To celebrate International Babywearing Week, we had a photo contest on Facebook to give away a Beco Butterfly 2 baby carrier. Although we intended to give away one Beco, we had so much participation that we ended up giving away TWO Beco Butterfly 2 carriers!
Everyone has their own babywearing story. Here’s what our first winner, Leigh Ann Hernandez, has to say:
Leigh Ann and Rio in a borrowed ErgoBaby carrier
I have 3 sweet children; Dalton (15), Sophia (just turned 2) and sweet Rio (8 months.) I had never even thought about wearing Dalton when he was little. 
I just wasn’t as educated then, and being in my early 20′s I had no idea there were so many options. Things have come a long way in the last few years in educating mothers on many subjects.
When my little Sophia was born I bought a Moby. Needless to say she LOVED it. I loved the freedom it gave me to be able to do other things while I was still able to hold and cuddle with her. She seemed to be a very calm and satisfied baby.
When I found out I was pregnant again with Rio I had no idea how important babywearing would become. Sophia still wanted to be worn, but with my protruding belly I had to find a new way. I found a sling that would let her rest comfortably on my hip and not disturb my belly. It worked really well. Once Rio arrived I wore him in the Moby as well.
It is very difficult carrying around a 25+ lb 6-month-old without the help of some type of carrier. In the last month I’ve needed a more confident way of carrying him around. I posted on Babywearing International of Birmingham’s wall asking people to recommend carriers to me. In doing research I found out how expensive some of the carriers are. I was very bummed because I just couldn’t figure out how to fit that into my budget. I have an awesome friend that was sweet enough to loan me her Ergo. The first time I used it was in the picture I entered in the contest. It seemed so perfect, but I just couldn’t figure out how I was going to manage buying one. I began searching for used ones, but they were still pretty expensive. I was even talking to the winner of last year’s contest and I told her “maybe someone will have a contest sometime soon and I can win one myself.” I believe that was said on Saturday and I saw the contest on Sunday evening and entered our picture! It was the most ironic, God-sent thing I could imagine! I was determined I would win the Beco!
The only thing that made winning that Beco for myself and Rio better was you guys giving one to me and to Karla! Thank you Babywearing International of Birmingham for making two mommies and several babies very happy!
You’re very welcome Leigh Ann! Your letter really highlights why our group exists: to educate parents about babywearing and to remove obstacles to babywearing, all so that families can reap the benefits. We have donated carriers to a Women’s Shelter, taught people how to make carriers, and given away several carriers in contests or drawings. We also maintain our lending library as a benefit of membership, which at $30 per year provides an affordable way for many parents to always have access to a baby carrier.
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By that, I mean it’d be pretty much impossible to go anywhere without help if I couldn’t wear the baby. I wear Levi (9wks) when we go grocery shopping, and so far shopping with four kids is no different than with three because Levi sleeps the entire time he’s against mommy’s chest.
