“Crunchy moms” are all about natural living. You might have a little bit of “crunch” in your parenting style if you do any of the following things. A lot of crunchy traits are things other moms mainstream moms might roll their eyes at. And for the record – that’s a-okay! Every mom makes different choices and we respect them all as long as baby is safe. You do you and what works for your family.

You Might Be Crunchy If…

Cloth Diapers

Caring about the environment is considered crunchy to some. Of course, at Cotton Babies, we think families who use cloth diapers are just the best. Wink!

Babywearing

Crunchy moms don’t just have a Baby Bjorn. They likely have several baby carriers and reasons they need each of them. Babywearing has many benefits including having your hands free, bonding with your baby, soothing your baby and more.

Co-Sleeping

A family bed or co-sleeping is a sign of crunchiness. Just make sure to follow safe sleep guidelines and talk to your pediatrician.

Baby Led Weaning or Making Baby Food

Crunchy moms want full control over their baby’s diet. Their babies will eat what the rest of the family is having in tiny bites or be given homemade baby food. Making your own baby food is actually really easy to do. Extra crunch points if the food is organic or from your own garden.

Breastfeeding

Crunchy moms are likely to breastfeed and say “no thanks” to formula. Extra crunch points if you don’t use a cover when nursing in public. An uber crunchy mom may even donate her surplus of breastmilk or use donor milk if she cannot produce enough.

Essential Oils

They’re not for everyone, but crunchy mamas know there’s an oil for that! Essential oils are growing in popularity and have countless uses.

Natural Birth

Crunchy moms may opt out of pain medications and interventions to have an all-natural childbirth. A doula or midwife can be added to mama and baby’s care team. Some even choose to have a home birth or at a birthing center.

Extended Rear-Facing

More and more parents are embracing keeping their children rear-facing in their car seats as long as possible. Car seats are available with high weight and height limits to ensure little ones can rear-face for an extended period of time. Research shows that rear-facing is the safest for passengers, especially young children with developing skeletal systems.

Homeschooling

Keeping the kids home to teach them yourself? Sounds crunchy! There are a variety of reasons parents choose to homeschool their children.

So, what’s your level of crunch? I’d say I’m semi-crunchy. 🙂