My Favorite Baby Carriers for Mom & Dad!

I knew baby wearing was something I was hoping worked for myself and my son. I had a car seat that didn’t have the infant carrier that popped out, so I planned to wear my son wherever we went. I also wanted the freedom that baby wearing allows. While I have my husband and family always willing to help, I enjoy being independent and capable of doing things on my own. I knew that baby wearing would provide me this independence and freedom.

I started baby wearing pretty much from the very start of getting my son home. I had a Moby wrap borrowed from a friend and a   Tula Explore  . My husband had a Tactical Baby Gear carrier.  He had coveted my brother’s and had to have his own when we had our son! The Tula can fit a newborn baby, but my son didn’t like being in it as an infant. He did take to the Moby very easily being worn in the newborn position though.

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The wrap style of carrier was great for his infancy stage, but I preferred the comfort and support of the Tula. Once he became a little bigger and sturdier, I started wearing him in the Tula more often. He resisted and we would practice having him in it for short periods. Our real success with baby wearing didn’t start until he was able to hold his head up and face outward. Oh boy! Was this so exciting for him!

My sister had come over the evening that I decided to test the new position for my little man, and we decided to take a walk around the neighborhood. He was to happy to see the world from this perspective and giggled and babbled the entire walk. From this point on, baby wearing has allowed me the freedom that I hoped it would in the beginning. I can easily shop, do chores, run errands and have even done a couple short hikes with him in it! 

Here are the pros and cons for both the carriers that I LOVE:

Wrap-Style Carrier (in my case, the Moby)

Pros

• Super soft on the baby
• Can be worn to look like part of your outfit
• Is comfortable enough to be worn all day by you, so that you aren’t taking the wrap on and off
• Breastfeeding is possible while wearing the baby in a wrap (although we didn’t try, see my Exclusively Pumping post)

Cons

• You pretty much are guaranteed to drag the ends of the fabric on the ground when putting it on
• My experience was that the fabric bunched up on my shoulders causing the weight of my baby to not be distributed evenly

Structured Carrier (In my case, the Tactical Baby Gear Carrier and the Tula Explore)

Pros

• Very supportive for people who struggle with back pain
• Adjustable for all stages from newborn to toddler
• Way too many cute patterns to choose from
• There is a pocket on the waste band, perfect size for a phone and keys
• The padded shoulder straps make for a comfortable fit

Cons

• Remembering which setting each panel should be at for different ways of carrying is difficult. I have to pull up Youtube every time I decide to change my son from outward to inward facing
• The price point ($175) is very high (I say it’s worth every penny, but this is a deterring factor)

My advice to you if you are struggling with baby wearing it to try different types of carriers and don’t give up just because your baby doesn’t take to it right away. Also, to save a buck, borrow different types of carriers from a friend to test them before you buy. My son and I are both much happier with the ease of life that Tula has offered us. AND it puts him in the optimal position for kissing the top of his head!