Comments on: Baby Wearing 101: Using Baby Slings and Wraps

By: Eileen

Eileen — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 06:48:23 +0000

I was babysitting for my neice the other day and used my sister’s Moby wrap. She pulled it out with 5 minutes before she had to get to her thing and showed me quickly how to use it (this is a baby who likes to be held all the time). All I can say is it’s a good thing I’m good at math and geometry! There definitely is a trick to getting it on, but once on, I was amazed at how secure and lightweight the baby felt. The best thing was looking in the mirror. This thing was actually figure flattering! And pretty enough to wear for a night on the town. Seriously, why weren’t there moby wraps when my kids were babies?

By: Shopper's mystery Blog

Shopper's mystery Blog — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 12:39:46 +0000

Actually I'm for Ergo baby backpack carriers. I used wraparounds for the first few months, but once my sweetheart become rolling over I switched to backpack ones.

By: Jan Andrea

Jan Andrea — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 18:58:39 +0000

A caution about the Infantio and other “bag-style” slings: http://babyslingsafety.blogspot.com/

They are much more prone to causing positional asphyxia and lowered oxygen saturations than other, better-designed slings.

For all kinds of great babywearing information, links to local meetings (and help), and forums that will help your readers find the right carriers for themselves and their babies, please visit http://www.thebabywearer.com. Babies and their needs change with time, so a carrier that didn’t work with a 10-week-old can generally still be used when s/he gets older; there are hip carry positions, for example, that your friend with the Ellaroo could try now that the baby is older. Carriers like the Bjorn often have limited usage (ever try putting a toddler in one of those?) but wraps, slings, and mei tais are good through at least 3 years, give or take.

By: Larisa

Larisa — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 17:43:43 +0000

I found the front-pack type carrier to be most comfortable for walking in the early days, but you’re right–it’s pretty much impossible to extract a sleeping baby from it without waking him. And I never used the back-carry option because it required someone else to take the baby in and out, and on my maternity leave, it was just me and the baby at home most of the time.

I used an Infantino sling a lot in the early days. If my son fell asleep, it was easy to take off and lay him down in it, and the fact that he was strapped in reassured me that he wouldn’t fall out while I was wearing him.

When he was 6 months old I bought a HotSling and only ever used the hip carry option as by then he was too big to use it as a pouch. I loved that it folded up really small (unlike my other two carriers) so I could easily tuck it in the diaper bag when I wasn’t using it. You do have to be careful how you adjust it on yourself, though, to avoid shoulder pain. I had thought about getting a Mei Tai but the price seemed a bit steep.

By: karalee

karalee — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 04:36:31 +0000

We invested in an Ergo and found it to be uncomfortable for our BIG selves – my husband and I are both about XXL t-shirt sized, 6 foot tall + people. We even got the extendo waist thingy but found the Ergo to be fairly useless for us, expecially on our backs, where both our sons (one was in 40% for his age and one 90%) seemed totally squashed like a flattened frog from frogger on our backs and no happy.

We found the Kangaroo Korner fleece to be awesome – hands down our fav for the 1st year, easy, stretchy and in various sizes for various sized people.

Now that our #2 just turned 1 and is 26 + lbs. (and it’s summer) we’re using a hip style EllaRoo which I love, but my husband compains about getting kicked in a not-so-pleasant-area during it’s use. Luckily we have an early and very independant walker so the sling will be retired all together soon for a much more sturdy Deuter hiking style backpack to use on long walks and trips to the zoo.

By: Natalie of Go Green Baby

Natalie of Go Green Baby — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 21:42:17 +0000

Ergo and Beco are both popular soft structured options. They are safe, comfortable and easy to use! We use our Ergo regularly.

Mei Tai’s are also a fairly easy to use style carrier with some structure.

The style of carrier you choose will depend on what you are going to be using the carrier for primarily! I would highly suggest talking to someone that sells carriers or trying them on before making a purchase. Each baby and carrier will feel different on every person. So even if your friend tells you that she “loved” her _____________ carrier, does not mean that you will!

Have fun exploring the options as there are many out there!

By: Erin

Erin — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 21:07:13 +0000

My favorite is the mei-tai, the one I have is handmade by a WAHM friend. I also like the moby wrap, but do not own one, just borrowed one from a friend. Just like you suggested!

By: Ali

Ali — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 12:22:37 +0000

The ERGO!!! Technically it is probably not a sling but it is the best. It has a lage weight range and both my sons love it. I had the bjorn and I liked it until my first grew out of it very quickly. I needed something to carry my first in at 8 months old bc we were going to Barbados and they have extremely narrow sidewalks there and no room for strollers. My son loved it. He would just chill there. I was able to nurse him with noone knowing and it was great to have that closeness. My husband loved it to. For my 2nd I purchased the infant insert to go with the carry and what a great investment. It is so easy to nurse my little guy and at restuarants or any type of function I do not have to leave to go to another area or room, I just nurse him right wee I am and noone knows!!!!

By: Ana

Ana — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 06:28:38 +0000

I have to confess, I didn’t find the Maya Wrap easy at all. My husband watched the DVD with me, and between the two of us, we could never figure out how to get him comfortably inside it. I sort of made it work for the first couple of months, but the heavier he got, the more uncomfortable it was (and yes, I was definitely not using it correctly). It was a total waste of 40 bucks. You never mention an Ergo, but that has been our favorite hands down. He’s almost fifteen months and still loves to be carried. I can get him on my back without any help, although I kind of miss the chest carry.