I’ve been babywearing for a long time. What began as a means of parental survival when our third baby was born, quickly became a passion. Eventually, I ended up with quite the extensive collection of carriers. I recently joked to my husband that I almost have enough carriers that I can wear a different carrier (be it style, print, brand, etc..) every week for an entire year.. He made the challenge, and so I will!
Introducing the Diaper Bag Confessions #whowhatwearweekly — Every Friday of 2018, I will post our weekly carrier on my Instagram. Who made it (spoiler alert- most of my collection is LÍLLÉbaby) – what it’s called – and a different carrier (be it a different style, color, print, or brand) every week for a year.
Im super excited to show you my carrier collection, have an excuse to grow it a little more, and answer any babywearing questions you might have! I’d love to have you follow along!
Raising five boys has definitely taught me a lot. I became very accustomed to “boy mom” life. Obviously, as a woman raising 5 future men… I have strived to instill values in them that I feel are important traits to make them not only good humans, but men of integrity who value the importance of women.
Thinking about how we raise our boys and the example my husband sets for our boys made me think about raising our baby girl. The differences, the priorities.. She’ll be a little girl in a boys world — which, I’m hoping, prepares her for being a woman in a man’s world.
I want her to grow up knowing that she is not weak. I hope that if her brothers tackle her (and they will!) — she gets up, brushes off her tutu, and pins them to the ground. Stand up for yourself, baby girl! On that same note — I also want her brother’s to know that it’s perfectly okay when she wins, and ONLY encourage her to try to do so! While I do want her brothers to feel protective and defensive of her, I also want them all to realize she needs to be confident enough to hold her own.
I want her to know that she deserves just as much respect and equality as her brothers, and she should not hesitate to go for it! At the same time, however, I want her to realize that she is not entitled to anything simply because she’s a girl – just as her brother’s must also understand that they aren’t more deserving of anything based on their anatomy.
I hope that having all of these brothers helps her realize that she has value much greater than her looks. As a girl, people will surely remark on her outward appearance – and I don’t want her to focus on that. Be them positive or negative comments. Strive for strength and confidence before beauty.
I hope she challenges and encourages her brothers to continue to grow their views of what “masculine” and “feminine” mean. Showing that she can pretend to be Darth Vader and they can sit down in pint sized chairs for tea parties and both are entirely acceptable!
My biggest hope for her? That she realizes that even though everyone keeps calling her “The Princess” (Ugh…) there are MANY variations of “Princess.” I hope that living with these boys is empowering for her. I want her to see that Queen Amidala battled right alongside the Jedi. Princess Leia became General Organa. Mulan saved her country. Merida challenged tradition and chose her own path. I want her to see that she is more than capable of conquering whatever she wants. She can be strong, be confident, be brave — and she can do it all in a crown if she wants to.
When we found out we were pregnant with baby number 6, there was one thing my husband and I were sure of. We were going to wait to announce our pregnancy until after we knew the gender of our baby. Quite honestly, I didn’t want to hear what people thought I must need/want/be having.
Waiting 16-20 weeks to announce a pregnancy is not always easy. Especially when it’s number 6. You tend to be showing much earlier and if children notice — children talk. This meant we also had to keep it a secret from our kids. There were a few “mom, you’re belly is kind of getting a little big..” from our very blunt 5 year old.. but overall my boys were oblivious.
The day came. As I sat in my OBGYN’s office 16 weeks pregnant, he wheeled in the ultrasound machine and declared “we’re going to look..” and look he did. Very closely. As the words came out of his mouth, there was a pause. I honestly was waiting for “and there’s another boy!” — but that is not what he said. “You know, It’s not what I am seeing, but rather what I’m not seeing.. ” Then, we stared intently for more than 10 minutes. Poking, prodding, getting images of every angle baby would cooperate for. We knew his verdict wasn’t 100%, but because hiding it was getting increasingly difficult as each week came, we decided that his “95% positive” was assuring enough to do our announcement. We could always amend our photos later if our 20 week anatomy ultrasound happened to show something otherwise. Haha.
We messaged back and forth with our family photographer, Olivia of Yah Yah Photography here in Portland, Oregon. She has been photographing our family for over 10 years and her excitement over this uncharted territory was equal to ours. Together we knew we needed to do this big and obvious. The photo shoot would not only be telling the world we were pregnant AND having a girl — but the shoot itself would tell our boys they were going to have a baby sister. Something they have begged for. She invisioned a lot of pink – and together our Pink Tea Party “Baby Sister Boot Camp” came to fruition.
We were a little worried our boys would figure it all out before we captured it.. but lucky for us, our kids don’t think twice about the color pink or the random things we do for photo shoots. As the pink treats and balloons came out, they just assumed it was for Spring. Olivia set up the tea party at a park and then she waiting as we all walked over to join her. It was the perfect way to get the little details captured before making the announcement obvious. She then proceeded with a seemingly normal photo shoot at first.
We then walked our boys over to the table, where they began to get confused by the tiaras on the table – but brushed it off fairly quickly. I mean, there were cookies, cupcakes and jellybeans to be had.
After a moment, Olivia declared that she had forgotten something in her car and needed Dad to go retrieve it. He came walking back with “It’s a Girl” balloons and two chalkboard signs. One said “Baby Sister Boot Camp” and one was adorned with baby sister’s name. That’s when it hit them — and we captured their reactions both on video and in these amazing photos.
The hardest part was the week after we did this photo shoot, having to keep our children away from anyone they may spill the beans to. Hahaha. Proud to say, we managed that nicely and it was a very successful surprise for everyone.
By the way — We have since had 2 more ultrasounds, with a total of 5 people in all telling us she is, indeed, a girl. I guess I’ll believe it. Hahaha.
How and when did you announce your pregnancy and/or the gender of your baby?
Note: This product was provided to me for this post. This post also contains affiliate links.
Hip seats are nothing new in the baby carrier industry. They’re extremely popular in Asian regions and are starting to make their way here to the States. They have always intrigued me, as I’ve never used one and I’m very much a fan of floppy SSC’s (soft structured carriers), ring slings, and wraps. You know, the carriers that conform to myself and to my baby. When I saw that LÍLLÉbaby was planning to release this new carrier, I knew I had to try it.
First, I am slightly obsessed with learning the ins and outs of new carriers.. fitting carriers on people is sort of a niche of mine, and I enjoy feeling confident in doing that by knowing a carrier through and through. Second, it just seemed so different than what I was used to, that I had to find out for myself if it was worth the hype. (Spoiler alert: it is!)
Let me start by talking about the feature that makes the SeatMe so much different from LÍLLÉbaby’s standard SSC lineup — Complete and Essentials. That notable feature is, of course, the structured seat insert. It’s exactly what it sounds like it is. A hard (yet slightly padded.. it’s still comfy for baby!) insert that forms a physical seat for baby to sit on. It’s like having a small stool attached to your waist for baby.
On the SeatMe, with 2 very simple steps (one zipper and 2 buttons), you can remove the back panel and straps and use this sturdy seat all on its own as a hip seat, or on your front. I have been asked “but why?!?” about this feature a lot. My answer is simple. Parents are not ignorant to the toddler on the hip.. swing one hip out to the side and stand/walk at an awkward back and hip tilt so your child can essentially sit on your hip bone as you carry them around. This simple hip seat ability of the SeatMe eliminates the need for that swing of the hip and bent back. It basically gives you a hip bone for your child to sit on while you can stand normally. Woohoo!
Another added benefit to this structured seat is, if you choose to face baby outward, that structured seat gives baby a nice seated position that so many struggle to get when outward facing in other SSC’s that support that carry style. It even gives a supportive seat to bigger children when outward facing, as well. I will say, wearing a larger child (over 25 pounds) on the front, especially in the outward facing position, does put a lot of pressure on that structured piece, which can push into your pubic bone area a bit. For short amounts of time, it’s neglegent, but I wouldn’t suggest it for a larger child on front for extended periods of time. Stick to the hip seat, or back carries.
Below the structured seat insert of the SeatMe is another A+ feature. It’s essentially a built in fannypack, without the 80’s stigma and neon colors. This deep belt pocket is in addition to the now-standard large LÍLLÉbaby front pocket so many of us know and love. Yes! Twice the storage!! (I’d actually almost say more than twice.. the bottom pocket definitely holds a hefty amount of stuff!) it’s easy to access, even with baby on you.
You may have noticed, when talking about the structured seat, I used the word insert. The hard seat structure is, indeed, an insert that can quickly and easily be removed and you instantly have a standard SSC to use. Its a fabric and padding covered hard plastic structure that securely velcro’s into the zippered pocket on the belt. It’s like the magical carrier that transforms itself into 3 different carriers. A structured seat carrier, a hip seat, and an SSC! Amazing. Removing the structured seat also gives you even more space in that belt pocket!
One of my favorite features of the SeatMe is most definitely the adjustable panel width feature. The panel is already more narrow than the other LÍLLÉbaby carriers, and then the simple sliding adjustment ability expands its flexibility for baby’s size and makes going from inward to outward facing carries so much easier! Because of the way the slider works, you can essentially customize the panel fit for the size of your baby. Not just two set sizes, wide and narrow. As someone who’s toddler stayed between the wide and narrow setting for a long time, I think this particular ability is a fabulous! You can also, for back carries with larger children, unclip the sliding seat adjuster, since you would use the panel on the widest setting in that scenario anyway.
A small but notable detail that the SeatMe has that other LÍLLÉbaby carriers do not (but I wish they did!!) is a lovely, soft, and plush lining along the inside of the neck support seam. It was one of the first things I noticed when I was examining the carrier, and my baby loved laying his cheeks against it.
The SeatMe, like the Complete, has the tell-tale LÍLLÉbaby neck support that is a very popular feature! It was definitely a selling point for me when I first discovered LÍLLÉbaby, as I know it is with many LÍLLÉ lovers. Along with this neck support is also the nice and large, and easily removable, hood that is also a well known LÍLLÉbaby feature. Same snap attachments as the other LÍLLÉbaby carriers. It also had the same two-way strap adjusters, making adjusting your strap tightness easy in both front and back carries.
A difference you will notice, probably immediately, is the belt. This is not your typical LÍLLÉbaby webbing buckle belt and lumbar support. It’s, instead, a wide canvas belt with sturdy Velcro to secure it around your waist, followed up with a webbing belt and buckle closure. I am not typically a fan of Velcro.. however, I definitely see why this structure is made the way it is. Especially when the SeatMe is used as a hip seat only. The thick, all the way around belt makes it very secure and supportive. It reminds me of those pregnancy back support belts, or the heavy lifting back support belts people buy. (Bonus.. it’s also a bit of a tummy hider! Hahaha)
The SeatMe can be used for the following:
Front inward facing carries
Front outward facing carries (only once baby can hold head in upright position)
Back carries (Minimum 6 months of age)
Hip Seat only (front or hip positions, 12-45 pounds)
As an SSC with no structured insert (front carry position)
These are the ins and outs of the new LÍLLÉbaby SeatMe. I am impressed and highly recommend it! Especially if you are looking for something new and different. It most definitely feels and fits differently than the SSC’s I’m accustomed to — but in a good way. I am thrilled to have it as part of my collection and know it will be used often.
