The BabyWearers of Bozeman has four new group leaders!  We are all so excited to take on these new roles in helping out our community of parents and caregivers.

(From Left to Right:  Frannie Moulton & Truett, Rachel Palmer & Harper, Mikaela DiBerardinis & Gianna, Amanda Blouse & Emmaline)

I have emailed the winner, but she has not responded yet.  I figured I would try to post her name here to see if she will be viewing the blog to see if she won!  Katie Sayre, can you email me at info@bwbozeman.com to claim your wonderful new Onya?!  Thanks!!!

Running a babywearing group is hard work.  You just simply don’t realize it until you are in it.  This past June marked 3 years for me running the group.   A wonderful 3 years.  In that three years I have had a few random helpers.  Gloria usually comes to clean up the mess after a meeting, Alisha visits me in times of need like after I have a baby.  Monique has come to both my Expos, because she is GREAT at getting up in peoples space to tell them the love of babywearing.  But in reality I do a lot of things on my own.   I buy new carriers, I contact companies for discounts on carriers, I research them and stew on which ones to purchase for the group (okay, not really stew, but dream).  I review other groups materials, decide what would work for our town and create!  Have you seen our pamphlets?  AMAZING!  That also entails doing LOTS of research to get new information on what the safety standards are and I have to figure out a concise clear way to represent them.  I take phone calls weekly from parents who already are members of the group who need a little help or tweeking, but also calls from parents who have never come but need help over the phone.  I even get questions on parenting because people know that I am similar minded and they need a bit of reinforcement that trusting their instinct is okay.  Let me be clear TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS, IT’S OKAY!    I also allow people to come to my home to exchange carriers or come for a Free consultation when they cannot afford it.  I email people youtube videos (when I remember!) and try to post here on the blog.  I even run the Facebook group and respond to any questions people may have on there.  All that doesn’t even encompass what running a babywearing group entails.  It’s SOO worth it though!  I am not sure I ever truly realized how worth it, it is until the other day a friend said “you’re so giving. really. i hope you’re getting a lot in return for all that you do.”  Yes, that’s a direct quote (thank you facebook message system).  And at the time I thought, well. . .umm. . .not really.  But then I started thinking about it.  The first time I ever got something was only a few months after I started the group, a friend I met through the group (no names will be given, Jana)  gave me some chocolates and card that made me cry.  I ate the chocolates but still have that card.  It meant the world to me.  There have been so many random acts of kindness from people in the group, that I cannot express my thanks to all of them.  Sometimes people bring me coffee (WOW, do they really know me!) and sometimes people send me things like this:

Yeah.  I opened the package and …I cried.  It blows me away that somehow, someone I have met only a handful of times, who lives across the country, had enough of a positive experience with MOI, that they were led to send me this beautiful print.  I LOVE it.  It’s going to be framed and put up in my house because it embodies so much of who I am right now in my life.  And it’s gorgeous!  Don’t forget to visit the artist Kate Berggren.  Amber, you are an amazing mama, thank you so much for your gift.  I LOVE it.  (if you didn’t catch that yet).

This post is just a heartfelt thanks to ALL of you, who have come to the meetings, who have called me, who have emailed me, who have dropped by my house, who have borrowed my carriers.  I LOVE having you in my life and I LOVE running this group.  Just keep bringing me iced Mochas and all will be well. 

After my wonderful hubby individually numbered each entry on our email list. . . .

I put the total into random.org – which was 113.  Wow, that’s a lot of people!

Which was Katie B!  Look at how jazzed this mama to be is!!  Perfect.

Thank you SO much Natural Baby Company for getting one more carrier out there for a baby to be worn in.

Back in October I did a Feature on Jenna, my crossfit coach.  I thought you might enjoy a little update on me and my adventure as well as a little proof that babywearing really does rock.  Over the last few months the CrossFit games have been going on, both my hubby and I participated.  We didn’t really want to compete, but just prove to ourselves that we can do it!  Doing these workouts held special enjoyment for me as the first two workouts were my first “prescribed” workouts (I did the exercises with the proper amount of weights, etc as it’s laid out).  I also did my first real pushups.  Yes I have been doing this for over 6 months and have just started being able to do push ups on my feet and not on my knees.  Not only that but I did my first 20 inch box jump.  What is a box jump?  It’s this:

Yep, thats me. . . jumpin’ on a box.  Try it, it’s not as easy as it looks.  And while I was doing that, Jenna was doing this:

She was judging the participants with Mo on her back!!  How insanely useful!!    Babywearing is so functional and helpful.

Consider this post a special thanks to Bridger CrossFit and all the coaches there to helping me lose 30 pounds!  I have never felt better about myself and am loving all the energy I have.  I can’t believe all the different things I have learned about myself and my body.  All the while meeting amazing, fun, nice people and enjoying every single moment working out!!  Jenna, Meriah, Ben. . . .you rock.

Montana Parent Magazine has asked me to review a few products and I can’t just do a short review, so I am doing a full blown article.  Actually, I am doing TWO!  I am very excited about this, so we must make it wonderful.  The only way to make it wonderful is to have Kelly Kuntz take the pictures for us.  I need parents and children of all ages to come for a photoshoot.  We are doing pictures of babywearing outwear and of bigger kid back carrying.  So we need several older kiddos and some younger ones as well.  Please email me to let me know that you are interested and we will coordinate when the photoshoot will be.  Thank you so much everyone!!