I'm so thrilled to have Shannon guest posting on newborn back wrapping! Thank you, Shannon! Newborn backwrapping is definitely "advanced" babywearing, but with care and practice it can be so wonderful! I started back wrapping at 5 weeks or so with Levi, & we love it! :)
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Wrapping a newborn baby on my back? Am I crazy?
While I love the snuggles I can get from wrapping my tiny baby on my front I also need the convenience of having my arms truly free to help my toddler and preschooler with basic tasks and not having to peer over and around the baby. For me, the safest place to put my baby in this situation is on my back.
Getting a newborn baby on your back is much easier than you think it is! One of the best things about wrapping such a small baby is their lack of mobility. Once you get them on your back they stay where you put them until you can get them securely wrapped up.
My favorite method for getting a tiny baby up onto your back in a wrap safely and easily is the Santa Toss method. A terrific video tutorial for this can be found here at the bottom of this page. (Disclaimer: Yes, this is a stretchy wrap. Its a hybrid and one of only 2 brands I know of that are appropriate for back carrying in for experienced babywearers. For safety's sake though, please never back carry any size baby in a stretchy wrap!!!)
Once baby is safely on your back I like to position baby so that his or her head lays against the nape of my neck. I carry my own babies legs out in all carries right from birth so after baby is safely positioned I double check to make sure there is a good amount of wrap over baby's bottom. My preferred carry is the Reinforced Ruck as shown in this YouTube video.
As baby grows and I am able to start to spread the hips more I just reach up as I am making my reinforcing passes and spread the legs open by pushing up on the bottom of the feet. A snug wrap over them will help keep the legs positioned nice a spread. My own baby is now 4 months old and I still leave my passes open over her legs instead of crossing under them like I do with bigger babies.
Getting the newborn baby off your back is done just the same as with bigger kids. I just unwrap all but the first pass over the baby and then shimmy baby into the crook of my arm and bring her around front. Here is a video demonstrating this.
With a little bit of practice wearing small babies on your back should be just as easy (if not easier!) than wearing the big kids!
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Shannon is the diaper sewing diva at
Color Dynamic, mom to 3 gorgeous girls and a Certified Babywearing Educator.
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Wonderful! Thanks again Shannon!
So have you ever wrapped (front or back!) a newborn? Or would you like to learn? Or if you're a wrapper already, what are your favorite wrapping resources?
