Dear Sling Lady,

I really want to love my new Kozy carrier, but something isn’t working for me.  It seems like the carrier doesn’t come far enough up my daughter’s back!  Can you help?

- Janice

Dear Janice,

My guess is that you need to get a better “seat”  in your Kozy Carrier.  I recently saw a post on the Beltway Babywearer’s blog that nicely illustrates how to do this!  With their permission, I’m reprinting it here!  These instructions work for both mei tai carriers like the Kozy and Ball Baby Mei Tais, and also for buckle carriers like the Beco Butterfly and Pikkolo Carriers.

Warmly,

The Sling Lady

Recently I’ve helped several mamas at meeting with carriers they are not finding comfortable, and I make one minor adjustment and suddenly they say, “WOW, that fixed it!”  So, I’m going to show you how to make that adjustment yourself.

Your initial carry might be safe in that baby isn’t falling out.  It might look something like this:

Notice the carrier is low on the baby’s back, there is fabric bunched under baby’s bottom.  This will eventually pull on your shoulders and make you uncomfortable.

There are a few things you can do to fix this.

1. Instead of pulling the carrier over baby from the top, instead smooth the carrier up over baby’s bottom before pulling the straps over your shoulders, like so:

2. Bounce the baby down while holding the straps STRAIGHT up.  This is harder to accomplish in an SSC, but notice I’m reaching over my shoulder and pulling up from there.  When I say bounce, I do mean bounce.  We aren’t talking feet off the ground jump, but bounce like you mean it.

See the huge difference in how high the carrier comes on her back?  And how she is settled into the seat?  Those will make all of you more comfortable with your positioning.  Happy babywearing!

I love Spring!  The birds start nesting, the flowers start budding… and all our baby carrier manufacturers start releasing their spring lines!  First: here’s a sneak peak at the new ERGO baby carriers and products, coming out in mid-May and early June…

The ERGO Baby Carrier - Outback

Minimalist that I am, the Outback ERGO Baby Carrier is right up my alley.  A sophisticated, neutral taupe with a black hood, this carrier will go with everything and Dads will love it too.  It’s apparently made of a soft-touch fabric that I can’t wait to get my hands on!

The Lattice ERGO Baby Carrier is a sweet addition to the line, that Moms will love and Dads won’t mind wearing either!  This camel carrier with a taupe hood is a easy neutral, but with a pretty touch of lattice on the pocket.  Perfect for summer!

The Zebra ERGO Baby Carrier has been generating a ton of excitement over on our Facebook page (come join us to get up-to-the-minute info on new releases and sneak previews!).  It’s a funky new addition to the standard ERGO Baby Carrier line, and I predict that babywearers the world over will soon be taking a walk on the wild side in their new Zebra carriers! By the way, if you love the zebra look but just aren’t sure you want it ALL the time, don’t forget about the ERGO 

Next: ERGO is making the ERGO an even better value for your infant!  The new Bundle of Joy packages will feature an ERGO Baby Carrier bundled with an infant insert, for a savings of $10!  I think is such a great idea, since all those little bits add up.  And I love that ERGO is putting out new infant inserts for the bundles, including a Dark Chocolate Infant Insert and a Navy Infant Insert (both only available bundled in the Bundle of Joy package).  Check them out:

Dark Chocolate Organic Bundle of Joy

And last, but not least, I’m excited that the Performance Insert is going to be in both black (the original) and Natural!  The Performance Insert, with it cooler fabric and wicking properties, has been a huge hit and I think having it available in a lighter color is perfect!

We’ve placed an order for all of these products and they will be coming to Carry Me Away in mid-May and early July.   Watch this space for updates!

Today’s post is by Cristina over at Tailor Made Momma.  She’s got a fun blog where she does reviews of the latest and greatest baby products (plus lots of giveaways), so head on over and check her out!

We sent Cristina three different types of ERGO baby carriers: the ERGO Sport, the ERGO Performance carrier and the ERGO Options Carrier (which is the same as the standard/organic baby carrier but with the option of changing out the covers) and asked for her honest review of all three.  She came back with this in-depth review, including an excellent video comparison of all three!  So without further ado, let’s get to her comparison of these three great ERGO Baby carriers!

I’ve always wanted to be a baby wearer.  I love the idea of having my little one close to me while I did house work or walked chased the boys around the house.  But after trying a bunch of baby carriers I just couldn’t find one that I love!  Then I met Laurel from Carry Me Away.  Laurel has a HUGE selection of baby carriers on her site and is very knowledgeable!   We spent sent a quite a few e-mails back and forth discussing the type of carrier that would work best, and that would be the best fit for our family.  We decided on an Ergo baby carrier and that is where our Journey begins!

Laurel sent me three, yes you heard me right, three different ERGO Baby carriers to try out.  The Sport, the Performance, and the Original Options carrier.  Through this review I am going to work on giving you a breakdown of the three carriers and what makes each of the different from the others!

All three of the ERGO baby carriers have the following basic features:

-Easy to use snap closure straps

-Built in rain hood

-Stylish design

-Ability to carry on Front (facing you), back or hip

After these basic features this is where the carriers start to vary and take on a character all their own.

The Original Options ERGO Baby Carrier:

The Options ERGO Baby Carrier itself comes in black, which on its own is a great looking carrier, but then it gets fun!  To go along with your baby carrier, you can purchase snap in covers!  Laurel sent me the Bold covers and I love them.  The colors are very vibrant and super fun!  I can even change it up when I’m in a different mood, or to match an outfit.  The Options baby carrier has padded straps which make carrying a lot more comfortable.  I also really like that there is a lot of play in the chest snaps.  Depending on your child’s size and your size there was a lot of room for you to get the strap exactly where you wanted it.  The Original ERGO baby carrier also has a zipper pocket in the front which great for carrying a cell phone, keys or even an extra diaper.  While the carrier was very comfortable I did find it a little warmer than the other two.  Even on a cool day Colton was a little sweaty when I took him out.

The Sport ERGO Baby Carrier:

Just like the Original ERGO Baby Carrier, the Sport has nice thick padded shoulder straps that make holding baby very comfortable.  It is available in black, blue and red.  The ERGO Sport carrier feels quite a bit “lighter” than the Options carrier.  It doesn’t have as much bulk around the middle of the back like the original does and it is much more breathable.  For a VERY hot summer day I could see this being much more comfortable for both mom and baby than the original style.  However, this more breathable mid section does come at the loss of any kind of storage in the carrier.  There are buttons that hold the rain hood in place but no pockets.  For me this is a bit of a downer because I really need somewhere to keep a cell phone or keys or maybe even a few dollars.  For hubby this wouldn’t be that big of a deal as he usually keeps these things in his pockets anyway.  For some reason I have a hard time getting Colton into a the proper position in the ERGO Sport Baby Carrier when I am putting him on my back.  I didn’t have this problem with my nephew who is a little taller and a little heavier, but with Colton I couldn’t do it on my own.  The back was always way too low.  I did prefer to wear this baby carrier on my back vs. on my front.  I’m sure part of it has to do with Colton just getting too big for a front carry (however when his fingers won’t stay out of my hair, I do it anyway) but it was a lot more comfortable on my back than my front (you will see this is not so for the Performance baby carrier).  However, the chest straps don’t seem to have the same range of movement as the Options ERGO Baby Carrier did.  It could be the exact same setup, but they were easier and more comfortable for me to position on the Original.

The Performance ERGO Baby Carrier:

The ERGO Performance Baby Carrier is VERY different than the either the ERGO Sport or Original baby carriers I tried.  First off this color! OMG!  I love it.  It is such a great green and the picture really doesn’t do it the justice is deserves.  But enough about my love for the color of this baby carrier.  The differences between this and others start with the straps.  They are much thinner than the straps on the Original and ERGO Sport baby carriers.  They are still well padded but in a different way than the other two (see video for a better comparison).  The straps are also tapered – this made the Performance baby carrier a lot more comfortable for me to carry on my front.  The ERGO Performance also has a wicking inner layer.  I could feel the difference where the straps hit my skin and I could tell on Colton too, as he was never sweaty when I took him out of the carrier.  The Performance Baby Carrier has the front storage pocket too!  This made me very happy!  While I LOVE to wear Colton on my back in the Performance baby carrier, I  also felt like this was the most comfortable front carrier.  Again Colton is really getting too big for me to carry this way, but it was by far more comfortable for me than the other two.  I did have some issue getting the chest straps set up comfortably, but once they are in place it was fine.

Cristina’s choice?  The ERGO Performance Carrier!  I find that people have very different experiences with the fit of the various ERGO Baby Carriers, so in forum-speak: ymmv!

You can see all the ERGO Baby Carrier choices here.   Want to know more about how the three ERGO Baby Carriers compare?  Check out our Original/Sport/Performance comparison chart!

If you’re a babywearer with a toddler, then you have at some point had the experience of your toddler absolutely refusing to get in your carrier, right at the very moment when you really need to get going!  It’s like they have a sixth sense about it.  When my son was 14 months old, we took him backpacking in the High Sierras.  We had an ambitious hiking schedule that involved 5-7 hours of hiking a day (can you tell we were first time parents!).  Not surprisingly, my son started to balk at getting in the baby backpack by the middle of the second day.  I put him in anyway, and he fussed and whined the whole afternoon.  By the end of that day’s hiking, we were both pretty fed up.  The next morning, we tried a new strategy: when we were about to load Jack up, the whole group stood around and cheered as he got loaded into his carrier.  It worked like a charm!  We did that for the rest of the trip and my son (and I) had a great time.

You may not have a crowd to cheer your child on the next time you need to get out the door to a doctor’s appointment but your child is playing hide and seek.  You may not be inclined to do any whooping and hollering in the Target parking lot.  Instead, check out this incredibly fun way to load your toddler into a back carry that will have her begging for more!  The “Circus Flip” will work with any soft pack baby backpack carrier such as the ERGO, Beco Gemini, Pikkolo and the Kozy Carrier!  It will not work with frame baby backpack carriers like the Kelty (which should be obvious, I hope, but worth a mention!)

Warning: this move is for advanced babywearers only!  But if you’ve been wearing since your child was an infant, you may be that already!  Please see this post for beginner suggestions.

Thanks again to Sara and Ivy for this fun how-to.  And to those of you who remember that I promised you this video “next week” back in January, my apologies and thank you for hanging in there!

It’s February, and we want to spread the babywearing love!  Won’t you join us?  Winner receives your choice of ERGO baby carriers, plus a healthy dose of that lovin’ feeling.

Entering is easy, and no purchase is required.

1. Regular Entry Question:
Answer this question in the Comments: I love babywearing because _______________. Only ONE regular entry per person will be allowed. However, see #2 to receive BONUS entries!

2. BONUS Points:

a. Like our Facebook page and say hello!   Current FB fans will automatically receive this bonus point

b.  Leave a review of one of our baby carriers and accessories.   After you’ve left the review, email us at info@carrymeaway.com with the subject line: “Contest review” and give the link to the review you left.  If you have trouble leaving a review (our reviews are wonky sometimes -sigh!), you can email the review to us and we will post it for you.

c. Post your favorite babywearing picture on our Facebook page, with a description telling us why you love it.

d. Share the love with your friends and invite them to join the fun.  You will receive a bonus point for every person who mentions your name when commenting here or on FB.

Contest closes at midnight (PST) on February 29, 2012.

Winner of the grand prize – your choice of in-stock ERGO baby carriers (including Petunia Picklebottom!) will be picked at random from all correct entries. The winner will be announced by email to all entrants on Facebook and on the SlingLady’s blog on or before March 2, 2012.

Please check back to see if you are the winner!

Back carries are the most intimidating carries and usually the last one parents try.  Once moms and dads do try the back carrier  (be it in the ERGO carrier, the Pikkolo, the Kozy Mei Tai or any other baby backpack carrier), they are thrilled and invariably state they wish they had done it sooner.

Baby backpack carriers are wonderful for several reasons:

• The ergonomics of a carrying baby on your back make it much more comfortable for you – our backs are built to carry heavier loads!
• Having your baby in a backpack is truly hands free – they are out of your way so that you have a full range of movement with your hands and arms
• Many kids prefer back carries to front-facing in carries, especially once they are old enough to see over your shoulder.  They can actually see more this way!

Getting your child into your baby backpack carrier can be scary, though, and that’s why I love this video from Sara aka Ivy’s Mama.  In it, she shows us that getting your toddler into that back carry is actually fairly simple .  She demonstrates two way to do the “hip scoot” for back carries.   The first one is what I consider the “standard hip scoot,” and is most likely to be the one you will use over the long run.  The second one is a little bit more work but is perfect if you are feeling nervous about getting your toddler on your back – it has a little bit less fear factor to it.

So if you’re looking for back carry instructions, or just some inspiration to start wearing your carrier again, check this out!  These instructions will help you do a back carry with a Mei Tai like the Kozy Carrier or the Ball Baby Mei Tai and with buckle carriers like the ERGO baby carrier, the Pikkolo and the Beco Gemini baby carrier.  If you have the Beco Butterfly, you won’t need this!

Tune in early next week  for another baby carrier instruction video from Ivy’s mama, which shows you how to make getting into a backpack carrier so fun, your toddler will be begging you to do it again!

P.S. Isn’t little Ivy just the cutest?

Your baby carrier can help you prevent your child from getting sick.  And if s/he does catch a cold or the flu, your carrieris a great tool for helping both of you through it!

Baby carriers can help prevent illness

One of the lesser-touted benefits to wearing your child is that people are much less likely to touch or get close to your baby while you are wearing them.  While it may have seemed that everybody and their mama was willing to touch your belly without permission when you were pregnant, the standard personal distance rules seem to get reasserted as soon as the baby is out.  So people who would be likely to peer into a car seat or stroller (coughing, sneezing, touching and otherwise bringing unwanted germs near your child) are much less likely to get up close and personal with your baby if they are snuggled up on your chest.  So your baby carrier helps you to keep some distance between your child and potentially contagious well-wishers.

You are also much more mobile and flexible while wearing your child, and can move, turn or easily cover her head if someone does come too near.

If you have an older child who is sick, wearing your baby in a sling or carrier will make it easier to keep them away from toys and surfaces that your older child has had contact with.

What babies and kids want when they are ill

It’s not possible (or desirable) to prevent all colds and inevitably, your baby will get sick sometimes.  And when they do, they want one thing: to cuddle with you!  Any mama who has ever had a sick baby (all of us!) has had the experience of the baby who cries every time he is put down or the toddler who whines and follows you around unless you are snuggling together on the couch.  At these times, your baby carrier can save your sanity!

Many of us stop using our trusty carriers as our children get older and more independent, but don’t forget about babywearing when your toddler  (or an even older child) wants to be nowhere but on top of you!  Dust off that ring sling or your ERGO carrier from the back of the closet-it’s an invaluable tool for giving your child the TLC they need when you need to take care of other things.

Added bonus: wearing your little one close to you when they are sick, can also help you monitor any fever or other symptoms.

The Sling Lady’s favorite baby carriers when your child is feeling less than their best

The keyword here is snuggly!   If your little one is feeling bad, they want to cuddle up with you.  You still need to get things done, so your baby sling is the perfect tool for freeing up your hands while cuddling with your child.  For an infant or young baby, we love stretchy wraps like the Moby Wrap and the Wrapsody Stretch baby wrap.   Both of these carriers are super soft, stretchy and provide cuddle galore.  You can tuck your baby inside or leave arms and legs out.  Since they are two-shouldered, you can carry your baby for hours without taxing your body too much.  And it’s easy to pop baby in and out of the carrier without much adjustment.

Ring slings are also great for cuddling, especially if your older baby or toddler prefers to be carried on your hip.  If you need a two-shouldered carrier, we love a mei tai like the Kozy or Ball Baby mei tais.  Mei tais are sleek and comfortable feeling, without buckles and tons of padding that can feel bulky.

What are your favorite carriers when your little one is sick?

Have you made a New Year’s resolution to get fit or exercise more?  Did you know your baby carrier can help you keep it?

A huge number of parents of young children want to get in shape, or at least exercise more.  Having a new baby or young child in the home can make finding the time seem extra challenging.  The good news is, your baby carrier is a great tool for helping you reach your goal!

How your carrier can help you exercise more

1. A baby carrier makes it easy to spend time with your child WHILE exercising, so that you don’t have to choose between the two!  Most babies love the combination of closeness and motion, so chances are, they will love being included in your exercise routine.

AND

2. Babies add a functional weight to your workout. The heavier they get, the more resistance.  Adding a 15 lb baby to your usual walk, hike or other gentle fitness routine ups the impact of every movement you make.

What kind of workout to choose while while wearing your baby

First of all, you only want to do slow and easy exercises while carrying a baby, so keep that in mind when choosing your workout.  Even a regular walk can turn into quite a workout when you add in hills and the weight of your baby!  You can also do any exercises that keep you in an upright position, such as squats, and upper body workouts using an exercise tube (rather than weights).

What carriers to choose while working out with your baby

Choose a carrier that is very secure and truly handsfree so that you don’t have a moment’s anxiety about your baby’s security.  Also choose two-shouldered carriers so that the baby’s weight is evenly distributed over your body.  Our favorite carriers for workouts are: mei tais, wraps and two-shouldered buckle carriers.

Do you work out with your baby? What has been your experience?

New babywearers often ask me for recommendations for one carrier that can be used from birth to toddlerhood, that can be used in any situation for any length of time. They say they only want to buy one carrier, so it needs to last.

My answer? Baby carriers are like handbags. Yes, it’s entirely possible to own only one bag, which you use for every outing and any activity. But the chances are, you own at least one other handbag in addition to your daily purse (or diaper bag). Perhaps it’s an evening bag, that goes with your little black dress and is just big enough to hold your cell phone, lipstick and credit card. It might be a gym bag. Or a backpack for when you need to take a lot of gear and you want something big enough to hold all of it that won’t tire your shoulders out. Some of us own handbags in every possible shape and color, so we have the perfect bag for any outfit and any occasion.

Baby carriers are much the same way. It is entirely possible to own only one baby carrier and use it for every outing and occasion. For some people this is a pouch or ring sling, others prefer a two-shouldered carrier like a mei tai, buckle carrier or wrap. Which carrier is your go-to carrier varies so much from person to person, just like handbags do.

Say you start out with a ring sling with your newborn. Rings slings are easy to use and you like the simple, no-fuss aspect of them. This works great for you for the first several weeks, but you are finding that your little one needs to be held ALL THE TIME, and you are starting to get some soreness by the end of the day, especially as your little one gets heavier. So you get a Wrapsody Stretch wrap, and it is heavenly! Super comfy and supportive and you can breastfeed in it hands free. Plus you can wear it for hours with no discomfort at all.

As your little one gets older and you move out of the honeymoon phase, you start getting antsy to get more things done. You’d like to be able to put him on your back, and plus, all the fabric of the Wrapsody is driving you a little nuts in the parking lot at Target. So you get a Kozy carrier mei tai, so you can put little one in a high back carry as well as a front carry. The Kozy is super supportive and less futsy than the wrap.

As little one gets older and starts wanting to be up and down a lot, you go back to using your pouring sling more often, for the simple, fast hip carry it provides. Then you have a wedding to go to, your sling doesn’t go with your dress, so you get a Sakura Bloom ring sling in silk to accessorize your outfit (or cover it up!).

Then you take up hiking and don’t want the straps of your Kozy dragging on the ground, so you get an ERGO baby carrier. You love how fast it is to get on and off, and how it takes the weight off your shoulders and puts in on your hips.

And just like bags, it’s always nice to have a baby carrier just right for the beach and pool (water wrap) and one that rolls up compactly that you can leave in the glove compartment just in case (pouch). Not to mention one that doesn’t clash with your purple and yellow striped sweater!

And just like bags, you CAN wear just one.  If I were to recommend just one single carrier to take you from birth through toddlerhood, it would have to be the Beco Gemini.  Just make sure it’s in a fabric you’d want to wear to a wedding!

If you celebrate Christmas and you’re experiencing some post-holiday blues, you’ll love this!  After all, we’re technically only on the 5th day of Christmas, right?  Anyways, I enjoyed this take on the 12 Days Of Christmas, from the Jay Leno show which ran earlier this month.  Babywearers everywhere should enjoy the 8 maids bit. (Warning, these videos are slightly raunchy, with references to marijuana, drag queens, and multiple piercings, but it’s all in good fun. Still, if that’s not your thing, take a pass!)

The setup: Adam the Page is out to seek the 12 Days of Christmas gifts for Jay.

and the grand finale:

The best part?  Not a Bjorn in sight!  I spy several ERGOs and at least one Maya Wrap ring sling,  though!

Happy Holidays!