Hello, mamas! I've received a lot of questions about babywearing since Edie was born, so I thought I'd share my favorite ways to keep her close in honor of International Babywearing Week. I broke it up by age because if I look back at how carrying my girl has evolved over the past year, it's definitely been directly related to her size and physical abilities. However, I am not an expert. But I am a babywearing mom and I've found what works best for us, so I might as well share it!
0 - 6 MONTHS
I loved my Solly Baby wrap so much, I bought a second one so I knew I'd always have one clean and ready to wear. Then I won a third through the company's weekly Instagram roundups (if your photo is picked to be the Friday flipagram cover photo, you get a free wrap!), and I was PUMPED to have such a lovely collection of wraps because I seriously wore Edie all day long.
I liked wearing her in a wrap when she was itty bitty because I felt like I had more control over her entire body and how close each part of her was to me, especially her sweet little head. I found it much easier to tuck the side of her head against my chest in a wrap than in a ring sling or a structured carrier. And she went right to sleep EVERY TIME!
My first wrap to try was actually a Moby and my first wrap to own was a Boba, and I found them both too hot and too stretchy. The Solly was love at first wear for both of us. :)
6+ MONTHS
I'm currently still coasting through life on a bit of a Wildbird high. You guys, these ring slings are so beautiful and such high quality, and SO affordable! Once Edie got bigger, had more control of her body, and especially once she became mobile and was more likely to bump her head and get upset really quickly, this ring sling took over for my wraps. It's super quick to throw over your shoulder and pop baby in, and you can even hold baby while putting it on and adjusting it. I was never able to hold Edie while wrapping and I hated letting her cry for the thirty seconds it took to do so.
I've also tried (just for a few minutes in a store) the Sakura Bloom, and I do agree with the rest of the world--they are lovely! But they are also two to four times the price of a Wildbird. So, Wildbird for the win in my book!
I've also tried (just for a few minutes in a store) the Sakura Bloom, and I do agree with the rest of the world--they are lovely! But they are also two to four times the price of a Wildbird. So, Wildbird for the win in my book!
OLDER BABE - TODDLER
Ergo Baby
Our Ergo is the only structured carrier we own, and although we didn't use it very much early on, I'm confident it's about to come in handy as Edie continues to grow and as we take her out for more adventures. This is definitely what I would choose to wear her in if we were to go for a hike. It's also Daniel's first choice if we're going somewhere and he plans to wear Edie. He wore her in our Ergo at every wedding I photographed this summer! I wanted something neutral for that very reason--we have the camel color and we love it!
With the shoulder and back straps, I feel like the weight distribution is a little more Mama/Daddy friendly for long, strenuous activities than something like a ring sling (which you wear on one shoulder) would be. And now that the weather is cooling off and the trees are doing that pretty thing they do, we're getting excited to get out and hike with the babe.
Although we only used it a few times, Ergo does make an infant insert (there are other colors--we got the camel color to match our ergo) for tiny littles. I wore Edie in it in the first couple of weeks when I was afraid I would wrap her wrong and she'd fall out. It was the end of October so temperature didn't matter, but I personally couldn't see putting her in the insert for long periods of time outside in hot weather. But we're warm-natured, so there's that.
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I hope this helps you mamas who might be trying to decide what babywearing gear to invest in! I seriously don't know what I would have done without my wraps and sling in this first year--whenever an expecting mom asks me if I have any must-have registry recommendations, I always say a wrap or sling. Babies are meant to stay close to their mamas, but mamas are meant to eat and have clean clothes and get some fresh air, too!
Wear all the babies!
Our Ergo is the only structured carrier we own, and although we didn't use it very much early on, I'm confident it's about to come in handy as Edie continues to grow and as we take her out for more adventures. This is definitely what I would choose to wear her in if we were to go for a hike. It's also Daniel's first choice if we're going somewhere and he plans to wear Edie. He wore her in our Ergo at every wedding I photographed this summer! I wanted something neutral for that very reason--we have the camel color and we love it!
With the shoulder and back straps, I feel like the weight distribution is a little more Mama/Daddy friendly for long, strenuous activities than something like a ring sling (which you wear on one shoulder) would be. And now that the weather is cooling off and the trees are doing that pretty thing they do, we're getting excited to get out and hike with the babe.
Although we only used it a few times, Ergo does make an infant insert (there are other colors--we got the camel color to match our ergo) for tiny littles. I wore Edie in it in the first couple of weeks when I was afraid I would wrap her wrong and she'd fall out. It was the end of October so temperature didn't matter, but I personally couldn't see putting her in the insert for long periods of time outside in hot weather. But we're warm-natured, so there's that.
---
I hope this helps you mamas who might be trying to decide what babywearing gear to invest in! I seriously don't know what I would have done without my wraps and sling in this first year--whenever an expecting mom asks me if I have any must-have registry recommendations, I always say a wrap or sling. Babies are meant to stay close to their mamas, but mamas are meant to eat and have clean clothes and get some fresh air, too!
Wear all the babies!
I love babywearing! Sadly my baby is getting to the age where she fights it. Unless we are hiking she would much rather run around. haha I loved my Moby wrap when Landry was little, it was so nice to have her so close and like you said, she went straight to sleep!
ReplyDeleteI had a Babyhawk Mei Tai that I started using when she was 2 months old (she was a big girl) and was a nice stepping stone between my Moby and later my Ergo.
We now use the Ergo performance and have since she was about 6 months old. It is so breathable and perfect for hot days. My husband is a big fan of it too!