A few questions about baby slings, can I do the following...?

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I've had a few sling recommendations on here which I am going to look into and check reviews!

Now I'm wondering how exactly I can use a sling and what for!

Please be patient and apologies if these queries sound daft!

Can I wear a baby in the sling if I was going for a walk around the park, for example?
Could I bring the dog if I had baby in the sling?
If I was meeting a friend for coffee, could the baby be in the sling or would I need to bring pram also?
Is there a time limit that you can have a baby in a sling?
Do you feel a bit daft wearing your baby?!

Well they are meant to have a degree of head control before you can put them in a sling, so you might find it is a couple of weeks or more before you can use it, depending on what type you get. As to a walk in the park, perfect use of a baby sling / carrier! My BabyBjorn is fab for taking 4yo to the park, for walks and the school run. The Close one I used for ds hurt my back. Taking the dog would be fine provided he isn't the size of a cow and likely to pull you over. Little babies sleep well (often) in carriers but my 3mo now wouldn't tolerate me sitting for a coffee, she needs movement and walking to stay settled. And no I don't feel daft! I love carrying dd close to me and get so many "oh that's adorable!" from strangers, which I find lovely.

Yes,yes, yes, no, no. I loved having ds close to me in the sling, and he loved it too. As long as you have a good sling that really supports them, they'll be fine as long as your back holds up.
You can lie your baby on the sling on the floor or next to you on the sofa if you've stopped for a coffee.

I would say all of the above. a good sling/carrier will have babies legs in frog position in the beginning then spread out to the sides so it is possible to sit down with baby in sling if you want to.
I used a carrier every day for about 2.5 years and rarely used the buggy.

Of course you can use a sling for park, coffee, walking the dog! Nor is there any time limit :). A wrap sling can be used from birth as you can wrap you rbaby so that the head is well supported. You can use your sling in any circumstance that you would use a pram PLUS around the house while doing hoovering, cooking etc and on long muddy walks with the dog through places you cna't get a pram!

Re time limits if you have a bjorn type then I'd stick to short periods of time as they are not ideal. A fabric sling though (wrap, soft structured carrier, mei tai etc) holds your baby in a well supported seated position so can be used for long periods.

They don't need head control, you can use slings from newborn (well, good ones anyway!).

Most slings you can wear for as long as you want, but maybe not a BabyBjorn/Tomy type where the baby sort of dangles on your front as it's not great for their hips/back for long periods - if you get a decent sling (wrap sling or mei tai or soft structured carrier) where the baby is positioned well they can stay in for hours.

I always left DS in the sling if I stopped for coffee and he was asleep, just turned my head so I wasn't holding hot coffee directly over him.

YouTube can do whatever you like ! Walking os crear. As os zapping top Theron shows.

oh dear . sorry for incomprehensible post. meant to say walking and popping to shop

The only situation of those I've had a problem with is poo picking. For some reason bending and clearing up after the dog with the baby in the sling was so damn hard I switched to the pram for walks which has limited our travels (we live next to many hilly woods/fields which are now off limits!)
The sling I use is a Babasling because I was given it for free :)

The only thing I don't attempt is getting hot stuff out of the oven, other than that, I can do more or less anything.

Slings are fabulous things, I couldn't recommend them more! Especially if you have a clingy baby. Also great for places where a pram is in the way, like shopping. Babies like being close to mum.

Try and find out if there are sling meeting/ sling libraries around near you, so you can try a few types before you buy, and get advice from other mums.

I bought a baby bjorn, it was useful, but I would NOT recommend this type. I couln't use it till DS was 8lb and he was a small baby so i was waiting and waiting. It just hangs off your shoulders so when he gets a bit heavier its not comfortable for long, plus, the baby kind of dangles by their crotch. As someone said, they should be more in a froggy leggde position, and a sitting position when older.

If i had a newborn again I'd get a stretchy wrap like a Moby. Once you know how to tie it you can pre-tie it and pop baby in and out.

I am quite new to the whole baby-wearing thing but would like to get into it more. It just works for me and DS so well. I'm still rather daunted by the wrap type slings, but I have just ordered my first Mei Tai sling. Excited!

And I don't know why anyone would feel stupid wearing a baby, no more than pushing a pram. Some of the slings are really beautiful, they look great, you'd be looking for any excuse to wear your baby!

I have done all those things except the dog (i don't have one) this afternoon. Plus wiping the kitchen surfaces, feeding the cat and folding/putting away laundry. Ds (12weeks) slept for 3 hours, i ate cake :o

Find a sling meet and have a play - i took ds as a bump and was welcomed with open arms. He was in the stretchy at 28 hours old, on the postnatal ward!

Yes
I don't have a dog but I don't see why not.
Going to go against the flow here and say that I would avoid drinking hot drinks with a baby in a front sling but perhaps thats because I am more clumsy than average!
As long as you and baby are both still comfortable with it.
Yes, the phrase "baby wearing" makes my teeth itch. I am perfectly happy and unembarrassed to carry a baby, though.

I turn my head to the side, NeedsABigCar, or use a travel mug :) i also wait for it to cool down a bit usually the same amount of time it takes me to eat a big cake

Thanks for all the good advice. I have been looking at the Moby wrap and have just one more question!

If you are going outside and will be wearing a coat do you put the sling over the coat or on first and just leave coat unzipped?

Depends. With a little one I tend to put sling on first then coat and do the coat up over the baby if cold. But once they get bigger I tend to put baby over teh coat. Depends on temp etc though and if it is raining or not.

I would put moby on then the coat left open. The baby will keep your front warm. If you end up using a sling a lot you can get sling coats and fleeces.

I used to wear a thin fleece jacket underneath then another coat or rain coat to wrap around both of us.

I do baby then coat. I have an extra extra large rain mac that I can zip up over dd if it's raining. Is very, very sexy I can tell you :o

You need a big fleecy coat you can zip over both of you.

I have a bubble coat that just about fits over DS when he's in his sling or can be left open. Wouldn't put a stretchy sling like a moby over a coat, I don't think it would be comfortable for either you or the baby.

With wraps they tend to need to be pretty tight and it could be hard to do this with a coat on.

I'm another who loves to put DS in a sling but hates the whole "babywearing" term. No I'm not an AP fanatic either.

Definitely baby on first then coat. Otherwise you'll get indoors with a sleeping baby and realize you can't remove your coat without waking baby!

I carried them a lot and also got a mam cover which is like a fleece cover for when its cold. That way you don't even need to put on a snowsuit for them and can easily remove both the mam cover and you oat when indoors and your baby won't overheat and can stay asleep.

The Caboo close carrier is great. My daughter slept in it for hours when she was little; I used to wear it round the house because she didn't nap in her moses basket very well. It was great for going for coffees etc as well. I took dd to London on the train in it when she was about 3 months old and it worked really well.

The only downside I found was that when you're carrying a nappy bag as well, it can get a bit heavy. I always took the pram if I was going to the supermarket or shopping, as it was much easier to carry stuff.

I had a Baby Bjorn at first but tbh for the first 3months preferred to take the pram!

Now she is older we have a Rose and Rebellion one which is awesome. I wear it for 2 x 3 hour commutes trips a day and often go for coffee with it. I do find shopping can be a little awkward tho.

Unlike most of the posters I put my coat on under the sling as the Rose & Rebellion just unclips behind the neck so if DD is sleeping I just unclip and slide her into the swing at home.

I actually miss it now when I have the pram now and do find she is a lot more inquisitive and chatty in the sling.

With the stretchy, i wear top then sling then cardi then coat and leave the sling on all day. Tbh, now he's bigger and needs to be a little bit more independant will tolerate 5 minutes on the playmat i prefer a woven so he goes on as and when needed rather than in and out all day. I have a smart empire line wool coat that just about goes over us both, or nick dp's skiing jacket. Skin to skin contact regulates both our temperatures so i try to keep layers between to a minimum tbh.

Tops with a hood are great for keeping his neck warm ime :)