Walking on the beach with Daddy
I first heard about the Ergo while at a baby shower where, ironically perhaps, I was wearing Jack in our Baby Bijorn. I actually like the Bjorn just fine for the first couple months. It's easy to put on and the little guy can get all snuggled up close or look out away from you and he can go in it basically from the get go (8 pounds minimum, Jack was an almost 10 pound baby). However, once our little chunker hit 15 pounds it definitely hurt my back. I couldn't even manage to vacuum our small living room with him in it without feeling like I was an 80 year old hunchback. Unfortunately this was also the time when I really needed an easy way to carry Jack hands free. At that baby shower, a double shower, both mommies to be got Ergos as a gift and the other moms raved about them. Unlike the Bjorn, the Ergo can be worn on the front, the back and even in a side carry and has a heavy duty belt strap to transfer most of the weight to your hips rather than your shoulders. The Ergo has been strength tested up to 90 pounds, which means you could carry your petite friends through Disneyland on your back in one. The baby can only face you in the Ergo, there is no forward facing front carry option, but because he can pull his head out easily and look around Jack doesn't seem to mind at all (and he always wanted to be front facing in the Bjorn).
After looking into the Ergo a bit and waiting around hoping for a sale (very rare for Ergos, every discount code seems to exclude them) or a used one on craigslist, I bought one at full price off of Amazon.com just in time for a crazy June/July with plenty of chances to use our Ergo.
In the last month we've moved across the country which means we've had: Dad's last day of work out on the flight line (Dad is a pilot), moving OUT of the old house and IN TO the new house, and Jack's first airplane ride with just Mom and a great big airport (2 actually). All of these proved to be excellent opportunities to test out the Ergo. It performed outstandingly. It was extremely convenient to take Jack out to see Dad's last flight and still have hands free for taking photos, hugging the husband, etc. During the move Jack was able to pass out in the Ergo as the movers packed up his room and all the more convenient places to take a nap. The most valuable use for the Ergo was decidedly the airport. Knowing that he was safe and secure while I juggled bags and tickets was great. It's not the easiest to nurse in, but nursing in a cramped airline seat can't be easy regardless. (Jack has just learned to kick things and enjoyed kicking the seat in front of us whenever I wasn't paying enough attention.) The Ergo has an easy to access front pocket, you can see the zipper just above my hand in the photo to the right, which is great for ID's, tickets, etc. What it is NOT good for is forgetting that you've put your iPhone in there and setting off the metal detector. So word to the wise, don't forget about what you put in there. If you're a mom flying alone with a kid you'll already be emotional enough without the less than helpful TSA agent yelling at you.
I'm not a baby-wearer, I'd rather he be on the floor figuring out how to harass the dog while I'm getting dinner ready, but if you are the Ergo people have plenty of resources for you. I imagine the Ergo would be great for baby-wearing. It has been great for walking on the beach or even around the neighborhood before the stroller arrived. I expect we'll get a lot of use out of our Ergo.I got mine for $105 from Amazon.com, pretty much the lowest price I found, with free delivery and arrived the next day! (It must have come from in town.) http://www.babysteals.com/ had some on sale for $61-71 plus shipping about a month ago and some are still available for resale on their facebook page (under discussions) but colors are limited. Since Ergo's rarely go on sale and the savings is slight, I'm completely happy paying full price for mine.
I know there are a lot of baby carrying options out there. Mama's what have been your favorite or least favorite?
EDIT: Here's a review of the brand new Ergo Performance. Sounds like it's a little cooler than the one we have for about $15 more. Worth looking into if you are thinking of getting one, yes. Worth trading in the one I have, I don't think so but maybe Kate will let me try hers out.
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