=SUMMER IS ON IT’S WAY!=
-Keeping  Cool with a Solarweave Connecta-

The  weather is finally warming up and thoughts are turning to Summer.
Carrying a baby can be hot work in the heat, and we have the ideal solution!

The Solarweave Connecta is possibly the lightest, coolest carrier on the
market.  Made from Solarweave fabric, which is incredibly strong and tightly
woven,  whilst  still being lightweight, it also protects baby from UV
radiation from the sun.

The  fabric  has been tested by an independant laboratory and shown to
provide  SPF30+/UPF 40+  protection even after 40 launderings (equivalent to
2  years  of  wear and tear), and 100 hours of accelerated ultraviolet
exposure.

The fabric is 100% non-irritating, even to sensitive skin.

Made to our winning Connecta Baby Carrier design, with the addition of the
integrated sun/sleep hood, the Solarweave Connecta provides all of the
comfort in wearing you would expect.  Featuring a wide seat to keep baby in
the anatomically correct seated position, well padded shoulder straps and
comfortable wide webbing.  Yet it folds up amazingly small,  perfect for
packing in holiday suitcases!

In addition to the sun protection, solarweave fabric is also extremely quick
drying, and the Solarweave Connecta can be worn in the water at the beach or
pool, and also in the shower. (Not for use whilst swimming.)

This year the Solarweave Connecta is available in four different colourways.
Blackberry, Khaki, Scarlet Red and Pale Blue. (Blackberry and Khaki in stock now, preorders for Scarlet and Pale Blue are being accepted)

There is a very important fundraiser happening within the babywearing community.  A very kind and generous mother, who has been there to help countless other mothers, is in need of help.  She and her children are in a terrible domestic violence situation, and her fellow community memers are working hard to raise funds to help her get her and her children to safety.  A Yahoo group has been established as well as a Hyena Cart store to take collections and to have auctions.  If you have anything to offer, please do so, this mama really needs your help.

It’s one of the most common ways I see mothers and fathers carrying their babies…in a bucket car seat.  I refer to these babies as ‘bucket babies’.  Almost everytime I go to the mall, the grocery store, the park, etc. I see babies in buckets.  I feel so bad for both the baby in the bucket, as well as the ones who need to carry it.

As I sat at the mall for an entire weekend at a vendor stand, I had the opportunity to talk with many parents who thought that carrying the bucket was the only way to go…when in fact once they realized their were more comfortable and easy to use choices available, they were interested!  We heard many reasons as to why people had chosen to keep their baby in a bucket…’she sleeps so well’, ‘it’s convenient’, ‘I don’t need to take her out and put her back in, I can just pop the seat in and out’, ‘I have tried a sling, but they don’t work for me’, ‘I can sit the bucket in the cart’, and so on…

A few of my worries with babies being left in their buckets: 

Babies like to be held, and it is good for their development.

Babies deserve to be interacted with, and their interaction is limited while they are nearly covered up and tucked into their carseat, often while it is placed in a shopping cart.

Babies like to change positions, too…it feels good after a long car ride to get out of your seat and stretch out a little…it feels good for babies, too.

Those buckets are heavy!  I can’t imagine how carrying those, as well as the weight of the baby, is good for your back, arms, or neck!

They bump into everything, your legs included.  There is really no great way to carry one of these things without having it bump into your leg with every step.  Not fun!

  I have been walking through stores with my baby closely snuggled up in a carrier, with both hands free (well, one hand free…the other one is almost always rubbing my baby’s back!), talking to my baby, knowing she can feel safe…knowing she is warm…knowing she can hear my heartbeat…and wonder why this is what I see:

 Mothers struggling to keep their babies from screaming while juggling the carseat, a shopping cart, and toys to try to distract the baby.  Sometimes a whole shopping cart is dedicated to carrying a bucket carseat, while another person needs to oush the cart to put groceries in…My guess is most babies would be happier being held, and most mothers would feel less stressed.  Isn’t that what we want?  I watch those moms and desperately want to take off my sling and put it on them. 

I have had the pleasure of teaching many parents about the benefits and convenience of wearing their baby.  Our society doesn’t seem to recognize the importance of nurturing our babies.  I hear things like “She will never want to walk if you carry her all the time”, “She is going to get spoiled”, “She can’t be comfortable like that” (meanwhile she is contently alseep), “doesn’t that hurt their legs?”, and so on…It is important to hold our babies.  Each one of them will grow up.  There will come a time when they don’t want to be held.  There will come a time when you wish you could still be holding them.