So I thought I would write up a little review of my thoughts on soft clothes carriers and structured carriers.
When bub was 6 weeks old I bought a Baby Bjorn Miracle Mesh because bubby is quite a big baby and was too heavy to carry around. So with the Baby Bjorn Miracle, it was great because it had a back/spine support. It was solo comfortable and easy to put on. So we decided to take little Eli into the city and carry him in the Baby Bjorn. Terrible mistake, after 1 hr of walking around, little bub ended up getting blisters on his manhood. We think it is because of the plastic clip being right where his manhood was. Freaked the crap out of us and we went straight to the doctors to make sure everything was ok. Little Eli wasn't too bothered by it, but it sure was unsettling for us as parents.
So after talking to Mothercare where we bought it from and them talking to the Baby Bjorn Rep. The Rep was like nah there's nothing we can do about it and it's not Baby Bjorn's fault! I was pretty mad, so I decided to email their Head Office in Australia instead. Thank goodness I did. Because the girl was absolutely wonderful and cared about me as a customer and cared about the well-being of little Eli. So they decided to send us the Baby Bjorn Comfort to try. While it is a little harder to put on as compared to the BB Miracle, and it is missing the spine support, it is definitely a lot more comfortable for hub, and carrying him in it was not so much a problem. So note to self... definitely need to talk to the right people if you have any issues with their product!
The Baby Bjorn Comfort
There was one problem with the Comfort though, it was only suitable for babies over 6kg... while Eli was big, we still had to wait a few months before we could fit him in the comfort. So during that time a mother in our group was wearing the Boba Wrap (see below, used to be known as Sleepy Wrap). It looked so easy to just fit bub in, so after testing out this LONG LONG piece of fabric, I decided to buy it. Best buy ever! Yes it literally is a long piece of fabric, but it is so easy to pack away in. I just fold it up and put it in my nappy bag. And it really is soft and comfortable. Perfect for going out for a walk, since little Eli likes to be held rather than being in the pram. I guess the only problem I would have is how to survive the hot Aussie summer, cause bub does heat up in this! May need to look into a Boba 3G then (maybe I will ask that as a Christmas present from the in-laws).
Boba Wrap, loving the blue colour, and hub do fall asleep in it, even though initially he does protest
So how about other carriers???
Ergo - Very popular, and lots of my friends have it. And I so wish we have some sort of baby wearing library here in Sydney where we can try different carriers before we purchase them. Anyway, so why didn't I choose the Ergo, well unfortunately bub was too tall and heavy for his age, but unable to spread his legs that far apart at the time. So to fit in the Ergo, we needed to buy the infant insert so he would be comfortable. But with the infant insert, he was too tall to be able to be supported. So he would be all floppy, not ideal, so that was a no to the Ergo.
My friend gave me the Ryco, which was available through Target. Unfortunately bub has real chubby legs, so he didn't fit in the Ryco, even at an early age.
So how about a MiniMonkey sling, which I also got from a friend as a hand-me-down (I have great friends!)... I was so scared of suffocating him, so I never tried it. Also I guess with it being on one shoulder, I just thought it would put too much strain on my shoulders and back.
Which is probably why the wrap was so useful when bub was small. Now that he is bigger and over 10kg, I need to start thinking of new options soon.
Also I just found out today that I will be given the chance to test out the Spectra 9 Electric Breast Pump! I'm so excited. As my friend loaned me the Avent Double Electric Pump, which was great at the beginning to establish my milk supply. However having to go to a few weekend uni classes, I was using the manual breast pump, and it does give me RSI and I don't get as much milk. And because it takes longer, trying to pump during uni breaks was nearly impossible. So I'm looking forward to this iPod looking contraption in helping me express when I'm at uni and when I go back to work.
