adapted from an article on the Babywearing blog posted
on 27/06/2011: Summer holidays for babies!

Every year I’m amazed at how much my babies enjoy the sea, the outings, the summer walks! I love how much they love summer! The most wonderful thing in the world is the chance to plan and spend the summer together! I’m sure you enjoy the summer with your babies too! And it wouldn’t be this way if we didn’t have babywearing and baby carriers!

How do you get to the beach with your baby? (usually carrying little buckets and spades, inflatables, towels, sunscreen, food containers?)

How do you get to the beautiful spots of our country where a pram can’t go? How do you enjoy the cool of the river with your baby?

How do you explore new trails, hiking and showing your baby nature?

How do you manage with your baby at airports, ports, in crowded and noisy places? (especially if you have to hold suitcases, tickets, passports?)

How do you enjoy, together with your baby, all the activities that your free summer time lets you enjoy?

How do you enjoy cuddles, relaxation and beautiful views?

Certainly, all you need is your love and your arms. But everything is definitely easier when you have two extra hands!

(Once again, thank you so much for sharing with us your photos of moments you enjoy with your Asterakis and your babies!)

You often ask me whether you can take your slings into the sea. The truth is that it’s very lovely to wear your baby in the water. Especially if it’s the first time your baby will get to know the “endless blue”, when you wear them they’ll feel safe in your arms. You could even breastfeed them as you go into the water!

Most small babies love the water, but they can’t regulate their own body temperature as easily, and they clearly manage far better when they’re resting against mum’s body!
(It goes without saying that you should be as careful as you would be if you were holding your baby in your arms! Your sling is not a “life jacket”, and you must always make sure that at least your baby’s head is out of the water! It also goes without saying that you shouldn’t force your baby into very cold water if they show that they’re unhappy! I shouldn’t have to spell out the obvious!)

As the Asterakis are made from natural fabrics (cotton, linen, silk), you should know that when they get wet they “drink up” water and hold it in their fibres. The result is that they become heavier (more or less depending on how thick or absorbent the fabric is) and, of course, they take their time to dry. Also, the fabric’s behaviour often changes when it gets wet (it takes on a “temporary” stretchiness, and your baby may end up lower than where you’d positioned them). This is exactly why I wouldn’t recommend wearing your regular sling at the sea.

Ideal for the sea (the main purpose it was created for is to go into the water) is a sling made from synthetic mesh fabric. A soft, synthetic fabric that doesn’t “drink” water and dries very quickly.

read more: Mesh Asterakis for the water and the sea

If it’s your only sling, I’d advise against a mesh one. Besides, I think it’s more important to feel comfortable carrying your baby before you go into the water and after you get out (when you’re gathering up the “beach gear”, buckets and spades, towels, etc.), whereas it matters less in the water (where you’ll be taking the baby out anyway so you can “swim” more freely). In other words, you’re more likely to need a dry sling for afterwards.

My Vasilis first went to the sea at around 3 months old. Our sling for the water proved to be an excellent help (our outings were strictly in the afternoons, and my little baby felt very content in my arms).

Last summer I wore my Rea in the sling in the water mainly when I wanted to keep an eye on Vasilis, who was constantly running around (and I needed to be able to react quickly and “gather him up”, in or out of the water). However, when it was just us (the girls), I’d hold her in my arms in the water so I could “swim” her about! And our (dry) sling waited for us on the shore!

Either way, wearing your baby in the water can be great fun! Twirls, little jumps, little waves — they had my babies giggling their heads off in my arms!

Even with our children older, our slings were an important help in enjoying our summer holidays! My daughter was afraid of the waves, and only when she “walked” them in her dad’s arms did she manage to grow bolder and have fun in the shallows together with her brother!

Have a wonderful time, happy babywearing, and happy holidays!

Note: Follow your paediatrician’s advice regarding your baby’s contact with the sea, the sun, or pool chlorine.