If you type “Baby Sling” into Google you get back a list of nearly 3 million pages; if you’re a plural kind of person and you stick an ‘s’ on the end you only get 2 million and to confuse matters even more there’s a significant difference in the results.
Okay the top two results (*) are the same but some of the others could lead you to very different destinations – and maybe conclusions. One difference is the appearance of links to videos on the “Baby Sling” version which, if you watch, will take you to Youtube where you’ll probably watch half a dozen clips about how to use a sling or breastfeed handsfree (yes, it is possible) but you’ll probably still be none the wiser. Choosing the plural, “baby slings”, as your search choice gives you a choice of mainly commercial sites – and Mumsnet. If you do decide to go off to Mumsnet, well, there goes your afternoon and if you go to one of the online stores how can you know their offering is right for you? It’s not easy this online researching lark.
You might not even type in the phrase “baby sling”. Enter something like “Baby Carrier” (not forgetting the option to add an s), “Baby Wearing” or “Attachment Parenting” and you’ll get some very different results. Now, if you are new to baby wearing it might be quite a revelation to discover so much choice and information. And that is a good thing. A very good thing.
It’s a good thing because you now have the chance to find out just how important it is for us to think about how we get around with our babies; it’s not just a simple matter of practicality. Dad may be itching to get his hands on the latest gadgetry in pushchairs but has he thought about whether his child should be front or rear facing or why that might be important? Or whether there might be some very good reasons for not using a pushchair at all? When it comes to napping during the day, being kept quiet in the library or allowing mum to fold the washing it’s common to see babies in their car seats – you know the ones that you can easily carry or that make up a part of some space-tech modern all-in-one pushchair (that costs a bomb). Well, how do you know they’re ok? Just because it’s passed Council of Europe safety standards doesn’t necessarily mean that it is best for your baby and you.
Leave a Reply