How many of you ladies are fans of baby wearing? Did you sling it or purchase a more structured carrier like the Baby Bjorn or the Ergo? Are they worth the investment?
I guess it also depends on your baby’s size, no? A friend of mine had a 9 lb’er mA so she wasn’t really fond of wearing him about town as she found him too heavy! I’ve carried a friend’s baby around in a peanut shell/sling thing and I have to say, I’m not a fan. The one shoulder design really hurt my arm and back. If we go this route, and I hope to because it seems so much easier to move about subways and streetcars without lugging a stroller, then I’d get something more structured in this style- Baby Carriers that simplify your life | BabyBjörn
Also, they say they’re good for newborns, but are they really? Their little necks aren’t even stablised yet…
I never liked the sling...
My daughter was a tiny baby so I never thought about the Bjorn thing when she was younger....I was traveling abroad when she was 6 months old and I got the baby carrier so that it'll be easy and I wont have to drag a stroller but she hated it...:(...so I never used it either...I also thought it was too inconvenient to wear...although I know parents who swear by it...
Where I live there is no concept of subways etc ,so I always found it easy to use the stroller...
There have been lots of scary news pieces about slings in the last couple years, and so we didn't go that route. We got a Bjorn and used it a bit when she was smaller, but not too much. If you're a city dweller and walk around and use public transport A LOT then it's worth it; otherwise don't bother.
sgc, I would be careful .. I was reading some local parental forum where almost every mom was saying how bad bjorn are for the baby. I didnt go into much detail about why, but it has to do with the way the baby is carried, the only thing all of them agreed on was that a big chaadar type cloth for carring is good for the baby, for that you would need someone to show u how to tie the chaadar properly.
I didnt carry the baby but used the stroller. As we walk a lot but as the next baby will come close to the second one and I dont know if the second one will be walking alone, so this time I will have to look into wearing the baby.
Saadia, what about a double stroller like the Britax B-Ready? All the reviews I have read of it rave about its excellence as a double stroller. You can configure its two seats in 14 different ways, apparently. http://www.britaxusa.com/strollers/b-ready
Baby Gizmo does excellent video reviews of different strollers- here’s theirs on the B-Ready as a double- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qeNTjNoEwE
Would you happen to have the link to the article about the Baby Bjorn? I’d love to check it out in detail.
Sahar, we’re downtown and hubby will most likely have the car during the day. I don’t know if I want to be entirely dependent on the stroller because I probably will be taking public transportation quite a bit to move around during mat leave, so baby wearing is something I want to consider. Of course, if the bean hates it, that’ll be the end of that I’ve heard the Ergo are pricier but apparently really good too… hrm.
The double stroller I have seen here are really bulky and heavy so that’s why I was put off the idea. The double stroller Britax B Ready that you posted is great but I did not find anyone selling it here in Europe. I will have to research more.
or carring the little one. For that I will have to do a short course on how to tie the chaadar properly or get a good reputed carrrier.
Being out with her dad we will get a smaller/ligher version of a stroller just for her.
Sorry I dont have a link to the Bjorn but it was a local forum in German where each mom was so against it. I read it about 2 years ago, I will try to get the info again as that forum is quite active and see if there is anything new in there and will update here.
i only used it for travelling or when going downtown to walking street... even though copenhagen is wonderful for babies and strollers and huge ass wagons... its still a hassle... my son loved the baby bjorn.. if we allowed him to face outside... he hated facing our chests....
it cost a fortune.. and then... drum roll he outgrew it at drumroll again friggin 8 MONTHS!
he was a big baby too... my back and shoulders couldnt have carried him around past 8 months either.. so that was the end of that....
my friend has this wrap around like cloth that she wraps her baby around herself with... man your baby has to be a calm *off in lala land * kinda kid to like that.. mine was way too active to like being wrapped in that... even at 6 months!
so go with it as the need arises... but i loved the baby bjorn.... it was SO easy... on and off in 1 second! and midget loved it.. bouncing along with his mommy.. hehe...
for newborns too... it has so much cushioning and support... i am a satisfied parent!
We had both the sling that goes over your shoulder and the baby bjorn. I used the sling at home only in early days because my daughter was really fussy and used to cry all the time. This way she was relatively quieter and i got to do some housework while wearing her. When we got the baby bjorn, even though i liked it a lot, it was a bit hard to get the baby in and out by myself. We spent quite a bit of money on it but didnt use it ALL the time. We used it on a hiking trip and even during umrah this year (she was 15 months and about 20 lbs then). Hubs loved carrying her but i never used it much mainly because it kinda made my the chest stick out because of the way the straps are positioned and i wasnt comfortable walking around like that in public (not sure if i explained it right).
apparently the Baby Bjorn positions the kids on their crotch which can be quite uncomfortable for them and puts the weight mainly on the parent's shoulders and back, although the kids can face outwards and inwards, whilst the Ergo carriers position the kids on their bum in a more natural seating position which means they can only look inwards at their parents, and not face outwards, BUT it allows parents to have the weight primarily around their hips. so from the stuff i've read, people are more for the Ergo than the Bjorn. sigh. this is tough!
khawa, its good to know it worked for you! and i agree, if your baby is even slightly squirmy when they're a bit older, how can you carry them wrapped up in the mai-tai's or whatever they're called? i'd be scared of them falling out!
ira, the sling seems to make newborns who just mostly lie there look really snug but i'm always afraid it might smother them because there's so much fabric and they're so little! did you ever have that concern? i get what you mean about the chest bit.
I've used a baby bjorn a couple of times, and i did not like the experience at all. I put my baby in it when he was about 3.5 months and that was the time when he had started to lick as well as move his head back and forth, he had also recently gone thru a growth spurt, so all in all it was an uncomfortable experience for me. I'm 5'2 and MA my baby is tall and his head would often touch (or hit) my chin, and despite being a low weight baby, my shoulders and back were sore!
so now that baby is here, and loves to be held, i’m finding i really need to look into a carrier. i need a hands-free option with him. its just so darn confusing!
the ones i’m looking into are the Ergo, the Beco, and the Infantino carriers. anyone have any experience with those brands?
prices vary greatly from carrier to carrier… i guess the best thing would be to take baby and get us both fitted. i’m concerned that with keeping baby so close to chest and walking around, etc., we’ll both overheat really quickly and get uncomfortable. did any of you carrier-wearing ladies find that?
DOn't have kids....but I've always thought slings are so cute. A parent of a former student came in with her youngest in a sling....the baby was soooo chubby that she was practically pouring out of the sling...it was scrumptiously adorable.
sgc, I am not so a great fan of carring the baby but I have to as I have no choice, she seems to like it though.
I bought a chicco one as I wasn’t sure I would be using it but as I have to go out alone with 1 kid under two in a stroller and a month old baby, sometimes I let the baby lie in the stroller and the other one is walking along.
What I did try and heard good reviews about is after I bought the chicco one: manduca
designed by midwifes, so that the main last is not on the shoulders but the whole back supports.
yes in summer I do feel we both are over heated but its good if you are in indoor or in malls ect .. when the heat is at its peak.
As said I did try out the manduca in a shop, costs 100 € but found that I had to tie a lots of belts and the ones in the back were a bit hard to get. but its suppose to be good for the back, as I only use it once or twice a day and that too for half an hour, here I find the chicco better as its easier to tie and done in seconds.
saadia, i’ll look into that brand and the chicco. i have to get a carrier because he likes being held and mA he’s a big boy, so not only are both my hands occupied and i can’t do anything else, but my weakling arms also hurt.
hareem, i hear that. dads work the babywearing look really well!
My friend used to wear this malaysian sling thing that was basically a long cloth....u wrap the baby in.... Man she carried him in that past his 1st bday! I only wore him in a carrier when i was travelling. ...otherwise no way.... Bouncer it was. And then excersaucer when he was 4 months. Arent u worried though that he will get used to wanting to be held all the time?
so we picked up the beco gemini today ahead of our little vacation, and so far, so great! its super comfortable and gabe seems to love being in it. both hubby and i tried it on. it was pricey but hopefully well worth it for short trips.
I’ve heard the Ergo are pricier but apparently really good too… hrm.