the mumpreneur has to work yet harder.
Last week someone mentioned I wasn't on Pinterest. "Huh?"

No matter what society expects from us, as mother's we are still in charge of doing the same motherly duties of looking after our children and partners as our predecessor did plus a whole lot more.



Take the outside work mum, who has to get the kids up and ready, the partner too sometimes, so that she can get to work on time. I have watched mums struggle into the day care centre in our home street, holding a tearful baby in one arm whilst dragging a defiant, cantankerous toddler in the other, come back out brushing a tear a way or wait till they get in the car and thump their head on the steering wheel, taking deep breaths. Their stressful day started a while ago and they haven't even arrived at work yet.

As our children reach primary school age, there's the struggle to get them to school on time, only to have the little darlings say at the school gate "Mum did you get my bag?"

  
Not to mention the plethora of after school activities, when mum becomes the taxi service, circumnavigating afternoon traffic across a couple of suburbs if she has more than one child or maybe a few to cart around.

Juggle the taxi service in between the second most important meal of the day, which is also the most time consuming and complex meal to make - the evening dinner. Add a few rounds of homework supervision (or battle standoffs), the bath time, the kitchen cleaning, folding the laundry, the bedtime routine (or war), it's not surprising to find many an overwhelmed mum not yet out of their work clothes at 9pm, trying to make it all fit in.






Mums seem to push themselves at the expectation to perform at a top knot rate endlessly throughout their day & night in all areas, to prove 'I am woman, hear me roar! I am woman, I am invincible" as Helen Redding sang the song that inspired women to change their lives from that day forward.


In hindsight someone should have put gaffer tap over her mouth!!

Something has got to give? but what?



Aside from the the secret wishful thinking of a few hours of 'free me time', as mothers, we wouldn't trade our children for anything.

Weekends are lost on the catch up of domestic chores, leaving most working mums without the option of critical battery recharging that the kids and non helpful partners enjoy the abundance of.
We're supposed to do it with a smile to!



As we battle the 'must have clean nest' syndrome internally, we endeavour to make our lives easier; we look, we search, we share tips, ideas, suggestions. As women we do that well, we also set the benchmark, the standards, we compete, we show off, because that's what women do. We are our own most significant 'frenemy'.

A friends daughter will be turning 10 at the end of this month, so she was scouring the bowels of google, blogs, websites and Pinterest for fab ideas and came away completely disheartened, somewhat depressed, if not impressed with her finds.
Looking on one blog site, her eyes feasted, her creative juices flowed and her heart sank
"Is this the new standard for little girls parties" she groaned "I can't compete with that, now I feel lousy that I can't, not only do these things, didn't think of them in the first place and just don't have the energy to coordinate it all?" she sighs.
It seems that Mcdonalds parties are no longer acceptable for that age group.

So the hangup begins again...... 'why can't I be a better mum like that mum'.....or 'mums like that make mums like me look real bad'..

Honestly, children really don't care if their mum can't master cloud computing, spreadsheets, diverse applications or make fancy sugar iced dolly clothes for dolly cookies, they love mum for who she is; their mum.

All mums are awesome in their own right!

Laugh at the chaos,

Take a 'good' break weekly (locking yourself in the toilet for half an hour, counting to 10 over and over again isn't considered a good break)

Don't stress about having to make the beds before you go to work in the morning; an empty house doesn't care. I have never known a house to have a sign on its front door "My owner didn't make the beds today"

Baked beans on toast for dinner is more than perfectly acceptable, we just don't get enough legumes in our diet anyway.

Don't compare yourself to other mums, they are probably doing the same to you.

Toys and baby paraphernalia scattered around is a sign 'My Family lives here'

Have an FFYD (Fend For Yourself Dinner) night at least once a week if you can. I've started to partake in that great invention.

If your are totally overwhelmed (and who isn't at times) find another mum to talk with and get things off your chest. She might need it too.

Believe in yourself, your kids do.



and,

"No one ever says on their death bed, I should have spent more time in the office"

Enjoy!

ACCC is not an authority on safety - a must read!!

What if you are in the market for a new car. You've done the research, you've thought about it and came up with a decision on a particular car. What if you read an article from an authority you believe is an expert on all things car related. This authority, this car expert steers you away from your decision, saying it's a bad choice, don't go near it. You decide on another type of car from the findings of this expert. What if, a few months down the track you discover that this expert doesn't know the difference between a motorcycle, a truck or even a station wagon. How would you feel? ripped off? angry perhaps? annoyed about being lied too? steaming at the ears because your original choice would have been perfect to suit your needs. What would you do? speak up?

I spent over an hour 2 weeks ago speaking with Tony Mintura from the ACCC, who released to the media that cloth slings are dangerous and shouldn't be used. A sort of Armageddon type statement that smacked of innuendo that if you put your baby in a sling it will die, it will suffocate instantly.
Yet no baby actually has. The first one last year was the famous 'hang the baby on the door knob' case.

OK I warrant that it was a 'bag style sling' that had 2 layers, elasticised opening and the baby was strapped to the bottom of the sling and hung off the door knob so the parents dogs couldn't get at the baby. It might have sounded like a good idea at the time but it became a fatal one. The elasticised opening closed up as a natural reaction, the dual layers of fabric stopped airflow and the baby was at the bottom of the bag carrier breathing in stale air. A mistake that can never be repaired.
Infantino recalled all of it's bag style carriers for review, while most of the industry had again repeated what they all thought when it first appeared on the market.....WTF! We all still do.

The ACCC went into fight mode and the newspapers said that if the ACCC have their way, all slings will be banned. Shock waves hit the industry, contacting the ACCC was harder than a needle in a hay stack, so emails were written, phones calls - all unanswered.

I saw more than 15 years of hard work, research, study, testing, go running out the door faster than my family when I offer Brussels Sprout Pie is for dinner.

Only those who are fans, didn't read the article, or tish-toshed the ACCC antics away that we are still here today.

Looking at the photo's in this blog, it looks nearly impossible on how a baby can suffocate. Rule of thumb with any product, you must be able to see baby's mouth at all times.

With the death of a 2 day old newborn baby in SA worn under the mother's jumper, the ACCC is at it again, trying to blame the death on slings. Most people will agree carrying a baby under a jumper without visible access to baby's mouth is never a clever idea, regardless of being in a sling or not.

The coroner handed down the judgement that the death was indeterminable, but the ACCC once again tried to focus the blame on a sling. The point is that with any type of suffocation, there is clear forensic evidence, such as cell & tissue damage, explaining it simply. This was not evident in the baby's autopsy.
Again we approached the ACCC with a 'please explain & why are you scaremongering the public!"

No answer again until I decided to follow protocol and make a complaint about the ACCC as a jeopardising monopoly, which by the way is illegal. The only government body who can approach in times like this is the ACCC. So the ACCC had to follow mandatory protocol and investigate itself.
My outcome - result! A phone call from the man himself, Tony Mintura, the expert on sling safety, except he doesn't know the difference between any of the different types of carriers on the market.

I'm not joking!!!!!!!! this man who made the statements, the press releases, doesn't even know the difference between a hammock style carrier, a parachute style, a wrap style or the dreaded bag style (ok most of us in the industry want to see this style go, because we are all in the know). I had to spend some time explaining how the different styles operate, the benefits, the whole kit & caboodle. I also asked him if he had ever used one, though I suspected the answer - no, "I just doesn't like them" he said.
This is the man that is trying to govern what you are allowed to use, like the car expert who knows nothing of cars.
Our industry was ever grateful to Kidsafe who immediately got on TV to feature how safe slings are.


What or who is the ACCC anyway? What do they do?
The ACCC was formed as a watchdog to protect businesses and consumers from pricing & practise monopolies.
They are not an authority on product safety.

Mostly this organisation was established as an outcome from the insidious dealings of the building industry, then became a protective blanket for all industries.
As one example, in our industry, some years ago, a private organization called INPAA, aka Industry Nursery Products Australia Association was formed as a regulatory group to list safe products that had undergone or met high safety standards, including legislative, such as car seats or non-legislative products, such as baby carriers etc.
Initially this non-government body was an ethical group determined to make Australian babies & children's products safe, but with a changing of the board of directors over the years, an insidious practise started to emerge.
Around 5 years ago, Bubba Moe Slings was the first to achieve product liability for soft baby carriers within Australia. I approached INPAA to become 'certified', and was rejected without any comment. Numerous phone calls were never returned and we at Bubba Moe were left scratching our heads as to why?
It wasn't till we were at a baby expo in Melbourne we were told the truth by another sling competitor who also had trouble gaining any entry into this elusive organisation. Having done some research herself, she found that another competitor of ours was one of the board of directors of INPAA, therefore any other soft baby carrier company would not be allowed a certificate of approval. Of course INPAA approached retailers to become a part of their group (retailers paying a hefty annual fee to display a sticker in the window) and then telling the retailers to clear their shelves of any non-INPAA products. A monopoly formed.
Many retailers bucked at the cost and the loss of some of their favourite products. It was a pram manufacturer (who wishes to remain anonymous) who found that another board member was also a pram manufacturer, that contacted the ACCC. This is were the ACCC is an authority. The board members were sacked, a new practice protocol was put into place under the guidance of ACCC, and we in the industry sighed a hefty sigh of relief.

For the record, Australian Standards & Kidsafe have never been in any association with the ill-fated INPAA. Though INPAA is still trading (eyebrows raised) it doesn't have any clout or bearing and most people don't even know of its existence. The former board members who eagerly wished the demise of their competitors all went out of business themselves (karma always bites back)

The strange thing is that why is ACCC getting involved? They along with the ABA (Australian Breast Feeding Association) are trying to set a standard on baby carriers personally. I feel that this is INPAA revisited all over again. ABA themselves don't have a breastfeeding carrier except for their 'apron' style carrier that has been rated the worst carrier in history for it's tiny shoe string straps and no infant head support. They approached me around 2 years ago to redesign this carrier to be more supportive, user friendly and most importantly breast feeding friendly! I was eager until a change of staff (there's a lot of staff changes) left me dealing with their project manger........ in short -  I quit!!!!!!!!!!!
I, like all their previous staff wanted to hide on the Sahara side of Timbuktu.

In the Media industry, they are often referred to as the 'WHO', but these people have some clout.
Do you know why you never or very rarely see advertisements on bottles or dummies? The ABA is responsible for that. Whether you are a member or not, all new parents are under the wrath of the ABA, who themselves are creating a monopoly - which is illegal.



New parents are being denied access to knowledge of an item that they might or have to use. No parent should be made to feel ashamed for using a bottle, after all what is a bottle really? It's a drinking vessel, like a cup, glass, pop top etc, its just something to drink out of.

Our caricature (mascot) is a derivative of a photo of my 2nd son 'the Chef' & me when he was 5 months old. In the photo he is sitting in the sling chomping at the side of his mouth a dummy (great for teething instead of me) with me looking at him with motherly love. We cant use our mascot because of the dummy.
For me it's a homage to my son who made me start the business of Bubba Moe.

We were incredibly poor, faced with a moral dilemma when he sold his 4 rabbits to produce $20. Do I use the money to buy food or buy fabric to make some more money maybe? when I had my first non-family customer. It was he who said "If you do this, our lives will change"
The next week, when she paid for the sling, we bought something that we hadn't had in a very long while - ice cream.

help us choose a Mini Moe Logo and win one for the little mothers

The first time I made a 'Mini Moe' was when Missy Zip was 6 years old, she is now 21. 

The Baby Born doll was the biggest fad since the Barbie, and like all the other girls her age, high on the Christmas wish list. 

Month before Christmas, as the queue for the doll reached frantic level, I still needed to find tidbits like clothes & accessories for the doll, running out of time, I brought in the cavalry to stand in line, my mum. 

I left her with a look that smacked of "be nice" I went in search for the extras, surmising that it would be at least another half an hour

One hell of a ferocious person just by her look, mum never stood any line for anything very long. 

Mean mums come in handy for moments like these.

I was still gulping back the cost of the hefty priced outfits, which started at $48, and the Baby Born carrier was double that, when mum came up with the doll leaving behind a trail of curse mutterings from those still left in line. 

She demanded we leave real soon, or there might be a posse of irate mum's waiting for us in the car park.

"But I haven't got any clothes for the doll........"

With Troll, a then bub in the sling, it was mum who suggested or more like an inpatient scowl "make them yourself" as she pointed to the sling.

Looking past me, she said "Quick, give me the sling". I didn't need to turn around to know that there was a troop of angry shoppers with an agenda coming up behind us.

Transferring sleeping Troll in sling from me to mum was done in less then 30 seconds, she shoved me aside, pushed out her boobs, cracked her knuckles one at a time as she faced her self induced foe.

It worked every time, they slinked away.

Mum was as embarrassing as many times as she was right about things. 

I guess growing up in the slums of a European city ravaged by war & other atrocities, she came accustomed to casually stepping over fist fights in the street as she did stepping off a curb to cross a street.

That night I made Missy Zip and the Baby Born identical twirly floral dresses with matching flip up hats and a coordinating stripe Mini Moe dolly sling. I had to wait till she went to bed before commandeering The Chef's body as a guide for the Mini Moe dolly sling. Just 2 years older, he was used to being a live mannequin for all the Aster Moe Kidswear designs; boys & girls wear alike. 

Couple of years later it was a different story as I had to chase him around the house to get him to try on an outfit. "I'm not getting into a dress, FINAL!" he protested, hurdling couches, sliding across the kitchen bench island, as I pleaded in hot pursuit "I just need to check dimensions that's all. Honest it will be quick, pleeeaasse"

I couldn't wait till Christmas for missy Zip to have the Baby Born Doll and the various other outfits I ended up making. That doll was going to be the best dressed doll in town.

As with Missy Zip it was a hit as it was for our Aster Moe customers.

Mini Moe Dolls Clothes was born that Christmas and lived for another 10 years, selling at all the various markets we did.  All the designs were replicas of the of the Aster Moe range, many times the dolls clothes sold out before the children's clothes did. At Christmas time there would be queues of people, 4 -5 deep grabbing at the dolly clothes.  These days there is case of left over Mini Moe dolls clothes and a naked Baby Born, which has Texta makeup to rival the scariest clown in town in permanent non use under Little Miss Mischief's bed. I guess she didn't like Baby Born's as much as Missy Zip did.

 

The Mini Moe Dolly sling though, is in rampant use by little Miss Mischief & her BFF - Bailey. Sezah, her rabbit along with Snowy & Jasmine the resident guinea pigs all get daily rides as LMM lullaby's them with her own fairy & unicorn songs in the garden.

I'm thinking, singing lessons might not go astray in the new future..............

I have experimented with the Mini Moe Dolly slings for a long time, but kept coming back to our original version, thinking that maybe a ring sling version might give better sizing to accommodate different shapes & rapidly growing bodies. I experimented with parachute style versions, thinking that little kids could relate easier with that style, but there were already a few on the market and it seemed to contradict what we were about. Mostly parents spoke about their little toddlers grabbing the sling that was used for them and putting their teddies in, but it was too big; so back to the original once again.

Like a lot of things in our lives, we put a lot of projects to the back burner, due to life as we know it being so full as it is.

This time I did I got the legals in process before anyone saw the revised Mini Moe Dolly Sling; a little but very important thing called IP protection!!!!

Nothing is more heart braking than having your design that you have spent countless hours researching developing only to have it stolen away by the lack of an A4 sheet of paper. I've seen it happen to so many people in the past and it's not such a big process once you've don't it once.

We're really happy at the response we have had within our control groups, the retailers who have 'proof tested' the product and at Perth's PBC Expo last month a hit with the general public.

The product itself is finished, though we are still finalising the choices of logo's done by the fabulous Bec Marr from  RubyRuby designs and the marketing material such as packaging and other things that go with a new product......... so much to do! 

The staff & I just can't seem to settle on a favourite, so we thought it might be nice to have our fans & readers have an input in choosing the new logo for our Mini Moe Dolly Sling.

 As a reader of this blog, there's a chance to win a free Mini Moe Dolly Sling, from the following concepts, which logo would you choose? Post your answer in the comment section below. Who ever chooses the final design will get a Mini Moe of their choose, there's are 15 cute selections to choose from