Look Ma! No Hands!

I am in love and I don't care who knows it.

This is Vicki's little boy Mattias. And he has my heart right now.



Vicki is one of the chicas in the cardshop. Every day, she brings Mattias, whom I affectionately call "El Senor," to work. Whenever I need a break, I like to play with the baby.

When I first came to Peru, I was fascinated by the way in which Peruvian mothers carry their babies. Using a special blanket called a lliclla, moms in Peru carry their children on their back. You can't go anywhere in Arequipa and especially Alto Cayma without seeing a mom and her baby.

A couple of weeks ago, I bought a lliclla because I wanted to learn to carry a baby like a Peruvian mama. I announced to the girls in the cardshop that I was hoping to learn to "cargar" (carry my baby on my back). They laughed and handed me a 2 liter jug of water wrapped in a blanket. "Practice with this first," they told me.
Dutifully and carefully, I practiced and practiced and practiced.

To cargar is not easy. Here's how it works:

First, you lay the lliclla on the table somewhat crooked. You want to have a corner at the top, a corner at the bottom, and a corner on eaither side. Then, you place the baby in the middle of the blanket, and fold the bottom corner over the baby.



Then, gather the two blanket corners on either side of the baby and bring them together.



Carefully, fling the baby over your shoulder and onto your back.





Get the baby settled, and tie the two corners into a knot around your shoulders.



And that's how it's done.

Last week, after a lot of practicing, I was invited to cargar Mattias.

Here I am, tying the knot in the lliclla with the baby on my back.



This is El Senor. And here I am, an Apprentice Peruvian Mama.



This is how you "descargar" - or take the baby off your back.



Of course, I kissed El Senor and thanked him for his trust after I was done : )



Here's Mattias, playing peek a boo with the world on his mom's back. What a life!