The Sling Lady

ERGO fans rejoice!  Still in time to work hard for you this summer, I’m excited to introduce the ERGO Performance Baby Carrier.  This baby carrier is designed with active parents in mind, and is made to allow you to wear your baby in a range of outdoor activities, even in warmer weather.  With a quick-drying polyester exterior, a breathable mesh lining a CoolMax panel for extra moisture absorption and protection.  This carrier will keep both babies and parent cooler and more comfortable in all climates.  The Performance Carriers have longer shoulder straps and waist belts than the standard carriers (the same as the Sport).  They have slightly more padding and support in the body and the shoulder padding is slightly contoured.

The Performance Carrier doesn’t work with the standard front pack, but instead has a new accessory, the cargo pack, which isn’t yet available.  It does work with the ERGO backpack for extra storage, but there isn’t one specifically designed for this carrier yet.

The ERGO Performance Carriers are available and grey and spring green.  Click on the links to get more details about the carriers.  I’ve also updated our ERGO comparison chart to show how the ERGO Performance differs from the other two models and  I’ll update it as more information becomes available.

The new ERGOs are in pre-order status, so if you order yours today, we’ll ship it as soon as we get it.  I’m hoping that will be by the end of next week.

I’ll definitely update you all when I get these carriers in my hot little hands and can try them out myself!

From Michelle, AirForce wife and mom to Liam (2.5) and Ben (1) comes this sweet photo story  of how using a baby carrier got her through some stressful and many sweet moments reuniting with her husband on his return from deployment in Afghanistan.

My husband came home today after 7 very long months in Afghanistan. The airport wouldn’t comply with letting me back to meet him at the gate. Thankfully I had a carrier with me to help wrangle my 1 and 2 year old boys, both of whom were sick.

Trying to convince US Airways:

The Sling Lady thanks Michelle, her husband and all those serving our country at home and abroad.

Happy July 4th!

Hey, the blue Sport ERGOs are in, and a day earlier than promised!  Gotta love when that happens.  Demand has been high for these and our pre-orders have actually taken care of half our shipment, so if you’ve had your eye on these, don’t delay!  Order yours here.

In honor of my DH and all the other great dads out, here are some of my favorite pictures of Dads wearing their babies.

Happy Father’s Day!

Dear Sling Lady, Do you have any suggestions for how to get my husband to use a baby carrier?  He won’t even consider one.  I really wish that he could take our baby more when we are out so that I’m not the only one carrying him all the time.  Help!

- Marie, Portland OR

Dear Marie,

There are Dads who know from the moment their honey gets pregnant that they are going to wear their babies.  They instinctively know the benefits of babywearing and they wouldn’t dream of not having a carrier or two of their own.   These Dads are often the same Dads who are cool with (or even prefer) baby wraps and will even consider (or prefer) a ring sling.  In public!

A lot of men we know aren’t those Dads.  They think baby carriers (even the ubiquitous Bjorn)  are “weird” looking, too complicated or unmasculine.  If their honeys want to use one those contraptions with they baby, they might not argue, but they have no interest whatsoever in trying one themselves.   They prefer to just carry the baby or use a stroller and they won’t even check out all those cute pictures of other babywearing Dads to see how manly they look.

Not using a baby carrier is, of course, a choice that is any Dad’s to make.  But if you are the sweetie of a guy who’s just not that into the concept, here are a few of my suggestions to help him along.

** Set the stage for how convenient babywearing is.  Reluctant Dads need to see how using a baby carrier makes their life easier. Rave about how much you can get done with the baby in a carrier.   Complain about how heavy the bucket is.

** If you know other Dads that use carriers, strike up a conversation about why they use them (in your sweetie’s presence of course).  Other men are more influential in this type of thing, especially if Dad is concerned about the manliness of carriers.

** If you can engage him in the conversation, ask what kind of carrier he’d be most likely to use if he HAD to use one. Show him some pictures of different types (preferably modeled by men) to gauge his reaction.

** If he refuses to even check out pictures, consider buying one of your carriers in a neutral color that you think he wouldn’t be embarassed to wear.  Buckle carriers are generally a good pick for this, as they meet with the least resistance from reluctant Dads.  You might also consider a reversible mei tai or a neutral pouch.  Then, whip it out at a moment when it would be super convenient for him to use it (at the beach, on a hike, shopping a crowded street, etc).

** If you manage to get him in the carrier, tell him how sexy it is to see a Dad cuddling with his baby.

If you have experiences (successful or not) of trying to convince a reluctant Daddy to babywear, I’d love to hear them!  What tips do you have?

I can’t tell you how excited I am that we have new Ball Baby Mei Tais in stock!  For those who don’t know, Ball Baby mei tais are some of the most comfortable and versatile baby carriers on the market.  While the Kozy Carrier is my first love in mei tais, for front carries with a little one, I find myself reaching for a Ball Baby.  The wide straps on this mei tai cup my shoulders so that the weight is really distributed across the tops of my shoulders, and the straps never dig into body.

The Ball Baby Mei Tai makes a great hip carrier as well – much more comfortable than a mei tai or buckle carrier with narrower straps, since again, the wide strap cups the shoulder.  With carriers like the Kozy mei tai and the ERGO baby carrier, both of which can do a hip carry, I find myself wondering where to rest the shoulder strap – with the Ball Baby, this problem is solved.

Ball Baby, previously owned by Kimber Tower (now a babywearing advocate) was recently bought by Taylor Made slings.  TaylorMade tapered the ends of the straps on the Ball Baby (to make for easier knot tying and untying) but otherwise kept the same fabulously comfortable carrier.

The new Ball Baby Mei Tais are available in three color combinations, all reverse to the solid strap color giving you two looks in one.  We also have a few prints left in some of Kimber’s best-selling funky patterns – Somerset and Tootsie Roll.

Wondering how the Ball Baby compares to the Kozy mei tai?  Check out our “Compare Mei Tai Baby Carriers” page in our Learn section!

Perhaps you’ve heard of Failblog – a website that posts funny pictures of “fails” and touts itself as “helping you feel better about yourself everyday.”   This picture got posted there earlier this week, and I have to say, I think it’s hilarious.

Babywearing can look so strange sometimes!  I can certainly see where people who aren’t used to carrying a baby in an ERGO would think this child looks like it’s suffocating.  To non babywearers and especially to non-parents, this picture is absolutely ridiculous and a definite “fail.”  To me, a person who’s worn my child in many carriers and many situations, including in ERGO baby carrier on the New York City subway, it’s just real life!  Sure, as the numerous comments on this post suggest, this Daddy could stand or take his baby out of the carrier.   But chances are, the kid’s a asleep and perfectly comfortable!  And why stand when you can sit and BOTH be comfortable. Plus, he can take a moment to check his email! It’s a win-win.

We’ve featured Gossip Girl’s Kelly Rutherford wearing her baby in a Sea Green ERGO before, but this picture was just too cute not to post!  Plus, it just says everything we love about using a baby carrier!

Today’s post is written by my brother-in-law, Gabriel Dattatreyan, new dad to Baby Jai (5 weeks old).  With Father’s Day right around the corner, Gabriel reflects on his first impressions of baby carrying as a father.

So, I am a new father.  Having waited till well into my thirties before my partner and I decided to make a go of it and have our first, I have had considerable time to observe many of my friends have children and proceed to acquire all of the accessories that go along with the endeavor.  From thousand dollar strollers to strange little toys meant to stimulate the cognitive development of the baby, I have seen it all and scoffed from afar at the limitless amount of baubles people feel the need to accumulate.  I vowed to myself that I would be a minimalist parent and only buy what was absolutely necessary.

At this point the only item that I can honestly say has been absolutely essential for me has been the Kangaroo Corner Micro-Fleece Pouch sling that we got as a gift just prior to our son’s arrival.  In the first few weeks of his life, he has naturally been preoccupied with breastfeeding.  As a result the only quality time that I have been able to spend with him has been when I take him out for walks in the sling.  As soon as he gets in the sling and outside, my little guy immediately quiets down and observes the world or drifts off into deep sleep.  The physical intimacy that the sling offers has been invaluable to me in these first few weeks of his life.

Of course, figuring out how to wear him comfortably took about a dozen attempts;  deftly inserting and extracting him from the sling — another dozen.   This is not a design flaw of the pouch in the least.  Rather, what has made it difficult is a preoccupation with the notion that I might do something wrong and hurt the little guy.  At this point I can honestly say that using the sling has become quite natural.  It was great to get lessons early on from a sling expert on how to correctly (and safely) wear a baby.  The rest has simply been a matter of practice.  As he gets older (and heavier) I look forward to trying on other types of slings, but for now the Kangaroo Korner pouch is my sling of choice and my way of spending time with my new son as we take summer walks together.

Kangaroo Korner pouches are one of our best selling baby carriers for Dads and other men who wear babies!  Click here to read more about our favorite baby carriers for men.

**June 20, 2010: Update! We will be receiving the new blue Sport ERGOs on Wednesday June 23 and they’ll be ready to ship on Thursday, June 24.  New items often sell fast so if you’re dying for this,  order yours now!

The ERGO Sport Baby Carrier was released last summer and has been a mega seller ever since.  In fact, it’s our #1 seller here at Carry Me Away.  And why not?  The Sport has all the comfort of the original and organic ERGO carriers, but it’s made of a lighter, breathable, wicking fabric and has a vent to keep you and the baby cooler while wearing it.  Our customers in hot weather climates say it definitely makes a difference!  The Sport has longer straps to accommodate fluffier wearers, and that’s always a good thing.

I’m therefore excited to report that ERGO has announced a new color for the Sport, to debut this summer:blue!  I think this will be a great alternative for people who aren’t necessarily fond of black and also for those concerned about black being hot.  Lighter colors also show less lint and baby spit up, lol.

Anyways, here it is!

What do you think?