To stroll, or not to stroll...

As my belly grows and begins to move more insistently, it's becoming increasingly "real' -- we will soon have another person in our family! Which means another person in our apartment. Another person who apparently "needs" a lot of STUFF. Stuff which we honestly may not have room for.

At a future point, I may post a photo of our apartment layout, and I think you'll agree that there's not much space for much more stuff. We could move to a larger apartment, and we might do so. But it will add cost to our already tight budget, plus the cost of furnishing it. Nor am I honestly convinced that all that stuff is really necessary for raising children. As we consider the larger (and more expensive!)  items available for purchase, one of the first to come under scrutiny is the ubiquitous stroller. Even if it folds, we don't even have much space for a folded stroller. And do we really need it?

Apparently there's a whole anti-stroller movement, perhaps related to the attachment parenting movement, that's connected to a philosophical objection to strollers. This movement coincides with a maniacal (and trendy) determination to carry babies in slings and carriers, a trend known as "baby-wearing." I don't think we quite fit into either camp, at least not for philosophical reasons. But after some consideration we're pretty sure we're going to try being parents without housing a stroller.

Random baby in awesome backpack

Doug and I are both perfectly able-bodied people. We live right across the street from the grocery store, a block from the train station, and we have a car for longer trips. There is no place that we have to go regularly that's more than a mile from our apartment, and the only reason we'd walk further than that would be to get exercise. We enjoy hiking, which is not exactly stroller-friendly. Our bodies are about the same size, so it would be easy to switch a baby carrier when we get tired.

Random mama with mountain baby: stroller-free!

So I'm looking into various kinds of slings and carriers for the various stages of development. Wearing newborn baby in a sling on our chests is a great way to keep her quiet, comforted, warm, and safe. There are larger convertible carriers that can be worn on the front or the back, with baby facing forward or back. Once baby reaches toddler-size, there's an awesome backpack-style carrier that looks perfect.

All signs are pointing to a stroller-free household for us!

Next up for consideration: there will be no nursery. So where will our baby sleep?