Soul Mate: Doll Carriers

We only have a few warm days left before we have to bundle up to play outside. Maxine decided today would be a great day for her and Minerva to head outside to play.

Maxine suggested that they play with their babies outside, so of course I helped them get their babies uppy back! Maxine chose the Soul Imperial doll buckle carrier. I put the Eclipse Ikat doll meh dai on Minerva. Soul sent them these carriers and they are loved so much around here!

I think Minerva enjoyed having the baby on her back. Especially since she could hold the doll AND all of her chalk at the same time.

Do the children in your life have doll carriers? I’d love to see your pictures! Tag #BrittBrownMarsh on Instagram and Facebook so I can see!

 

This buckle has to be my favorite accent <3

 

 

Playtime: Mary’s Park Sensory Playground

Minerva turned one on Wednesday, so we decided to go check out the Sensory Playground at Peninsula Town Center.

There is highly interactive sensory and tactile play available. The park is Wheelchair-accessible too! The surface is playground rubber.

There was plenty of seating around the playground and some seating was in a shady area. The playground is surrounded by bushes and secured fencing.

I loved that the Minerva could climb some fixtures on her own. I did have to go after my brave baby at some points, haha!

The gravity bowl was so fun for Maxine once she understood how it worked. Her first go ended with her SCREAMING for me to help her stop. By the time we left, she had been back on several times.

The park was really fun! The bathrooms were a block over from the playground, but there was a drinking fountain in the park so that was convenient. We can’t wait to go again! We will have to check out their play fountain next time too.

Also, there is a smartphone app that goes along with the play area! You can listen to the Hans Christian Anderson stories that the park’s themes are based on: The Little Mermaid and The Ugly Duckling.  The stories are offered in 16 languages!

Mary’s Park Sensory Playground is an outdoor playground at Peninsula Town Center that was built in partnership with the Peninsula School for Autism.  

Playtime: Windsor Castle Park Natural Playscape

Smithfield, Virginia is my hometown and such a beautiful place! Maxine is at an age where she can enjoy playing on her own so I decided to take her to check out the new Windsor Castle Park Natural Playscape.

She loved it! I loved that they had a side for younger children. We stayed over there today.

The entire area was beautifully shaded by trees. It didn’t feel as miserably hot as the thermometer read.

This slide was the perfect size for Maxine and she went on it several times. The other slide on the big kid size is 30 feet!

Max had a blast and we will definitely be back soon!

Review: Soul Onbuhimo

 

Soul is a wonderful company based in Bangalore, India that has taken the world by storm! They offer so many various carrier styles. From slings to buckles–they’ve got it all! They even have some pretty sweet accessories to match their carriers. I first came across them on Instagram a couple years ago and since then I’ve been watching them explode! Recently I was sent a Maze Blues Jacquard Onbuhimo to try out.

Since Minerva is my main wearee, I tested this out mostly with her. I did wear this some with Maxine (40 lbs) and she fit in it well! Minerva is about 20 lbs and 28 inches tall.  She was juuuust big enough to fit well in the carrier. With onbuhimos, all the weight is carried in your shoulders, so one of the most important aspects of the carrier for me  is the padding. Soul hit it out the park with this padding. I have tried a few other brands of buckle onbuhimo and this one had the squishiest padding. It reminded me of memory foam. The padding is thicker than in their buckle carriers which is a good thing.

The Soul onbuhimo has perfect fit adjusters (PFAs ) which help get  the carrier to fit better. With Max, I preferred them all the way out. With Min, I liked them all the way in. The chest clip can be moved up and down to get to a comfortable spot as well. Everything on this is easy to adjust . The Soul onbuhimo fit great in my diaper bag and since there is so little fabric, it is pretty ideal for warmer weather as well. I got to wear it in 90 degree Virginia heat–it was not that bad!

Onbuhimos are recommended for wearees who have sufficient torso control to support their heads and sit up independently. I found that the carrier fit me pretty well. I am plus sized, so that is pretty important for me. It fit me with Maxine  with plenty of webbing to spare and made me very happy!

Be sure to check Soul out on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and  also Join their groups Soul Family/Soul Family US Edition on Facebook!