Community Canvas with Aspyn Lucero-Carnes
The vibrancy of hope&plum comes from a powerful community of caregivers who nurture their children through babywearing. To showcase the beauty, strength, and diversity of our babywearing community, we bring you a new feature - hope&plum’s Community Canvas. Through this series, we have the opportunity to paint the portrait of a unique individual in our community and share their babywearing story with the world. For our first feature, we’d like to introduce you to Aspyn.
Table of Contents
Meet Aspyn
What’s your name?
Aspyn Lucero-Carnes
Who’s in your family?
My little family consists of my husband, Will, our 18 month old daughter, Arabella, and I.
Where are you from and where do you live now?
I’m from Las Vegas. I moved to Utah and Colorado to do seasonal work a couple years ago. That's where I met Will and we moved to Texas for a year and a half and now were back in Las Vegas.
What 3-5 words best describe who you are?
I’d have to say determined, creative, brave and humorous.
Aspyn's Story
Give us a little background about yourself.
I was in a traumatic accident when I was 5 and lost part of my left foot. I was on a lawnmower that you can ride on with my grandfather and we hit a rock and I fell and my leg went under the blade. I had almost 15 surgeries to attempt to repair it in the first year and at least one surgery a year after that. When I was 18 I elected to get my leg amputated and it truly was one of the best decisions I could have made for myself. Before my amputation I struggled with daily tasks but now I am able to walk miles a day with no issues. I am currently a stay at home mom and in school for elementary education. When I’m not chasing Arabella around or working on school work I’m usually baking, cooking or crocheting. I have crocheted tons of outfits and costumes for Arabella, including last year's renaissance costume where she was a mushroom, it was one of my favorites!
Tell us about your pregnancy and welcoming your baby.
I got the surprising news that I was pregnant at 23, a year after breaking my femur on my left leg and just getting a bit more comfortable with my new prosthetic. I was in a wheelchair for a good bit of my pregnancy but started wearing my prosthetic towards the end and was even able to wear it while in labor. I also had gestational diabetes and preeclampsia so pregnancy was not easy. After labor because of the weight fluctuations that come with postpartum I was back in a wheelchair or in agonizing pain wearing my leg. My daughter was born full term in April 2024 at 5 lbs 0.1 oz and 17 inches.
Motherhood and Babywearing
What makes your babywearing experience unique?
I had been super interested in babywearing all throughout my pregnancy and was in multiple facebook groups before giving birth but held off for a bit due to my daughter's small stature. After a couple weeks I was able to wear her in a wrap for a couple months until moving onto another company’s soft structured carrier around 3-4 months. I started using a ring sling around then too which is still my ideal carrier for when I’m in my wheelchair. Using a sling in a wheelchair is definitely easiest especially since I have a short torso and struggle to not have her in my face while sitting. I thankfully have a new prosthetic now but do still use my wheelchair almost daily. When not in my chair I love to back carry as I find it doesn't throw my weight off as much. My husband works long shifts and overtime often. As a stay at home mom, carrying makes it much easier to do house work, especially with my busy toddler. Thankfully my husband loves to babywear too, so if my leg is too sore, he’s always up for the job.
Are there any other parts of motherhood that you have a different experience with or perspective about?
I do think being a disabled mother is a unique experience as is everyone else's; there are hardships that come with being a disabled parent but there are also lots of advantages. I think for me one of the most difficult things is other people's expectations of disabled people. When my husband talks about me being disabled to coworkers or strangers, some assume I’m not an active parent or not able to take care of our daughter. An unexpected advantage is being able to carry our toddler on my lap in my wheelchair. I've heard using a ring sling is an excellent makeshift buckle to keep them in your lap.
What advice would you give to other first time moms?
Accept and welcome help from anyone you can, prep freezer meals so you have less cooking to do, do not be ashamed or embarrassed to formula feed and know that you are doing an excellent job.
What’s your favorite way to connect with your baby?
When Arabella was younger, babywearing was my favorite way to connect with her. Now that she's a bit more independent, teaching her new things, letting her help me with housework and going out to new places are my favorite ways to connect with her.
What’s your husband’s favorite baby carrier?
My husband's favorite carrier is the Lark. He loves how comfortable it is and how it feels to him.
What’s your favorite hope&plum carrier? Is there anything you’d like to try or a babywearing skill you’re still working on?
My favorite carrier is the Lark. Also, I’d love to try a meh dai or a woven wrap.
Before you go...
What’s the best thing you ever ate or a meal you never get tired of?
A meal I never get tired of is a turkey and provolone sandwich with extra onions from a west coast sandwich franchise called Port of Subs.
What animal would you be for a day?
If I could be an animal for a day I’d be a bat. They are by far my favorite animal so I’d love to fly and see how they live their lives.
If you were an action figure, what would be two of your accessories?
If I was an action figure two of my accessories would be a crochet hook and a Diet Coke.
What are your top 5 emojis?
My top 5 emojis are ❤️🤭🥺🤗🙂↔️
