March Membership Madness!

Look at that sexy alliteration up there!

BWI mothership has thrown down a challenge and so once again, it's membership drive time.  I won't do the guilt trip this time.  I suspect that last June was good enough, right?

In all seriousness, it's good for us to have membership drives a couple of times a year.  The baby years are such a fleeting time in our lives and thus the lifespan of a dues-paying member is generally only a year.  However, our needs are constant and we must find new members to help us continue to build our library, create educational materials, and keep BWI of Atlanta a worthwhile organization to join.

The truth is that we are growing rapidly, and it is no longer feasible for us to bring one library, or even multiple libraries, to multiple locations.  Our goal, then, for this membership drive is to separate our current library into three libraries, each as well-stocked as the other.  This means the library tab on the webpage will have a tab for each area instead of one large tab with a giant, confusing wall of text.  It makes the checkout process easier for all of us and will help us better track usage statistics for each area.

Our drive isn't going to get us everything we need, but it will be a very good start if we can hit our goals.  Here's the breakdown:

5 memberships: 2 wrap conversion ring slings
10 memberships: 1 wrap conversion mei tai by Chrysalis Designs
15 memberships: 1 Didymos ruby hemp indio, size 5
20 memberships: 100 (or more!) BWI of Atlanta car magnets, one for every member who joins or renews during the drive, and all members in good standing
25 memberships: 1 standard Tula
30 memberships: 1 standard Kinderpack
35 memberships: 2 size 4 Natibaby hemp blend wraps
40 memberships: 1 standard Tula
45 memberships: 1 standard Kinderpack
50 memberships: 1 Hop-Tye
50+ memberships: ?????

Current members who would like to renew their memberships may renew during the drive and extend their current membership to a year past their original renewal date.  So, for example, if Sally Slinger joined in July of 2013 and she renews during this drive, that would extend her expiration date from July of 2014 to July of 2015.

50 members feels like a lot, but our last drive was a huge success!  We smashed our goals and then some.  I think we can do this!  We can do this!  Tell everyone you know to join!  BWI members get many, many perks throughout the year, from a running discount at New Baby Products to special members-only workshops and giveaways.  Becoming a member of BWI is worth your $30.00.  Trust me.

And you know, I'm not just the president... I'm a member too!

Gratitude and perspective

As the calendar year draws to a close, and we celebrate holidays with friends and family, I've found myself more and more motivated to write a blogpost about giving thanks.  A lot has happened since we became BWI of Atlanta last October, and much of it could not have happened without the support of the babywearing community, friends, and family.

First and foremost I'd like to thank all the people who keep Babywearing International of Atlanta funded - the members.  Without our members we can't have a lending library.  That is the biggest draw for anyone joining this organization.  Our lending library has mushroomed and it's all because of people joining and paying dues.  All of the educators at BWI of Atlanta are volunteers, which means that 100% of the chapter's share of dues go straight towards the lending library or advertising.

Of course, we can't have a lending library without the vendors and manufacturers that donate carriers to us or sell us carriers at a discount.  If you've been a longtime reader of this blog you will not be surprised to hear that Jennifer Harris of Marsupial Mamas has been instrumental in helping us build our lending library.  The vast majority of our wraps have come from Marsupial Mamas and I could not ask for a more wonderful, generous person with whom to do business.  When we are in need, I turn to Jen first.  She comes through every time.

It just got easier to join BWI of Atlanta

Guys, say farewell to the clunky old system of downloading and filling out a PDF membership form (unless you enjoy using pen and paper, in which case we will still have paper forms for you to fill out at meetings).  Say HELLO! to the new online form, available right here:

http://tinyurl.com/bwiofatlanta-membership

Fill it out, submit dues via Paypal (bwiofatlanta@gmail.com), cash, or check and you are done.  So done.  So set until next year.

Oh... look at that.  I'm adding a Paypal button!

BWI of Atlanta Dues

A challenger appears!

BWI of Atlanta is only on day 2 of the June membership drive and already we have a new challenge on the table!  We're opening with a bang.

At 5 memberships, BWI of Atlanta will be able to purchase 2 new ring slings for the lending library and provide info cards for all members to carry around.  In addition, a $25 gift voucher to Comfy Joey will be raffled off to our first 5 new or renewing members.  That's a 20% chance that you will be selected out of a pool of 5 people!  Contribute $30 for the whole year, and immediately receive $25 back.  Is it me, or does this sound like a sweet deal?

June Membership Drive

It's time for another membership drive!

But wait, you say.  We just had one last October for International Babywearing Week.  We have to hear the sales pitch again?

Well, yes.  Like public radio, we are run through memberships.  But this membership drive is a bit different, and if it's successful, will set the tone for future membership drives.  How is it different, you ask?

For the entire month of June, Babywearing International will let all chapters keep 100% of membership dues.

Normally, when we receive membership dues, half of the dues are remitted to the mothership, and we keep the other half.  But in order to grow our chapters and expand our libraries, headquarters has generously allowed us to keep everything for this month.  Imagine being given twice as much allowance for the next 22 days!  That's 200% of normal proceeds!  We need to jump on this now!

Okay, you say.  That's really awesome for you.  Here's the rub, though.  Why should I join BWI?  What makes this so compelling that I should just shove my money into your face?

Why should you join Babywearing International?  Why, indeed?  Dear reader, here's why.  Please imagine this in your best Ira Glass voice.

Next meeting: 5/4/13

April was a whirlwind of activity but it looks like May is going to be just as busy. Here are the upcoming meetings:

- Saturday, May 4th at the Solarium in Decatur from 10-12
- Friday, May 10th at Harry's Whole Foods in Marietta from 11-1
- Monday, May 20th at New Baby Products in Atlanta from 10-12

We've got a bonus meeting this month.  Actually, it isn't a meeting - it's a class.  BWI of Atlanta is pleasantly chuffed to be offering a workshop on shorties led by Aisling and yours truly!  With warm weather coming up, we'd all love to be wearing less, and that includes our wraps.  Short wraps have been used around the world for centuries.  They're economical, lightweight, and traditional.  Why not learn how to use them?  Wrap workshop: Shorties 101 will commence at New Baby Products on Tuesday, May 7th from 1:30 - 2:30.  No shorty, no problem!  We'll have some there.

If our class is successful, we'd be happy to offer a continuing series or repeats of the class around the Atlanta metro area.  I'm looking forward to laying a lesson plan out and getting some teaching on next week!  Having a large repertoire of carries has been one of my passions when it comes to wraps, and other than being a mom, my day job is as a teacher, so when hobby meets career passion, it's a beautiful thing.  I'm excited!  We'll be covering the following topics:

- Slipknots
- No-sew ring slings
- Rebozo
- Simple hip carry
- Half-Jordan's back carry

If there's time, or if the class is particularly skilled, we will also cover knotless ruck.

As always, see you all at the meetings!

Next Saturday Meeting: 3/2/13

BWI of Atlanta's next Saturday meeting is this Saturday, March 2nd, from 10 am to 12 pm at the Solarium!

We've gotten some questions and comments previously about not being able to stay for the full two hours.  I wanted to reassure everyone that there has never been a time requirement for the meetings.  The leaders are there for two full hours (and sometimes not even, since one of us has a conflict on Mondays or Saturdays) but everyone else is welcome to stay for as long as they are able, whether it's 15 minutes or 2 hours and then some.  We'll be here to help, no matter what!

Next meeting: 2/2/13

Our Saturday meeting has returned!  BWI of Atlanta is meeting this Saturday, February 2nd from 10-12 at the Solarium in Decatur.  See you there!

In other news, I have been working on the new Facebook page, which hopefully will be ready for migration after this Saturday's meeting.

Next meeting: Monday, 1/21/13

Is it that time again?  It is!  BWI of Atlanta's next meeting will be Monday, January 21st from 10-12 at New Baby Products on Cheshire Bridge Road.  We'll see you there!

In other news, we have been officially announced by BWI as BWI of Atlanta!  We've been waiting for this for a long, long time and we're so excited finally to be under the BWI umbrella.  This gives us more access to carriers for our lending library, and more promo for us as a group.  Soon we'll be changing our names, officially, from Atlanta Babywearers to Babywearing International of Atlanta.  We'll even have a shiny new logo to put on the blog.

Becoming BWI of Atlanta also allows other babywearing groups in the area to come shelter under our eaves, since the bulk of the work has already been done by us truly.  So it's very possible that in the years to come, we'll have a BWI of Cobb County, or a BWI of Gwinnett.  The more the merrier, I say!

New Baby Products...

Just this week we met with New Baby Products on Cheshire Bridge road to explore hosting our Tuesday meetings in their space.  We found out they just finished building a classroom in their space and they are looking for activities to fill it.  The classroom is housed in their big furniture building which is the lefthand building when facing their property from Cheshire Bridge Road.  It is a wonderful space for us and a step up from Glenlake Park where we were somewhat exposed to the elements.  While Glenlake was awesome to use with the playground right next to us, we are thrilled to move to an indoor space that is dry, warm or cool during the summer and free for our non-profit group!

Our first meeting there will be held on Tuesday December 18th from 10-12.  We have not locked down future dates there as of yet but are working to get this squared away and will keep you posted!  We will continue to offer our during the week class at New Baby Products but most likely will change days of the week.

So, come one out to check us out next week and we look very forward to seeing everyone there!!!  Find out more about New Baby Products at http://www.newbabyproducts.net/.

Babywearing International!!!

It's official!  We are now a full chapter of Babywearing International!  We will change our name to Babywearing International of Atlanta.  We are the very first chapter in the state of Georgia and we couldn't be happier!

It took us almost a year to complete the application but we finally got it!  All of our co-leaders have been certified Babywearing Educators since about April but it took us a very long time to navigate our state system and secure a bank account.  Each state has different requirements and ours seems to have a particularly difficult path but we finally were able to work our way through it with a little help from Babywearing International's President.  Huge Thank You to Anne Marie Rodgerson!!!

To find out more about Babywearing International, visit Babywearing International

Next meeting: 10/16/12

We've had so many meetups in the last week for International Babywearing Week that it feels like the Tuesday meeting is happening too soon (at least to me), but the calendar doesn't lie.  Our next meeting is tomorrow, October 16th, at Glenlake Park from 10-12.  I will be there, of course, with our raffle prizes, just waiting for our winners to show up!

Despite the craziness that was jam-packed into last week, I did enjoy IBW.  I got to know some of our attendees a bit better outside the confines of teaching and it was great to socialize with other moms.  We have some photos posted at the Facebook page; I'll see if I can get permission to post them here as well!

November's going to be a big month for Atlanta Babywearers, hopefully soon to be BWI of Atlanta (can I just say that dealing with banks is a huge hassle in Georgia?).  Firstly, we're crossing our fingers that we can finalize the last thing in the application and get that stuff all straightened out.  Secondly, Aisling is due in November and will be taking the month off.  Given how beautiful her girls are already, I can't wait to see what her next child looks like!  And of course to see what wraps she picks out.  A wrap geek's gotta have priorities.

IBW 2012 Guest Blog: Gretchen's Story

Our last guest blog comes from Gretchen. She and her son had a special situation as well. Babywearing has helped so many!

***

Babywearing is not a tradition that was handed down to me, but I hope it will have an impact on my kids in a positive way, and I would cry happy tears to get the privilege of seeing them wear their children one day. Wearing my babies has allowed me to truly bond with my them in ways that I otherwise couldn't.

My first son, Devin, was born at 26 weeks and weighed just 2 lbs., 6oz. I had a very rough pregnancy and he had a very traumatic birth. He went on to spend his first 11 weeks in the NICU. He lived in an isolette, a temperature-controlled environment built to mimic the womb he was so rudely evacuated from. I didn't get to hold him for 3 days after he was born and very rarely after that for the first several weeks. When I did get the chance to hold him, I held him skin to skin. Being up against my chest regulated his temperature, calmed his heart rate and his oxygen saturation always improved.

IBW 2012: Carrying on Traditions

International Babywearing Week is upon us!  Well, almost.  It's 10:35 PM EST as I write this.  So in about an hour and a half, IBW 2012 will be here!

This year's theme for IBW is "carrying on traditions," which for me has some extra significance.  At Atlanta Babywearers, a lot of first-time parents and first-time wearers learn how to carry at the meetings.  Their first exposure to babywearing comes through us, the VBEs and leaders of the group.  The vast majority of parents have never worn their children before, and are the first ones in their families to wear their children.

That's not true in my case.  For me, babywearing has always been a given, something that I knew about since I was a child and my mother told me about how she'd put her baby sister, 10 years her younger, in a strap carry and go leaping and bounding about in the Taiwanese countryside.  Her mother had carried her, and she carried her sister, and that practice was passed down to me.

Back then, wearing children in wraps was a necessity.  My grandmother came from a decent family but married poor, and strollers were not as much of an "essential" as they are now.  My grandmother would wear my mother, who was by all accounts quite a fussy baby, while doing the dishes, cooking, or cleaning the house.  Later, when my mother grew older, and baby #4 came around, it fell to her to help care for it, and you know the rest.

Next meeting: 10/6/12

Having two meetings per month makes me feel as if there's always another meeting around the corner.  That's good news for the moms and dads (and guardians and caretakers) out there who want to babywear!

Our next meeting is coming up on Saturday, October 6th, 2012 at the Solarium from 10 am to 12 noon.  See you there!

Tuesday meeting!

Our next Atlanta Babywearers meeting is... tomorrow, September 18th!  Ah, it's totally my fault that I didn't post about it earlier.  I'll see you guys at Glenlake Park in Decatur, right off of Church Street, from 10 am to noon.  As usual, we'll be in the big pavilion right by the playground.

There are tornado warnings for tonight until 3 am, with heavy rain in the forecast.  As of right now I expect to be at the park, but if it's coming down in a Biblical sense then I will cancel.  Keep your eyes peeled, both here and on the Facebook group!  And stay safe!  I remember the last tornado that went through here.

Oh, and one more thing - I will be bringing my camera to tomorrow's meeting to take pictures!  I know tired moms with spit-up on them are really attractive and all, but we haven't had picture day in a long, long time.  We're overdue.  Say cheese!

Next meeting: 8/21/12

Atlanta Babywearers' regular Tuesday meeting will be tomorrow, August 21st, from 10-12 at Glenlake Park in Decatur!  Directions can be found here: Atlanta Babywearers Facebook.  See you guys there, we'll be hanging out in the pavilion!

Meeting time again!

Hope to see all your lovely faces this Saturday at the Solarium from 10-12!

International Babywearing Conference 2012

This past weekend, I had the exciting opportunity to attend the International Babywearing Conference, held at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.  The conference was attended by about 300 Babywearing Educators and researchers, Doulas, Lactation Consultants,  Birth Professionals, and parents from the US, Canada, and around the world who wanted to learn more about babywearing and other parenting topics. 


Many workshops were geared toward babywearing educators, including Babywearing Safety, Babywearing in Clinical Settings, and Ergonomics for the Baby and Babywearer.  There was a fascinating research review from Katie Nicolai of the German babywearing group, Offene Traggegrupe Oberhausen covering topics including infant spinal stress, kangaroo care, and some of the evolutionary aspects of baby carrying. A lecture on the benefits of touch from Dr. Henrik Norholt, Chief Scientific Officer of Ergobaby discussed the relationship between babywearing and infant attachment (Dr. Norholt has some great articles based on his research on the Ergobaby blog). There were DIY workshops and  lots of classes on how to use specific carriers, including classes on tandem wearing and babywearing from a man's perspective.


There were also workshops on parenting topics such as breastfeeding, diapering, Elimination Communication, and green cleaning and some fun classes on Babywearing Yoga and Bellydance!  One day of the conference was open to the public, with 101 classes, a vending hall, and a babywearing fashion show. I especially enjoyed the keynote speaker, Rachel Coleman of Signing Time.  Her story is truly inspiring.


I had a great time! Also, thanks to Ergobaby and Babywearing International, we now have a new Ergo Sport for our Atlanta Babywearers carrier library!


Here are a few snapshots and a look at some more of the exciting workshops that were offered.

Tina Hoffman of Didymos presented a lecture on The Art of Weaving, offering a detailed look into the  process of creating a woven wrap.

In Babywearing and Culture, Arie Brentnall-Compton of the Canadian Babywearing School demonstrated a variety of carriers used around the world, such at this Scottish wool carrying and nursing shawl.

Here, Arie shows us how to use an Amauti, a babywearing parka used by Canadian First Nations. 

Arie demonstrating how to use an African Kanga. 

How to teach the ringsling workshop, with Jan Andrea Herlitzer of Sleeping Baby Productions and 

Ellen Schaad, VBE for BWI of DC/MD/VA.

Advanced Back Wrapping, taught by the fabulous Becca Morse, Babywearing Consultant and VBE of BWI of Ann Arbor.  Becca also has a great babywearing blog.

I had the opportunity to meet many of the fabulous Volunteer Babywearing Educators for Babywearing International, what a truly wonderful group!

With Faith Rayland, VBE of BWI of Central New York, slinging our demo babies. 

There was even a babywearing fashion show! 

Babywearing and happy babies everywhere! A fabulous time was had by all! 

Next Atlanta Babywearers meeting!

Atlanta Babywearers will have its next meeting on Saturday, July 7th from 10 am to 12 noon at the Solarium.  Same Bat-time, same Bat-channel.  See you guys there!

The Tuesday meeting is scheduled to be the third Tuesday of the month.  I will not be in town for most of July, so the meeting will likely be led by Aisling, as Kate will also be out of town.  Stay tuned to our Facebook page for up-to-date changes.

Speaking of Aisling, she went to the International Babywearing Conference and has returned with some goodies...