Is there anything more adorable than a grown-ass man wearing a baby? It's right up there with puppies and kittens and a collection of Pixar movies. During my pregnancy, I used to joke about how excited I was to see my own partner sport our child with the same ease that he wore hoodies or baseball hats. There's just something so appealing and so strong and so sexy about a dad who helps his partner after she gives birth by way of strapping a child to his chest or back. Spoiler alert: I was not disappointed. I still remember one of the first swoon-worthy selfies my husband sent me when I was at work and he was trying out the carrier some friends had loaned us. Guys, it was everything I'd hoped for, and more possibly even more.
Should you ever find yourself under a dark cloud of gloom and doom or scary-close to considering the world nothing but a large dumpster fire of a planet, I highly recommend checking out #babywearingdad on your social platform of choice. It will restore your faith in mankind. It will right every wrong you're currently experiencing. It will, well, at least keep you preoccupied for a couple hours.
In the meantime, however, let's consider how a grown-ass man might approach a task as important and helpful (and attractive) as babywearing. Because, baby-wearing only counts if he's not a baby about it himself. Here are the surest signs that someone babywearing is, in fact, a grown-ass man.
He Doesn’t Get Embarrassed
For the record, there shouldn't be anything embarrassing about wearing your baby. However, I suppose it's possible that somewhere, someone could make (r at least attempt to make) a dad feel weird about it. Gender stereotypes and the ever-present patriarchy have tried to convince men that parenting in any real way is a "woman's job," so when someone witnesses a dad wearing a baby, they might be included to call him "Mr. Mom" and attempt to emasculate him, like caring for your family is somehow a subpar choice. Ugh, patriarchy you're the worst. Honestly, if you meet said person, tell them to get in touch with me and I'll share that pic of my husband wearing our son to shut them up.
He Checks To Make Sure He’s Doing It Safely
Those looking closely will perhaps notice that Ryan Reynolds, pictured above, is in fact not wearing his baby the correct way. However, he responded to all those social media shamers valiantly (bless their hearts) and has since corrected the issue, like the grown-ass man that he is. Hey, parenting is difficult and doesn't come with a manual, regardless of how many books you've read or websites you've visited.
He Considers The Baby’s Comfort
In my experience, baby carriers can be ever-so-slightly complicated to put on, which can take some focus and precision. But, when a dad can work through that and ensure that his kid is comfortable? Be still my heart.
He Allows His Partner To Take Pictures
...And maybe he even lets those pictures get posted online. While it's true that JT is not, in fact, wearing his little one in this pic, he's holding Silas so closely that he might as well be, so it totally still counts.
He Goes About His Business Like Nothing Is Unusual
I mean, let's try to imagine a world were all fathers wore their babies, all the time, everywhere. How amazing would that be? Baby wearing shouldn't be unusual, it should be unapologetically celebrated, kind of like Leo's Oscar.
He Actually Enjoys It
Are we tired of talking about new parents Chrissy Teigen and John Legend yet? Nope? Okay, great. We can always refer back to them and their glowing social media presence because it's so full of goodness. Check out his casual swagger; I'd venture to say that he's enjoying himself. If I was Chrissy, I would be too.
