So is it just my kids?

[Chaos Coordinator]

...who act like they don't know how to be carried??

They like to be worn. They like to be held and snuggled on their own terms. But try to hold one on your hip and it's like trying to carry an enormous dead fish. M just folds in half at the waist, leaning so far forward that if for some reason im unable to adjust him, he winds up sideways completely, parallel with the ground. H used to lean so far back he would nearly get dropped every time.


It's not me. I've held tons of babies. Most of them sit on my hip reasonably, some even cling like they never want to be put down.

I thought maybe it's an ap thing, because they are secure enough that they don't need to cling to me in a silent plea to never let go. But I feel like that implies that babies who sit on hips reasonably are somehow the product of inferior parenting, which I don't think is true


Which leads me to believe that it's just my kids. They seem completely deficient in the ability to hip sit.

Gah! I just want to hold my own babies without them flopping around like fish!

[Rabbit]

:giggle Samantha refused to help me hold her. A ring sling helped so much with hip carries. In contrast, Seth rides like a cowboy: Great posture, strong legs.

Not hanging on is linked with low muscle tone, especially core muscles. My limp fish was also my latest walker, and most cautious in the development of motor skills.

[LovinBeingMommy]

It's not just your kids. I forgot my mei tai at the mall today (horror of horrors!) and Monkey, of course, wanted to be up after a while. I put him on my hip and he slid all over the place and wouldn't stay in the right position. I almost dropped him twice. :doh So, I pulled him to my front, spread his legs like he sits in the carrier and supported his butt with my forearms. He wrapped his arms around my neck, laid his head down and relaxed. He just wanted to be in the position he prefers in the mei tai.

[Chaos Coordinator]

H was cruising furniture at 7 mos and walking independently by 9.5 mos.

M is totally average for milestones so far.

I was wondering if there was some sort of anatomical anomaly that was affecting them. But i definitely dont think it's a muscle tone thing. H is abnormally strong if anything. Although he was horribly horribly bow legged.

[PrincessAnika]

dd1 does it because she thinks its fun to hang like a monkey. :shrug2 no low muscle tone on her :giggle

[Bonnie]

Any chance they spent a significant amount of time frank breech in utero?

[Chaos Coordinator]

:think

H, no. He was suspended head down from his cord from at least 18 wks.

M, it's possible. He was still doing somersaults At 37 wks

[LovinBeingMommy]

Monkey is plenty strong, too. The doctor always comments on it and it's reaching a point where I can't hold him still enough for the doctor to look in his ears. He was never breech, but was transverse for a couple months. :shrug3 I think they either aren't used to the position (I never figured out hip carries) or think it's fun to hang in weird positions.

[Waterlogged]

K was a beast to carry. I almost dropped her once in McDonalds. Like, her head was about 6 inches from hitting the floor. Scary.

I always figured it was because she was so heavy. :shrug She sat independently really early, crawled on target, walked right before her 1st birthday, etc etc etc.

[Kiara.I]

I always assumed it was that worn babies don't know how to cling. They're used to being supported by the carrier. :shrug3

[LovinBeingMommy]

I always assumed it was that worn babies don't know how to cling. They're used to being supported by the carrier. :shrug3

That's probably a big part of it. It took several attempts before Monkey figured out he couldn't lean back to look waaay up while riding piggy back sans carrier. :doh

[Waterlogged]

yeah, that might be some of it, Kiara. :think

[Chaos Coordinator]

Okay that does make sense! I kept thinking there was some sort of ap link but couldn't put together what it was. Hollis always rode on my hip in a sling until he was too heavy. Mercer was born too heavy :lol so he's been a ssc baby from the start

[RainbowMummy]

We had to teach our older two to hold their knees up & sit on our hip when carried. They were old enough to be taught verbally though. I guess they just must have been in a sling all the time before that.

[AngelaVA]

My kids are like this but they do have low tone.

[Buela]

I was thinking about this the other day, dd2 is so hard to hold (and of course wants to be held all the time) She wants to be on my hip, held with one hand. She hates the front carry in a Mei tai or ergo, and will tolerate the back carry if I am MOVING and preferably outside. So it's on my hip all day long. She is not big (less than 20 pounds at 12 months) and is average for milestones.

I was starting to wonder if it was her huge diaper (prefold) that made it harder for her to hold on, with her legs anyways.

I think if these kiddos want to be held so much, they could at least help mom out a bit :snooty

[Mommainrwanda]

The Urchin doesn't mind being carried on my hip, but she doesn't hold on terribly well. She really snuggles in if I just hold her in front of me like she's in the mei tai.

So - yeah - our carrier babies are just spoiled. They like ergonomically correct positions. ;)

[rjy9343]

Ivy can't really cling to me or do a hip carry unless she is in the maya. She definitely prefers to be carried in the front with my arms supporting her lower half as if she were in the Ergo. My mother has said that wearing her has made her impossible to carry anywhere.