dude, babywearing *suuuucks*! - Page 2

[Materfamilias]

oh, Bjorn/Snugli -- ick. Burn it.

I have a mei tai and love it. I think you may just need to look into different carries. Here are some ideas:

http://kozycarrier.homestead.com/instructions.html

when my DD was small, we did front carries but she liked back carries from a pretty early age.

[Sharlla]

go for the mei tai with added straps. i wear the baby for hours no problem
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[sapphire_chan]

What is wrong with the Infantino people? They just had a sling recalled, shouldn't they have done some actual research on baby slings? Why on earth are they recommending a forward carry for their mei tai wannabe????

OP, the other good reason to drop the bjorn/snugli style carrier is they mess up hip development for your baby.

If you wear it facing in, the wrap and tie would be an improvement, but is going to be horrible after about 20lbs. After that, you'll really really really want to have ties long enough to cross at her bottom.

http://www.babycarriersnmore.com/i//...oodnplenty.jpg see how there's a twist in the middle of the x formed by the straps? The baby is sitting on that and is pulled both in AND up. Doing it like that, there's no weight on the shoulders. I can wear my 24lb toddler and put my hand under the straps of my mei tai. All the weight is in my hips.

(And before a friend of mine told me about doing the straps like that, I : HURT if I wore dd for more than a block or two. We couldn't even make it to the park before I wanted her OFF.)

[peacelove&camping]

i tried frogging, and i tried bunching; i also tried two crazy made-up ways and loading her in out in the sunshine so she'd be distracted. harrumph.

i've never even *heard* of a fular! i'll have to check them out

Originally Posted by St. Margaret

....This time around I'm excited that I have my gypsy mama wraps from the get-go. Also, with the wrap she wasn't surrounded by all the fabric of the headrest, etc, and her arms could be free....

i think that may be a big part of it. she's okay in the one that murdelates my back, and that one lets her look around and she can see me better too. which gypsymamas do you have? I'm eyeballing their water wrap.

[peacelove&camping]

Originally Posted by Materfamilias

http://kozycarrier.homestead.com/instructions.html

thanks!

i hadn't seen this when i posted just now; every time i post, two or three more messages show up from like the day before.

[peacelove&camping]

Originally Posted by sapphire_chan

OP, the other good reason to drop the bjorn/snugli style carrier is they mess up hip development for your baby.

i read that, but of course only after my husband picked that one out as the one he likes. i asked our pediatrician though, and she said it was okay for short rides, like an hour or two, which is all he'd be doing anyway.

Originally Posted by sapphire_chan

http://www.babycarriersnmore.com/i//...oodnplenty.jpg see how there's a twist in the middle of the x formed by the straps? The baby is sitting on that and is pulled both in AND up. Doing it like that, there's no weight on the shoulders.

awesome, i'm going to give it a shot! thanks guys!

[Asiago]

Originally Posted by peacelove&camping

is there hope for wearing a baby who hates to be swaddled?

My son didn't like to be swaddled either. He didn't like any restriction, so at first he'd push back on me when he felt the carrier against his back (in tummy to tummy position.) Now he seems all right with it, so perhaps your baby will also.

[rhiOrion]

The only carrier I've liked so far for my 6 week DD is the pikkolo. And the pikkolo is made so that you can cinch the front and stick even a smallish baby's legs out. DD likes hers froggied, though. I can wear her in it for hours without too much problem. Every once in a while my back will start to ache a bit, but only if I've really been wearing her and walking a LOT.

[almadianna]

both of my babies hated being swaddled but they loved being worn. i think you need to get help from someone in your community. there are many babywearing groups out there. where do you live?

[Whistler]

I have a delicious mixture of scoliosis and arthritis in my upper back. Carriers like the Bjorn create instant and ongoing pain.

That being said, I wear my baby (7 mos) for hours every day. There's a trick to it though. The weight needs to center over your hips, like a hiking backpack does. Shoulder straps should be for positioning, not weight-bearing. Carriers like the Ergo on the back do this. The one I use is one I made myself based on an African Kanga which a friend from Ghana taught me to use. The baby sits tied on my back but the weight is on my hips and tailbone. Plus the baby LOVES it!

African Kanga on me: http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...0/DSC02267.jpg

My homemade version on Hubby: http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...0/DSC01189.jpg

I would definitely try to find something that redistributes the weight to your hips. They make hiking backpacks for babies with soft frames that do the same thing. With my back the way it is, I'd use those over a Bjorn or a Snugli, although my hubby uses a Snugli a lot too.

HTH!

Edited to Add: If you're not familiar with the Kanga (or Lesso as we call it) the baby "hugs" my back with hands and legs wrapped around my waist. I can put it on and off myself although most Americans aren't comfortable with this. Hubby does it by setting the baby in the corner of the sofa and sitting in front of him then wrapping the carrier around his body. The one I made has large strips of velcro in the front holding it snug.

[peacelove&camping]

Originally Posted by almadianna

i think you need to get help from someone in your community. there are many babywearing groups out there. where do you live?

i'm in northeast/north central ct near the massachusetts line. all i could find within a reasonable distance is a once-monthly babywearing workshop, and even that's an hour drive. but i'm gonna suck it up and go, it's day after tomorrow. it's at a natural baby stufff store and they said i can try a bunch of stuff on, so here's hopin!

Originally Posted by Whistler

The weight needs to center over your hips, like a hiking backpack does. Shoulder straps should be for positioning, not weight-bearing. Carriers like the Ergo on the back do this. The one I use is one I made myself based on an African Kanga which a friend from Ghana taught me to use. The baby sits tied on my back but the weight is on my hips and tailbone. Plus the baby LOVES it!

your carrier is awesome! i'm very fond of the 'native'-type carriers that humans have been using for hundreds or sometimes thousands of years--they obviously work! i'm definitely going to keep the hip thing in mind when i go on monday. i think that's definitely what did it with the first carrier i tried that hurt my back so much. thanks so much guys!

[peacelove&camping]

the moby rocks. that is all.

[*MamaJen*]

I'm really glad you figured it out and found a carrier that works for you.
I was totally lost until I went to the natural baby store and had someone physically show me how to use a sling, how to place the baby in the sling, all that jazz.
Mobys are great for smaller babies. Once your little one gets a bit bigger, you might think about upgrading to an Ergo. I know they are a little spendy but they really are one of the most comfortable baby carriers out there. They're kind of a like a hiking backpack, in that you carry all the weight on your waist, and the shoulder straps are mostly just to stabilize. I use mine all the time for my 27-pound two and a half year old.