Maya Wrap Ring Sling Review & $30 Eco Mom Gift Certificate Giveaway (CLOSED 11/1)

Oct 25,2011 / By Maria / 5 Comments

EcoMom sells eco-friendly and organic products for moms, kids and babies. I received a $30 gift certificate to spend on a review item for the virtual baby shower, and I had a hard time choosing. I felt like a kid in a candy store with a pocket full of money! EcoMom sells organic food, cloth diapers, natural/organic bath and skincare products, wooden and organic toys and way more eco-friendly gear than I could possibly list.

EcoMom is offering free shipping on all U.S. orders for a limited time. If you buy an Ecopass, you get free shipping all the time, plus 15% on all your orders! They have my favorite…a sale section! All products EcoMom sells are EcoMom approved, and their customer service is excellent!

EcoMom has quite a few slings and carriers, and I finally decided to put my $30 gift certificate towards a Maya Wrap Ring Sling. I love the plum and olive colors, but I decided on the neutral chocolate. The slings retail for $74.95 and are available in small, medium and large sizes. There’s a 6″ length difference between sling sizes, and the small is recommended for people under 5′ 2″ and/or who are slender. Even though I’m not exactly slender right now at 34 weeks pregnant, I am petite and small framed, so I went with the size small so I don’t have to worry about tripping on, or getting tangled up in the sling’s tail!

The slings are recommended for babies from 8-35 pounds, and the strong, light anodized aluminum rings are smooth, weld free and tested to 250 pounds. The 100% hand loomed cotton is soft, cool, breathable, durable and gives without stretching, for support and comfort. The shoulder is padded for comfort, and the unpadded tail can be used as a nursing coverup. The sling came with an instructional DVD, and it also has a zippered pocket to store keys, phone, burp cloths etc.

I was a little overwhelmed when I first opened the sling, but I was determined to figure it out before the baby came! I took lots of photos and videos to share with you. I’m sure I made mistakes and some seasoned ring sling’ers will point them out for me. 😉 I think it will be easier with a real baby vs. a teeny, squishy bear too.

To get your sling ready to use the first time, hold each end of the sling with the tags facing each other. Gather the edges of the tail to the middle.

Put the rings over your wrist to make this next step easier, then bring the tail through the rings.

Then you bring the the tail over the closest ring and under the other ring, then spread the fabric over the rings, making sure it isn’t twisted.

Hold the ring at your shoulder and pull the tail through the rings until the bottom of the pouch is around your hip bone.

Quick video demo (and yes I know my videos aren’t very good! They look so darn dark now, but they didn’t look that way on the camera or my computer. I need to find time to edit them more (just added fill light in YouTube!), but I’m hoping to do this better after I’ve used it with the new baby!):

Once you have done this, you’re pretty much ready to use it every time.

Put your arm through the sling, then bring it over your head.

You will make a pocket for the baby, then support the baby’s weight while you place them in the pocket.

Continue to support your baby’s weight while you tighten the ring sling. Make sure you have read all about babywearing safety! The material that came with the sling had lots of good info about using the sling safely. You want to make sure the baby is positioned correctly, is snug & secure, has his/her face/airway clear and head supported

Again, I’m sure I didn’t do this perfectly!

It wasn’t nearly as difficult as I thought it would be though!

The zippered pocket on the tail is really convenient.

Here’s another terrible video, this time of me putting the sling on:

One reason I really wanted a ring sling is that it’s really easy to take it off without disturbing/waking the baby.

Just support the baby’s weight while you pull the rings away from yourself to loosen the sling. Then lift the fabric over baby (while still supporting the baby’s weight of course!) and you’re done. Then it’s just as easy to put it back on again!

Be sure to follow the EcoMom blog, EcoMom on Twitter and “like” EcoMom on Facebook!

~~Giveaway: One winner will receive a $30 Gift Certificate code to spend towards anything you want from Ecomom. Entries go in the Rafflecopter form.~~

0

1

0

Boba / Sleepy Wrap Baby Wearing Giveaway (CLOSED 10/27)

Oct 20,2011 / By Maria / 7 Comments

I bought my sleepy wrap almost 3 years ago, before my son was born. My daughter (now 6 1/2) wanted to be held all the time as an infant, and I knew that if the new baby was the same way (he was!) I was going to be in trouble. I had a “crotch dangler” carrier that I received as a gift, but it was far too painful on my shoulders and back to wear her for more than a few minutes, even when she was teeny tiny. Of course, I know better now!!

I talked about the Sleepy Wrap a good bit on my baby wearing post on A Nation of Moms last year, and I also got to do a Boba Baby Carrier review shortly before that!

Long story short, the Sleepy Wrap is now the Boba Wrap. It’s the same great wrap that works for preemies-18 months and up to 35 pounds, but now it has a new name to fit in with the Boba Family.

The Boba Baby Wrap is a long piece of stretchy fabric that you wrap and tie snugly around yourself. Since it has a bit of stretch to it, there’s no need to figure out how much room to leave for baby, or re-tie after you wear it for a while. There aren’t any buckles or straps to figure out, and I could wear my son pretty much indefinitely without any pain, since the weight was evenly distributed on my body.

While I totally get the name change, it will always be a Sleepy Wrap to me, since it’s like a tranquilizer for babies!!

I promise I will get better pictures of the new baby in the wrap! 🙂

Here’s a video I made of me tying the wrap (in hindsight I should not have worn a black shirt w/the black wrap, sorry!)

Though taking it out of the package the first time was a little intimidating, it only took a few practice tries to become a pro at tying it. I loved that I could tie it before we went somewhere & just wear it in the car, ready to wear my son when we got to our destination.

Tying it is so easy a ~~cave~~man can do it. My husband quickly figured it out, though sometimes he needed a little help putting it on without twisting it (not sure why he had trouble with that, I think it’s easy to do it without having twisting issues!)

The wrap was an absolute life saver for me, and I’m looking forward to using it again with baby #3. It’s one of those things that I think every new mom should have, after the obvious things like diapers of course! The Boba wrap is available in 12 colors, and retails for $48.

Not only is the product amazing, but Boba’s customer service is excellent too. The wrap came with all the instructions I needed, but you can also view instructions online. They are commited to babywearing safety and stand behind every product they sell.

Find Boba on Twitter, Boba on Facebook and read Boba’s blog. Be sure to check out Boba Family’s YouTube channel for videos, including a demo of how to nurse in the wrap!

Giveaway: Boba Family is offering one of my readers a Boba Wrap in his/her choice of color (ARV $48) Entries go in the Rafflecopter form.

0

1

0

Change-Diapers.com is on YouTube

Aug 13,2011 / By Maria / 6 Comments

Did you know there is a Change-Diapers.com YouTube channel?

I don’t have a whole lot there yet, but I’d like to add more. Here are some highlights, I hope you will check them out and/or share them. I try to keep my videos brief and to the point as much as possible, to make them easy to watch. If you have ideas for other videos you’d like to see, let me know!

Demo of the Itti Bitti Tutto:

Dunk & swish a diaper without getting your hands dirty:

Comparison of the Babykicks Bumboo to 3G Pocket Diaper:

How to use the Babykicks 3G’s newborn snaps:

How to fold cloth wipes to pop up:

Putting on the Boba Carrier:

How to tie a Sleepy Wrap (not that great since I was wearing a black shirt with a black wrap!):

I know my videos aren’t very good, my lighting is bad, and the videos were shot with my point & shoot camera! Even so, I’d love to know what else you’d like to see me do!

0

Baby Wearing Coupon Discount Review

Boba Baby Carrier Review PLUS Coupon/Discount Code!

Sep 16,2010 / By Maria / 6 Comments

NAP, inc. makes both the Sleepy Wrap and the Boba Baby Carrier. The Sleepy Wrap was a lifesaver for us. I love it so much that if I could marry it, I totally would. So logically, when I was looking for a soft structured carrier, I looked at Boba. The Boba is designed for babies 15-45 pounds; if you have a smaller baby, you will love the Sleepy Wrap!

My post in October on The Village of Moms is on Babywearing, so look for that to read more about the Sleepy Wrap and why I love it, along with photos and video of it!

I received the Organic Carrier in Aspen (retail $118), which is a nice, neutral color. The box it came in is really nice, I felt like I was opening a present!! It also came with a helpful instructional booklet, though you can also get information on their website. Boba recently released the Classic Carrier Collection. It is the same great carrier in fabulous colors, but comes with a lower price tag of $100 to go along with the non-organic cotton.

The Boba has a wide, padded waist band, and thick, cushy shoulder straps.

The sleeping hood attaches to the shoulder straps to support a snoozing baby’s head. It’s completely removable and tucks away neatly when not in use.

Unique to the Boba are the fully adjustable (and removable) foot straps, that provide proper leg support for older children (usually age 2 or so) and hold their knees up at hip level. They also slide along the waist band so you can get them perfectly adjusted for your little one.

Measurements above show: (clockwise, left to right) carrier height, carrier width, waist band height, strap width.

The Boba is highly adjustable, and will fit a wide range of sizes. The adjustments are sturdy straps that come with the excess neatly folded up. Aside from the foot strap and hood adjustments, you can adjust the waist, chest/back clip, move the chest/back clip up and down, and there are two adjustments for the shoulder straps themselves (seen above).

Below is a quick video demonstrating all of the adjustments on the Boba. I did this video when I first received the carrier. It becomes easier over time to adjust the straps, and I’d recommend sliding each one back & forth many times when you first receive it, before trying to adjust it while wearing it.

The carrier was a little intimidating at first with all the straps, but it was so easy to put on!

I did most of these photos and videos with my camera on a tripod while my husband was watching my son, so I had to recruit a model to help me out! Obviously, he is a little smaller than the minimum 15 pound baby the Boba recommends.

Clip the waist belt and adjust the strap.

In the pictures above, I had one strap on my shoulder before I picked Manny Bear up. Normally, I could pick up my son and hold him against my belly. Supporting his bottom with one hand, pull one shoulder strap up. Switch hands, supporting his bottom with the other hand, and putting the other shoulder strap on.

Fasten the chest/back clip and tighten. I had a little trouble tightening the back clip, and with NAP Inc.’s help I discovered it was easier to tighten this all the way before putting the carrier on, and tightening the shoulder straps instead. I am far more petite than the average petite person (I measured my shoulder width at about 15″) so I need most adjustments all the way tightened to feel secure.

Below is a quick video showing me putting the carrier on:

I will admit that it took quite a bit of playing around to get the fit just right, but once I did, it was wonderful. I didn’t know about all these awesome babywearing products when my daughter was small, so my babywearing experience with her was limited to the baby bjorn. Not only is the front facing carrier not recommended for several reasons, but it put so much strain on my shoulders that I couldn’t carry her for more than a few minutes, even when she was tiny.

One of the most important things about the Boba (to me) is that my son is sitting the same way he would be if I were holding him. His legs are held in a natural position.

My husband is more average sized, and the carrier fits wonderfully on him as well.

My husband also tried him on his back, but it was about bedtime and my son was not happy that I was taking pictures of him instead of holding him! We’re happy with the front carry right now with my son’s size and development, but the fact that we can use it in a back carry is great!

In conclusion, we LOVE the Boba Baby Carrier! My son is so happy when he is in it, and it’s very comfortable. I was sad when he seemed to be getting too big for the Sleepy Wrap, but now I can grocery shop, vacuum and do everything else I need to do in complete comfort. Woo-hoo!

Discount: Use coupon code Boba10 to get 10% off any Boba Baby Carrier.

FTC Compliance: I received the above product at no cost in order to review it. I was not otherwise compensated for this post, and all opinions are my own. I was not requested or required to write a positive review.

0

Category : Baby Wearing

Maya Wrap Ring Sling Review & $30 Eco Mom Gift Certificate Giveaway (CLOSED 11/1)

Boba / Sleepy Wrap Baby Wearing Giveaway (CLOSED 10/27)

Change-Diapers.com is on YouTube

Boba Baby Carrier Review PLUS Coupon/Discount Code!

Subscribe