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Original poster

ok, The sling cupboard April part 1

389 replies

misdee · 03/04/2009 16:31

no idea if anyone wants to join me

am just getting into sling with dd4.

have a napsackbaby mei tai, which i use for dd3 as well.

ring sling

and peanut shell.

all have different uses, and work well for us.

OP posts:
MoominMymbleandMy · 20/04/2009 17:28

drowninginclutter A Kari-Me is a stretchy wrap isn't it? They aren't as comfortable with heavier babies so you might want to try a woven wrap now.

littlelamb · 20/04/2009 17:38

Ah drowning, fancy seeing you here (I still feel like death btw ) Glad your patapum should be arriving soon.
Just a quick question for everyone. Would you use a sling when pregnant? (No, it's not me!) My friend has 2 under 2 already and is pregnant again and doesn't know what to do about a buggy. She has seen my Ergo and really liked the look of it and wanted to buy one to use straight away, but I said I didn't know if it was a good idea. She is 12 weeks but already has a sizeable bump. She would be doing back carries. Should she just keep using her double and wait until this one is born before she starts trying to use a sling?

MoominMymbleandMy · 20/04/2009 17:53

I think it depends on how she feels. A friend of mine used one for a few months into her pregnancy but mostly just for short trips. When it started to get uncomfortable she stopped.

foxytocin · 20/04/2009 18:03

I didn't use a sling much thru my pg but it is because I work FT and dd1 was nearly 3 by the time I got pg.

HOwever,at 30 wks I found her v. comfy in a mei tai. I do a tibetan high back carry and tie it between my bump and boobs. i suppose she could tie it under her bump too.

on another note: is anyone here in the market for a new swoven wrap? i'll be selling off 2 or 3 and you lot can have first look in.

newlark · 20/04/2009 21:16

drowninginclutter - you should get on well with the patapum - I found ds's legs used to push down on my thighs but with the patapum they are held out to the sides more and I can walk normally. When he goes to sleep I can sit down on a normal chair e.g. at the computer so I can read mumsnet. A mei-tai should position the legs in the same way.

It does take a while to adjust correctly to give the right support (positioning the chest strap at the right level is critical to having good back support - too high and it doesn't support well, too low and the straps slip off your shoulder) - I love mine and it is my "go to" sling at the moment though I am trying to get the hang of a woven wrap

drowninginclutter · 20/04/2009 22:09

I've tried littlelamb's Ergo [waves - hope you're feeling better soon] and that was really comfy, even if it was only a very short time I had it on. I hear the patapum is very similar but much cheaper so I have high hopes

I think I'll see how I get on with the patapum before I start ordering more. I have had a horrible thought though, I've just ordered a black one and it's going to be summer soon. Is DS going to roast in there?

littlelamb · 20/04/2009 22:59

Hmm I have that same worry. Having said that, ds was in a black Kari Me before our Ergo and didn't seem to get that hot. Not that last summer was that spectacular You just have to remember to dress them accordingly I guess. I am on the lookout for some dapper shorts for ds and a hat he can't pluck off his head. And black goes with everything daaahhhling

JackBauer · 20/04/2009 23:32

I wore DD1 when I was pregnant in a back carry using a MT. I just tied it over the top of my bump so she was a bit higher than normal. I carried her until I was 7 monthsish so she would have been about 17 months by then.
I actually found it helped as it made me stand properly rather than PG woman stance

babyphat · 21/04/2009 12:46

how old/heavy did you all manage to carry your DC 'full time', as it were? dd is 7mo and 22lb. i had assumed i would be able to carry her until she was walking and pension off the buggy but she weighed a ton yesterday (not helped by masses of shopping admittedly, and she was on my front). Just wondering if i should sell my little-used from birth travel system and buy a cheap lightweight stroller, or just improve my back carry technique? tell me your stories of carrying fat babies!

ChairmumMiaow · 21/04/2009 13:55

babyphat - I would do both. I've improved my back carries with help from people on here so will continue to carry
(15mo, 26lb) DS some of the time, but bought a rear-facing pushchair as well. I carried him almost full time until about a month ago though. (I used the pushchair in the early days but carried almost exclusively from around 8mo to then)

Having some sort of pushchair you're happy with is great for frosty days and for when you've got too much stuff to lug (and if you take the sling along you can through your DC on your back and put more shopping in the pushchair

CMOTdibbler · 21/04/2009 20:12

I'd do both too - pushchair for shopping, improve your back carrying to carry the baby.

I weighed my DS and he now weighs 19kg, and I can do 2 hours straight in a MT back carry if I need to - but obv you get more time of them walking when they are older. But DS likes to sleep on me when out

littlelamb · 21/04/2009 20:20

I do both too but really the pushchair is to load up with all the crap stuff we carry with us as I still haven't found a brilliant bag to use.

And I want to pass a special little crown to piximon and drowninginclutter who both managed their first going-it-alone back carries today

I told you it was easy

JackBauer · 21/04/2009 20:51

I have carried DD1 around for an hour on my back in a nice wrap converted MT. She is 3.2 and the height of a 4 year old. She weighs 2 and a half stone!
DD2 had the buggy and she was whining so I slung her on. I did need to cross the straops over my chest but it was doable and I had nothign else to carry

drowninginclutter · 21/04/2009 21:27

I was surprised how easy it was getting DS in there although I think I'm going to be sticking with the hip seat and swivel technique rather than putting DS straight on my back. littlelamb you make it look even easier than it actually is!

Does anyone know why the patapum has 3 poppers along the back of the waistband? I was wondering if there was some kind of bag attachment? I've realised that even though the carrier is comfy I probably am going to do my back in trying to carry everything else I need.

foxytocin · 21/04/2009 21:31

Babyphat, I will try to post the BH on thurs. dh is currently away with the car and I am a long way from the post office.

JackBauer · 21/04/2009 21:36

Ooh, well done piximon and drowninginclutter!
I use the hip swivel technique as well, have only done the back throw thing with DD1 who can be trusted ot hold on as she is 3

MoominMymbleandMy · 21/04/2009 22:08

babyphat, I carry a 17-month-old full time (I can't tell you what weight he is as he hasn't been near a set of scales in months) and almost always in a front carry when outdoors, as kissing his head passes the time pleasantly at bus stops and railway stations.

I doubt I could still do it comfortably in my old Babyhawk but toddler MTs, which, as well as being bigger, tend to have more padding in the waist and shoulder straps, do the job beautifully.

I really only back carry at home - when he wants to be carried and I need to get on with something.

ilovesummer · 21/04/2009 22:58

Hi there, just looking for a bit of advice on wraps. Which would you recommend out of a Moby, Kari Me or Close? and why? I used a ringsling with my dd until she was 5 months or so and I am expecting a baby in the next few days and liked the idea of spreading the weight with a wrap. TIA

littlelamb · 21/04/2009 23:06

Kari Me. I started with a Close but gave up at about 5 months and switched to a Kari Me. A Close is a very good sling at the beginning as it's so easy to adjust, but really a 'real' wrap like a Kari Me isn't hard once you've done it a few times. The problem I had with the CLose was that the extra bit of fabric that gives support (the front bit with the logo on iyswim) was nowhere near wide enough once the baby is out of a cradle position. I did love using it, but if I had another baby, I would start with a wrap.

babyphat · 22/04/2009 07:39

kari-me or moby i think are pretty much the same? i haven't tried the others but loved the kari-me while dd was small. it's pretty simple once you've done it a couple of times and you can tie it on, then add baby, as it's stretchy. it's so snuggly for small babies. i was looking at the instructions for a close the other day and it really didn't look more simple to me.

foxy no rush

thanks everyone for advice, i will persevere and improve the back carries. babywearing smugness aside, i'd rather do without a buggy for as long as possible as i live in a first floor flat with hardly any storage space and carrying a pushchair up and down stairs is a hassle, and the tubes and local trains would be more or less off limits with a buggy too. in fact, lots of the things i like to do would be less fun.

i do currently carry her literally all day quite frequently if we are out, or if she is unsettled i do hoovering and cleaning with her on my back. the other day i went to borough market for lunch and then spent the rest of the day walking round town, then walked my dad back to kings cross, so covered a fair few miles at a good pace.

i think part of it is probably finding a bag that works so it is just the baby weighing me down!

babyphat · 22/04/2009 07:47

in fact foxy, am going on holiday on saturday so don't worry if you don't post it this week

ilovesummer · 22/04/2009 12:37

Thank you for ideas, I think that I will buy a Kari Me, I'm hoping that I'll be able to use it for more than a few weeks though.

JackBauer · 22/04/2009 14:09

Well, my clin cool gauze finally arrived, lovely colour but it is covered in cat or dog hair! She says it was washed over the weekend but I am a bit so now have to wait for a sunny day so I cna wash and dry it before trying it out...

humph

ChairmumMiaow · 22/04/2009 16:12

JackBauer - that's rubbish!

My joeyslings has arrived today. DS has had a couple of teeth break through today so is not too interested in me messing around with a sling, but I gave it a quick try and I am already liking the padded waistband and the fact that the standard straps are long enough for me (at size 20/22) to do a lexi twist. Big plus point

I shall be taking DS to his toddler group in it with a back carry tomorrow.

babyphat · 22/04/2009 19:14

just have to boast share, i practised my back carry in a wrap today and it was so comfy and snug - carried dd for about 2 hours twice. she loved it! i am so proud am tempted to add smug pics to my profile! (and will do when not feeling so lazy)

i think i hadn't tightened the first bit of wrapping enough previously so the cross was taking all the weight. did it much tighter this time and it was great. need to get her even higher but definitely getting the hang of it. now i just need to find a hairstyle that can't be yanked...

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