sakura bloom sling diaries : tradition

One thing I love about Leigh's documented passions (Leigh formerly of Marvelous Kiddo), is her commitment to traditions of parenting, especially motherhood, especially attachment parenting choices like breastfeeding and babywearing.

I don't practise attachment parenting as I understand it, but rather, like a spiritual enthusiast who picks and chooses values from different religions to form their world view, I pick and choose from different parenting philosophies to inform my own. You can judge now if you'd like.

I am also a by-the-book parenter. Is that a contradiction? There is a part of me that approaches parenting as a skill that I can learn by reading books and applying techniques. Going with my gut is not usually for me. My gut could be telling me anything. My gut could just be hungry.

If I left my gut to make my decisions I would most likely breastfeed my littles till they were 10, co-sleep with them every night, not send them to school (but not unschool them either as I don't know how, perhaps I need a book?) and let them eat dessert for breakfast (which is pretty much what I do myself). All of which would not equip them for the world we live in here in our hometown of urban Sydney, nor would I be able to get anything done myself and I would never have relations with the mister ever again due to lack of privacy and exhaustion. I know other people seem to manage all this in a healthy manner, but I am not one of them.

But I do love holding my babies close.

If I could bottle some fleeting things to take them out when I needed, there would be bottles of sleep, equanimity, motivation, and the absolutely divine feeling of my tiny baby's body resting trustfully on mine. Their soft pudgy hands on my face, their little hearts beating clear and strong.

When I babywear I am afforded such a beautiful intimacy even while doing mundane day-to-day tasks. When I babywear my natural instincts and the reality of my city life overlap.

So while it may seem like a contradiction to parent by the the book (routines that fit in with the grownup's day) yet also love attachment parenting ways (being sensitive to the child's needs first), it makes sense to me because what I'm doing is employing practices that many other parents and childcare experts have tried before. I don't need to reinvent the wheel. I am benefiting from the wisdom of their learnt experiences.

In this way I am able to learn how to teach a baby to sleep (eventually), what to feed my children (not dessert for breakfast, shockingly) and why I should babyproof my home (!?). These might seem like no-brainers to some, but while loving my children comes naturally to me, knowing how to parent them does not.

Parenting traditions: love learning about them, what works, what doesn't.

Right now I am working on the best way (for me) to parent my teenager. Advice, links to great sites, etc welcome :)

This post is part of the The Sling Diaries, Vol. II for Sakura Bloom. You can follow along on Pinterest and Facebook.

{Photographs by the lovely Belinda at Billy and August and Passport of Poets.}