Sling a ding ding dong!

Even though I've never had a baby a baby of my own or even a younger sibling, I know that I love slings. Why? They are totally easy to use, your baby can be squished against your squishy belly and magnificent bosoms, and best of all they come in an amazing array of prints and fabrics.
So I have been looking at all kinds of slings, both in the stores and on the internet. There's the kind with a ring and a bit of fabric hanging off and those come in all colors and woven patterns. Those are very adjustable and the ring should sitting just below your shoulder and not press into your skin. Here's a website to check out http://www.ebabycarriers.com/. These are nice if you are feeling shy about your body, because an interesting swath of fabric with a baby peeking out is sure to draw attention away from mommy's legs or arms or whatever. There's also wrap systems like the Baby K'tan (above center right) that are soft and unconstructed like slings but versatile like a Baby Bjorn. More info can be found at their website http://www.babyktan.com
But my preference is for the pouch style slings, which offer the least encumbrance and don't have any straps or surplus fabric to slow me down. However, they are not adjustable and my big husband Morgan will not be able to share the sling (he considers them a bit effeminate anyway, Cro- Magnum mam that he is). Until I knew my large size banana (What to Expect When You're Expecting Iphone app 20 weeks) was a boy, I was dreaming of Peanut Shell's Heirloom sling (center left). This is $99 and can be found here http://www.thepeanutshell.com/
Now that is truly lovely, a wedding dress of a sling. But it is just a touch girly and that means tons of explanations, something I learned with my male dog Fern. Who would have loved riding around in a sling when he was a baby! Peanut Shell also sells a variety of nursing covers in bright prints if you'd like to give your booby and your baby a bit of privacy. Another place to look for beautiful slings and also nursery decor is http://www.serenaandlily.com/
These are quite pricey but they would make a very special shower gift, and I think being a new mother is a time when it's tough to feel pretty, and it's important to at least surround yourself with lovely things, even if your life revolves around poopy diapers. Well, big baby Fern is growling at me to get dressed and take him for a walk.

Baby shopping!

My mother-in-law and I braved the Brookline baby stores yesterday...Magic Beans in Coolidge Corner and Isis Maternity in Brookline village. I wasn't ready for the complete Babies R Us blast, but it was time to dip my toes, as it were, into the baby pool.
Magic Beans on Harvard Ave (http://www.mbeans.com/ )was our first stop, and I tried on the Ergo baby carrier first. It was something I'd been admiring for awhile online. The Ergo carriers (http://www.ergobabycarrier.com/ )are organic and come in a TON of attractive colors, and all the mothers and babies in the pictures are beaming with good health and general joie de vivre. They run from about $89 on up, and the one I tried was $120. Unfortunately I could barely strap it on even with the help of a very helpful salesclerk, much less extricate myself and the toy baby. So it was onto the Baby Bjorn Active, $130(on right) which was, sadly, much easier to use and more comfortable. I am generally against all things appearing sporty, but there's a reason the Baby Bjorn has been so popular for so long. Plus my brother Donovan uses it for my niece Lulu, and that guy knows whats up. Then it was stroller time, and Magic Beans has a great selection. But I'll write about those later, because I'm still in sticker shock.

Our family

As of today, we are one husband, one wife, one woofhound and one half grown baby. Morgan and I met in the summer of 2005 and noticed that we loved each other about a year later. And our first baby, Fern, fell from the sky and into our laps on Halloween 2008. Last summer we had our big wonderful summer solstice wedding and this summer we are expecting our son around the same day. We weren't exactly planning to have a baby right at this moment, but I was hoping hoping hoping, and my wish came true. I found out in October, and now I'm halfway there (20 weeks). We live in a little house in weirdo suburbs, and Fern and I spend a lot of time being lonely and cold and looking forward to picking strawberries and running around fields of flowers with the baby. So I'm trying to put the hours I spend surfing the internet for pretty maternity clothes and cool baby gear to good use, and share them with other pregant ladies.