Toys. Who needs them?

I found myself a few months ago justifying the amount of toys we had acquired for Buttercup.
‘Well, she doesn’t go to crèche, so we need to have everything here for her.’
I also eagerly enquired from my friends, ‘What do your little ones do at crèche?’ As if my darling might be missing out on something. Talk about getting it arseways!!

My darlings are not missing out on anything by being home with their mum. In fact being home with their mum is the very best thing for them.
Maybe it was my lack of confidence as a first time mum or seeing that I was in the minority as a SAHM or a bit of both that left me feeling I was poor substitute for ‘professional’ child care.
I was wrong; I am my little girls’ mother, their companion, their guide.

There is nothing Buttercup likes better than to help me. All toys are abandoned in favour of pulling up a chair and helping to make dinner or bake bread. At 20 months she is great at stirring and pouring things into things. I make sure there is always a snack near her so that she’ll quite happily often just suck on an orange piece or munch an apple while watching me make a curry or prepare a stew.
She wants to do real stuff. If I’m making a list it’s the pen she wants to use, she won’t be fobbed off with crayons.
Take the shape sorting box as an example, she looked quizzically at me as I showed her how to drop shapes into the appropriate holes, then she lifted the lid off and demonstrated to silly mummy that it was much easier to put them into the box this way. Then, a few days later she spent most of the day in the garden playing with the padlock for the shed and it’s key, until she finally came over to me holding the lock with the key inserted, and beaming ‘wow.’ Wow indeed.
So I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately about how we spend our days. We now spend them doing stuff together. When we get up in the morning Buttercup and I make the porridge, she pours everything into the saucepan and stirs it, and then I put it on the ring. Primrose supervises from the sling or her chair. Throughout the day Buttercup loves to bake and prepare meals with me, as I sort the laundry she runs around putting items away in the appropriate drawers. But she’s the boss of her own time and if she gets bored she’ll just wander off and do something else. We often go for a walk if the weather isn’t too horrendous or visit with friends and in the evenings lie about on the floor reading books and drawing. Primrose comes everywhere with us and kicks about at our feet or dozes against me in our stretchy wrap. While Buttercup watches me, Primrose is fascinated by her big sister. The weekends and the evening are particularly special times when we have tgd around too.

There is a nice rhythm to our days now and there isn’t much time for toys. I hope our days will continue to be filled with the wonder of learning and of finding joy in the simple things.




Some books that are influencing my thinking: Teaching Your Own John Holt, Unconditional Parenting Alfie Kohn, The Continuum Concept Jean Leidhoff

Get your own stretchy wrap for baby wearing by entering our competition here, thanks to mumandme.ie.

Want a babywearing wrap?

We are continuing to spread tinygreenhappiness in the run up to Christmas.

This week we’re giving you the chance to get a fab Moby Wrap (in your choice of colour) from mumandme.ie.


Here’s a brief spec:

* 100% breathable, all-natural cotton.
* One size versatily-5.5 meters in length.
* No buckles, snaps or zippers.
* Triple-wrapped design ensures a safe, ergonomic hold.

This is one of the tinygreenfamilies favourite slings. It gets the vote of all the four month olds in this house!



So just tell us why you’d like the wrap. Leave your entry as a comment on the blog, the Facebook page, email to mama@tinygreenpeople.com or tweet to @tinygreenpeople (ROI and NI entries only and before 14th Nov).

Getting out there

Sometimes being a stay at home mum requires you to get off your butt and get out and meet new people.

Yesterday I found myself pushing open an unmarked door in our local shopping centre and entering a room full of mums and babies. Mums and babies I didn’t know (deep breath, smile, they’re all here to meet people). It was a gathering held by Cuidiú, the Irish Childbirth Trust, to celebrate National Breastfeeding Week.
I was nervous to say the least; I could only hope I wouldn’t come across as a total weirdo! Then I spotted another mum with a sling and she looked familiar. I recognised her from her profile picture on a Babywearing forum (sounds a bit stalkerish, I know). I tentatively approached, and not knowing her real name asked, ‘Are you Mrs. t?’
‘Yes,' she replied, smiling.
‘I’m tinygreenmama.’
'Oh, hi.'
So superhero identities confirmed we exchanged real names and chatted about babies and slings and she introduced me to all the other babywearers.
Then it was time to change Primrose's nappy, so I found a quiet corner near the door amongst the buggies and bags. Midway through the process another mum came over.
‘Oh, you use cloth too!’
And I then spent a happy 15 minutes nerding out on nappy talk.
By the time I had to leave to collect Buttercup from her play date with granny I had organised for us to join the Cuidiú group for family swimming sessions.

I’m so glad I braved it yesterday. It can be quite an isolated existence as a stay at home mum in this society and getting out and making connections feels good. We are social creatures and need to share experiences and learn from others. Us mums can be such a great support to each other when we get together. It’s getting through the initial nervous introductions and overcoming the fear of rejection that’s the tough bit.

Thank you Ciudiú, Mrs T, the babywearers, fellow nappy nerd mum and all of you who helped this tinygreenmama feel welcome.

10 reasons to baby wear

Here are ten great reasons to wear your baby in a sling:

1. Happy campers. Tiny people that are carried cry less, they love the comfort and security of being snuggled next to mummy or daddy.



2. Seeing eye to eye. Being carried enables tiny people to observe and interact with older people at eye level, as opposed to knee level.
   



3. Taking it all in. Tiny people that are carried spend a lot of time being passively alert and absorbing what’s going on around them.
   



4. Sleepy heads. Wearing your tiny person is a great way of helping them to sleep. You can either carry your sleeping tot around with you or place her down after she’s dozed off.
   



5. Hands free kit. By wearing your tiny one, you are hands-free to play with older siblings, cook the dinner, do the shopping, whatever…………
   



6. Baby love. Who doesn’t need more hugs? The comfort factor for parents is not to be underestimated. There is nothing quite like having your little person right there snuggled up to you.
   



7. Off-road adventuring. A sling is the ultimate off- road travel system. With a sling and a backpack you can go where no buggy has been before!
   



8. Cheap and cheerful. Slings can be bought reasonably cheaply both new and second hand or you can even make your own.
   



9. Are we nearly there? Even when your tiny one is not so tiny anymore a sling is great for when little legs get tired.
   



10. Handy as a small pot. A sling is not much bigger that a shopping bag and so can be popped into your changing bag, coat pocket, glove box or buggy bag for when you need it.

Check out tinygreenpeople for sling patterns, baby wearing information and a list of sling suppliers.

Happy Baby Wearing Week

all photographs are copyright of tinygreenpeople.com

Sling types

The tinygreenfamily have something of a sling habit. We are at 5 slings and counting, but then again, we don’t really use buggies.

The types we’ve used are:

Wrap sling. A stretchy wrap is our newest purchase. We’ve found it very simple to use straight away and our Primrose has been snug as a bug in it from 3 days old, leaving mama hands free to chase 15 month old Buttercup. We’re just beginning to experiment with breastfeeding in it but with the purchase of a breastfeeding top or two it should be no bother.

Photo of Moby wrap

Ring sling. We have two of these (one in outrageous pink) and have used them since Buttercup was 3 months old. This was our first sling (and our first baby) so it did take us a little while for us to get the hang of this but it was well worth it. I carried Buttercup comfortably in this up to eight months pregnant (she was 14 months at the time) and will use it for her again now that her sister has arrived. We are also using it easily for Primrose at only days old. This sling is really versatile and great for breastfeeding.

Photo of Zolowear Ring sling

Mei Tai (or Asian Back Carrier). This is another great versatile sling that we’ve found simple to use straight from the package. We purchased this whne Buttercup was about 6 months old. Dada uses this to carry Buttercup on his back for our expeditions and I use it front carry when out and about.

Photo of Freehand Mei Tai

Structured carrier. These carriers with buckles and clips are a favourite of the Dada’s. They come in many shapes, sizes and price ranges. This is the first sling type we used before becoming total sling addicts and we got great use from it for the first six months. They are usually easy to use and are often sized for different age babies

Photo of Scootababy sling

Another type which hasn’t formed part of our collection (yet) is:

Pouch sling. Similar to the ring sling but with no adjusting. They are sized to the wearer and straightforward to use.

Photo of Peanutshell sling

For more information on baby wearing and to source sling suppliers see www.tinygreenpeople.com/adventurers

Why sling?

Why do we like using slings and baby wearing?

Well, our babies really like it for a start. We’ve found that carrying them around in a sling means they suffer a lot less from wind and are generally very content. They like being at adult height where they can interact with peoples faces as opposed to their knees! Buttercup was never a big fan of the buggy so we’d always pack a sling for when she got restless on a day out and now that she’s walking it’s handy for when those little legs get tired.

And there is the convenience of it. Slings are so much less cumbersome than buggies or prams and leave your hands free for playing with older offspring, pushing shopping trolleys or preparing dinner. We always keep a sling in the car for popping into the shops or petrol stations, so much more comfortable than trying to balance baby on your hip while locating wallet and carrying shopping.

I’m working on a guide to sling types which I’ll post soon……….