Community Canvas with Jenna Hicks

This month, we would like to highlight the story of a working mother. She uses hope&plum to connect with her baby while getting the job done. Without family nearby, she relies on her babywearing community and her hope&plum carriers to complete her day-to-day routine. Let’s meet Jenna Hicks!

What’s your name?

Jenna Hicks

Who’s in your family?

My family includes my husband Bill, my daughter Emma (16m), me and our three dogs: Duchess, Dierks & Pepper.

Where are you from? Where do you live now?

I was born and raised in North Central Montana - Chester, Shelby, & Conrad. I went to college and lived in Bozeman, MT for 7ish years before returning to North Central MT. Our county has just under 2,000 residents so RURAL.

What 3-5 words best describe who you are?

*note why is this so hard - my friends and husband say:  Compassionate, easygoing, hardworking

Give us a little background about yourself.

My husband and I have been together for 10 years and started dating in high school. I grew up around agriculture and was a fan of my journalism class so I majored in Agriculture Education - Communications at Montana State University. I currently work at a law office as a legal assistant/secretary. We are both a private practice and the county attorney. The private practice does estates/real estate/corporations/etc. We are a small law office and so most days it is just my boss and I. His kids have a room in the office where they hang out when they are out of school, and Emma is usually attached to me or in her play pen right next to me on her office days.

How do you still stay connected to your agriculture background while working at a law office?

One of the reasons we chose to return back to the area was to help my older brother, Bryan, with taking over the family ranch. While Bryan is in charge of everything, my husband and I help with a lot of things. We help with feeding, hauling water, haying, working cattle, and the physical demands. I help with the paperwork side of things and keeping track of our numbers, what vaccines or care we give the animals, and as we work with Bryan to fix and build the ranch it is important that both of our families are involved in some way. We don’t have a house out at the ranch - due to a fire in 2012 that hit our place fence line to fence line - so he lives about 45 minutes away and we live about 20 minutes from the ranch itself. We all have jobs outside of the ranch as well. There are four siblings in our family, and each of us have a piece of the ranch. Bryan, our oldest brother Chance, and I all have cattle of our own. My family’s “herd” is the smallest with our three cows Swizzle, Tigger, and Chaps. We also have a steer calf who we are growing to feed our family named Steak-quon Barkley. In general, we are small but have hopes of growing.

For the law office specifically, about 95% of our clients are farmers and ranchers so I spend a lot of time working on things that directly relate back to agriculture and our community. 

Walk us through a moment when your hope&plum carrier made a difference.

I did a fit check with Jordan when I started to introduce back wearing. I was so nervous about getting Emma into the position and Jordan was really able to calm my anxiety and it set me on the path to back wearing. I now will very confidently scooch her onto my back to have two hands to do anything from stuff envelopes at the office or help outside the chute with branding.

Tell us about the connection you feel to your baby while babywearing. 

We are very likely only going to be able to have one child, due to my husband and I both being carriers of Cystic Fibrosis. While my daughter does not have CF, it is something that affects the way we parent. Having Emma close to me is invaluable. I very regularly just look down while she naps in her Lark and think about how lucky I am that she's with me and attached to me. If Emma is my only child, I know that my baby wearing has been such a game changer for me as a mom.

How has using your hope&plum carrier impacted your daily life?

I think my Lark has given me more freedom just by being able to do things with both hands. I don't know what we would do if I couldn't have Emma with me most of the time and so my Lark really is the thing that makes it so I can function as a parent and a human in the world.

What do you love about your hope&plum carrier?

I had a lot of back pain from babywearing before getting my Lark, I was using an older carrier that didn't fit my body well. My Lark almost immediately helped me feel relief. I wear Emma for hours every day and am able to do it comfortably. I am also a huge fan of the brand due to their standards. I love that it's women owned and that they interact with their community as much as they do. I am usually a silent watcher/supporter but it makes me feel like I am a part of something that does good.

Real talk: Have you experienced any challenges or issues with the product?

There is nothing that I can really think of that wasn't user error - I had some discomfort with back wearing initially but I really just needed a fit check and some confidence.

What’s your favorite hope&plum carrier? Is there anything you’d like to try or a babywearing skill you’re still working on?

The Lark is my go to carrier and is the only h&p carrier that I’ve tried. I have tried ring slings from other brands but I still struggle with them and am still learning what works best.

What’s the best thing you ever ate or a meal you never get tired of?

I love ribs. My husband smokes them and then finishes them on the barbecue.

What animal would you be for a day?

A house cat

If you were an action figure, what would be two of your accessories?

A hat and an energy drink

What are your top 5 emojis?

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