Scarytown Meeting and up-coming changes

The weather outside was pretty frightful (and so were the zombies on parade!) but we had a great meeting last Saturday. We had a lot of new faces, which was wonderful! We met upstairs at Franklin Goose and squeezed a good amount of people into that tiny space! We had wrapping dads, littles in a back carry, and some AWESOME halloween costumes, including a surprise visit from one of Glee's Warblers!

We are closing in on the final steps of becoming a BWI chapter, which is going to open up some awesome doors for us. We are also looking for members to step up and start filling some leadership positions for the end of this year and then starting the next calendar year if that is something you would be interested in. We will have slots for president, VP (possibly two!), Treasurer, Secretary, and Historian. The plan is to have these positions filled by VBE's (co-leaders) until the end of the year, but since we will be down a VBE after next week, we welcome any and all volunteers. If you would like more details on any of these positions, please let us know!
 For those of you that don't know, we will be down a VBE after next week because Kit's family is moving to NoVA. She would like to still come down for meetings occasionally, but will remain a member of the facebook group and will always be available for questions, comments, skype consultations, or anything else. She is thrilled to have been part of starting this group and is so impressed with you ladies (and dads!) and how you are bringing in new people to RCBW.
  Speaking of next week, we have a weekday meeting at Cartwheel and Coffee at 10am on Friday, November 11th. This is veterans day, so some of our mom's who usually are at work will be able to join us! Older kids are welcome if they are off of school, as are your spouses or anyone else. The cost for our group will be $3 a kid, so be sure to tell them that you are with River City Babywearers or else they will charge you $4 for the first kid. Also be sure to bring money for beverages or snacks, because they have a wonderful selection! We hope to see you there!
  We have also scheduled our weekday meeting for the saturday after thanksgiving at the Tuckahoe Library from 10-12:30, and we hope that you'll be able to join us, even with the holiday.

Cartwheels and Coffee Week Day Meeting!

Last week we decided to have our first non-IBW weekday meeting and playdate at Cartwheels and Coffee. This was intended to be mostly a playdate while allowing moms with specific questions or carrier curiosities to work one on one with some of our VBEs. It went fantastically! The kids had a blast, there was a sectioned off area with a play structure, as well as couches, books, tables, a kitchen, and all kinds of fun things. We even had a mirror to practice carries, and of course, sustenance. There was coffee, tea, yummy snacks, baked goods, and  even kids potties in the bathrooms for our little ones trying to make the leap :) We loved that some of our moms who can't make it to weekend meetings were able to venture out and join us!
    

This weekend two of our VBE's went to Maryland to take a class from the Babywearing Institute about how to best match carriers with individuals and families, as well as a more in depth study of the physical and emotional benefits of babywearing for both caregiver and child. After their test is complete they will be certified Babywearing consultants, the only two in Virginia! Next month they go back to get their advanced certification to work with special needs parents and children. This is so exciting for our babywearing group to have such great resources!
Just as a reminder, we have our SCarytown meeting and playdate this coming Saturday, starting at 2:30pm at Franklin Goose, and then they have trick or treating all through Carytown. Bring the whole family, bring costumes, and lets celebrate Halloween together!
We are in the works of putting together our November meetings, both weekday and weekend. It looks like our weekday meeting, will be Friday, November 11th (Veterans Day!) from 10-12, but we haven't decided on a location yet. Stay tuned for that and we hope to see you soon!

Shout-it-Saturday and a Playdate!

   All in all, IBW2011 was a success for us! We were at the Brandermill Farmer's Market, showing by example and meeting new people to introduce the wonders of babywearing!
 
Our table, and of course some adorable shots of our little helpers.
   

  

Planning Out Marketing Strategy

While our next regular meeting isn't until October 29th and is in conjunction with SCarytown 2011, if you'd like to check us out in a playdate type setting, we have set up a last minute playdate/weekday meeting on October 21st at 9am at Cartwheels and Coffee in Carytown (I see a theme here, I know.. we're actually pretty good at spreading our events out I promise!). We'll meeting new members, talking carriers, and troubleshooting any issues you might have, but won't be doing a full demo. If you'd like to join us, bring your favorite carrier, your questions, and $3 for the door fee (which is a discounted rate they gave us! Thanks guys!) and come play with us!

Leading By Example!

Breakfast Tester Extraordinaire!

Walking Wednesday!

 Our original plans for International Babywearing Week Walking Wednesday was to go to the local pumpkin patch, but with the rain and yucky weather we had that day, we changed it to a Mall Walk at the last minute. Lucky, some of our members were still able to join us! We walked around the Chesterfield Towne Center mall (after of course a group stop at Starbucks!), wandering around stores and eventually stopping at the play area to let our littles burn off some energy and even make some new friends!

With International Babywearing Week 2011 coming to a close, we have one event left for the River City Babywearers! Tomorrow from 9am to 12 noon some of the leaders will be working "Shout It Saturday" at the Brandermill Farmer's Market in Midlothian, with a booth sharing information on the joys and benefits of babywearing as well as carrier demonstrations and trials. We'll also have fresh hot chocolate and cinnamon rolls, so stop by first thing in the morning to visit us and maybe even do some shopping at this awesome outdoor market!
   October has been a busy month for the River City Babywearers! Our monthly meeting will take place at 2:30pm at Franklin Goose in Carytown, with our information session running until 3:30 or so and allowing chat and trials until around 4, where we're we'll be participating in the 2011 SCarytown fall Celebration, letting the kids trick or treat and maybe even doing a decorated carrier competition! Watch our facebook page for more details and hopefully we'll see you soon!

Make it Monday!

  To celebrate international babywearing week 2011's "Make it Monday" River City Babywearers made no-sew ponchos and back carrying jackets to bring in the fall weather. We had a great meeting with snacks, movies, kid cloth, and all kinds of adventures at the library! The kids were wonderful and loved running around the library, playing dress-up, and exploring different textures while watching our mommys. Some of the kids even got their own ponchos from let over cloth! Join us tomorrow for "Wear-it-wednesday" at the Ashland Berry Farm to wear our group t-shirts and of course our babies while we ride the hayride and pick pumpkins!

   

Maymont Nature Center Meeting

         This weekend's meeting looked like it was going to be gloomy but actually ended up being a lot of fun! Because of the rain and race outside, we took our meeting inside Maymont Park's Nature Center. It was "Free Museum" day, so we were all able to print our passes and get in for free! We met at the Cafe inside and took the kids through the exhibits together. In addition to all the animals in tanks, cages, and displays, it was also "Meet the Reptiles" day so there were staffers bringing out turtles, snakes, and lizards for the kids to meet and touch.

 Once we were through the regular exhibits, we found the "Discovery Room" in the back of the building, which is where they normally hold their Toddler Time classes during the week, so it is equipped with toys, books, puzzles, and displays to help the kids further understand the James River and Chesapeake Bay regions. The kids had a blast playing with the toys, feeling the pelts, looking at the shadow boxes, and playing with the 3D tree and felt diagrams on two walls depicting the various habitats of all the animals in our area! It didn't turn out the way we expected, but it was definitely a great way to spend a raining morning with friends!
    In other news, we have some new VBE's in the group! Volunteer Babywearing Educators, or VBE's, are people who have passed an evaluation by Babywearing International and are able to assist with carriers and help teach new carries. They had to be proficient in front, back, and hip carries with wraps, SSCs (Ergos, Bobas, Becos, etc), Ringslings, Pouches, and MeiTais and be able to answer various troubleshooting questions. Please join us in congratulating Courtney, Alexis, Kati, Sara, and Kit!
   Coming up October 10th we are going to be Celebrating International Babywearing Week, "A World Of Possibilities" with thousands of other babywearers around the world by having a week day meeting and learning to make Babywearing Jackets and Ponchos. Please join us if you are able! Monday of that week is known as "Make it Monday" with BWI, so if you have any other crafts or DIY projects you'd like to learn, suggest it here or on our facebook page!

Exciting things of note..

     First of all- welcome to all the new members! It's pretty awesome to see our facebook page exploding. Clearly a babywearing group was needed in the Richmond area!

    Secondly.. for those of you not on facebook, or who just need to see it somewhere other than on your phone (you laugh but you know I'm right!), we have a meeting a week and half from today on August 27th from 10-12 at Westhampton UMC. See the fb page for more information, or watch for directions closer to the meeting. The September meeting has already been set up as well, for Sept 24th at Maymont Park from 10-12. If you would like to host a meeting, a playdate, or just want to reach out for extra guidance, don't hesitate! Every time we see each other does not have to have a teaching period, but we will have one at least once a month. There are so many people bringing so many different strengths to this group and it is amazing to watch everyone helping each other out, but sometimes it's just nice to spend time with like-minded families!

   A few of our members (and of course our fearless leader) have taken the next step to become Volunteer Babywearing Educators (VBE's) through BabyWearing International (BWI) so that they can help out with leading the meetings, or to start weekday meetings to help accommodate all the different schedules. If you are interested in becoming a VBE, check out the BWI blog's post, "What's a VBE?" for more information.
Until next time, enjoy your last few weeks of summer and we hope to see you next weekend!

Greetings and Salutations!

Welcome to the blog for River City BabyWearers! I'm sorry this blog has been slow and long coming, but hopefully now we can get things started. I was present at the second meeting, on July 30th, and it was fantastic to see so many people coming together. Even with our minor setbacks (The church not sending someone to let us in), it ended up working out really well. Our fearless leader (:-D) showed off her impressive stash, and a few other mamas demonstrated a triple hammock, a double hammock, and a Front Cross Carry on various wraps.
After the demos, there was time for socializing, but it was very neat to watch different people assist others with various carries and carriers, showing off their skills and getting help for their weaknesses, and also introducing each other to new and different ways to wear our babies! It's high time that Richmond had a group like this, and such a turnout from the get go promises new and exciting things.