Umm, How Old is Your Baby?

Let's face it, babywearing an infant is totally different than babywearing a toddler. You get completely different stares when you are in public and the range of carriers available to use is different from size to size. Let's start with infant wearing.

Such a Cute Baby

When you have a teeny little squishy baby connected to you in some shape or form people love it. They think it's adorable and ooh and ahh over your new little package. I babywore Hannah when she was little for a few different reasons. First of all, I didn't really wear her at home as much because at that point I was so overwhelmed by just having a new baby to care for that the process of putting her in a carrier was too much for me. By the time I got her in and adjusted she wanted to eat again or needed a diaper change. So, mostly I only wore her when we were at the store. I did this because I didn't want people touching my fragile little 9 pound chunker and was told that people are less like to want to touch and kiss your baby if they have to get all up in your business to do so. I agree with this minus the random little old lady who has no concept of personal space. I also baby wore because infants sleep so much but wake up at the most inconvenient times, like while you have a crap load of stuff to buy and your only half way done. Babywearing took some of the anxiety out of those shopping trips. Not all though because I totally remember being stressed out in the beginning and mostly because I was terrified of breastfeeding in public. 

As a new parent and therefore beginning babywearer most people start with the well known carriers that are easily accessible. That doesn't mean these are the best carriers out there or the best ones to fit your needs but they are always a great gateway if you enjoy babywearing. Typical infant carriers are the Moby wrap, the baby bjorn or similar and the Ergo. I had a Moby and an Ergo and although I seriously considered the bjorn somehow skirted that one. Here is my opinion on each of the hot carriers for newborns. 

Moby Wrap

The Moby wrap is great but the boba wrap is better and a Gypsy Mama Wrap even better! The moby is stretchy and forgiving so it hugs you and your newborn however the material is thick and is really hot for places like the Texas summer. If I was back in Michigan I probably wouldn't care so much about the thickness. I loved my moby in the beginning. Moby does say that they can be used up through 35lbs or so but that isn't actually super accurate. Around 15lbs they start to sag and your back will hurt. Also, they CANNOT be used for back carries. DO NOT DO A BACK CARRY IN A MOBY. It is dangerous and you are just asking for your child to get hurt. I will repeat, don't do it. Now, I say that the Boba wrap is better because it's actually cheaper and made of slightly different material that is thinner and has a different stretch. My bigger selling point is that it's cheaper. And Gypsy Mama has two wraps that are hybrids and are great for hot weather wearing and wearing through toddler hood. You know I like to get the most out of my money. 

The Bjorn is a carrier that I haven't ever had the opportunity to wear. It has a bad reputation in the babywearing world and you will hear people toute that carriers like it are dangerous for your child and can cause hip issues. What we actually know is that there is no evidence of this unless your child is predisposed to hip issues which most people wouldn't know at that stage anyway. The main reason I don't recommend it to people is that it typically becomes super uncomfortable for the wearer as your baby gets bigger because all of the pressure is put on just your shoulders and back. They are about the same price point as an Ergo which will last you longer so again, why not get more for your money! I had a friend that used a bjorn for a while because her child had a club foot which required a cast. It worked awesome for them. I also know lots of people who have used them and liked them and used them and hated them. Use what works for you and enjoy wearing your baby. That is most important!! 

Ergo

The Ergo is actually not super great for a little bitty baby but really starts to shine around 4 months or so. They provide support for both the baby and the wearer and can be found easily at big box stores. I know lots of people who love their ergos. I was not one of them. If you want a similar carrier there are TONS of choices out there and I always recommend finding a babywearing group to look through your options before you spend the money on one. Some other good options similar to the ergo for infants specifically are the Pikkolo, Lillebaby, Beco Butterfly II, Beco Gemini and the Kinderpack Infant size.  

Ring Sling

My personal preference was the stretchy wrap and a ring sling for the newborn floppy stage. Both for ease of use and portability. Once you move on from the newborn stage to the infant stage you will probably prefer something else if you have the opportunity. I loved my ring sling through about a year. I was able to do both front and hip carries which are great when baby wants to see out into the world. Around 6 months I got my first woven wrap and mei tai. I didn't really fall in love with woven wraps for a while but I LOVED my mei tai for back carries until she outgrew it. We also used our Beco with lots of love until she outgrew that. Once she outgrew those however, we were moving into toddler wearing. 

So, How Old is Your Child

Toddler Kinderpack

When you are toddler wearing this is when you get those super strange looks. People ask if your child can't walk or assume they are delayed or spoiled. I do notice my husband gets far more adoring looks than I do when carrying out 25 plus pound toddler. Another reason daddy wearing is a big plus! Toddler wearing is not for the weak of heart. When you wear at this stage you mostly do back carries because front carries start to get uncomfortable long term. Your child also probably wants up and down a bunch so you want something fast and easy. Your child can also express when they want up and when they don't. Mine always chooses babywearing meetings to NOT want up. Mostly because there are tons of other kids to play with and who wants to be confined then! You already know all the reasons I choose to continue to wear so I won't go into more details about the whys. 

What I would love to talk about are the various toddler size carriers out there. There are a few very popular ones so I will talk about those more in detail and try to share a more extensive list as well of just names. One of the most popular out there are the kinderpacks. In fact, kinderpacks come in four different sizes including preschool! They are popular for a reason. They are comfortable for most people, have regular and plus size straps, have the option of mesh in the middle of the carrier for better airflow and have straps that unbuckle so if you do want to wear a larger child in the front you can cross the straps on your back for more support. We sized up to a toddler early but my child has always been tall and I'm confident that she would actually still fit well in a standard size even at almost 18 months old. We knew we would we extended wearing though so we opted to again, get the most out of our money. I will say that I tried one out before I bought it though and always recommend doing so before you spend the money. 

Standard Tula, 17 months roughly 34 inches, 25 pounds

Another super popular toddler carrier is the Tula. These are a hot commodity right now for a few different

Toddler Tula, 15 months and
roughly 32 inches and 23 pounds

reasons. People love them and find them comfortable. They are in fact my favorite carrier for my body type but again, not everyone finds them comfortable. The one thing you need to know about toddler Tula's are that they are huge! Fitting into any toddler carrier is more about your baby's height and their leg length than anything else. Companies always give you weight ranges but that doesn't mean much if you have a short chunky baby because their legs may not spread far enough to make a toddler carrier comfortable. 

So Kinderpack and Tula are probably the two MOST popular toddler carriers when talking about buckle carriers. Of course woven wraps aren't toddler specific but are great for carrying toddlers. You can also find wraps that have been converted into mei tai's and some regular material mei tais that are in toddler size. Some brand options for toddler size carriers besides the ones already mentioned are Babies Beyond Borders, the Moby Go, Jumpsac toddler, Beco Soleil, Bamberoo toddler, Kanga, and Angelpack MAX. I'm sure I have forgotten some but this is a good list to get you started.

Note: I also had a friend highly recommend the comfy joey toddler size ring sling. She says it ROCKS for toddlers and unfortunately her comment isn't showing up so I wanted to share with you all regardless :-)

Nothing holds a toddler down like a wrap though!