ERGO Baby Carrier (a review and a rave)

From the early days to toddler years, there are times when it is required to carry around your baby. Most of those times, it would be super to use your hands too! When my son was an infant, he preferred to sleep in my arms. Happy to do it, I spent DAYS simply holding him while he slept. Had I known about this fantastic hands-free carrier I may have gotten the house cleaned or some work done during those naps.

Unfortunately, we weren't on the Ergo band wagon until much later in the game. We tried the Moby Wrap but found that it was too difficult to tie and insert the baby with one person. As a stay-at-home mom far away from family with a husband who leaves on business for months on end, everything needs to be a one person job. We also got a super great deal through BabySteals on a Kelty Wallaby Infant Carrier (that they don't seem to make anymore). That particular carrier had way too many straps and took FOREVER to get on. You don't always have forever when you have a baby.

Luckily, once we moved to Hawaii, the birthplace of the Ergo, we got introduced into a play group that I thought must have been sponsored by Ergo. Every single mom in the group sported an Ergo no matter where we went: the zoo, the book store, a restaurant, the mommy-and-me movie afternoons, the beach, everywhere . Because moms are nice and share (teaching by example, I suppose), my fellow mommy friend allowed me to try out her Ergo one afternoon while my son was inching ever so close to nap time. He instantly nestled in, feeling comfortable and right at home next to my heart beat. The simple two buckle feature make putting it on supremely easy and possible to do not only with one person, but one-handed. Yes ladies and gents, you can put this carrier on with one hand! The cover that comes over the head keeps him from flopping around while I go about my business. It comes in handy during his mid-nap grocery runs; bending over to get a can of chicken stock on the bottom shelf no longer presents a whiplash issue. The light weight fabric keeps him cool even during Hawaiian summers. Don't get me wrong, when I say "light weight fabric", I don't mean it is flimsy. It is super soft against baby and mommy's/daddy/s skin but the sturdy cotton keeps its shape through years of wear. The Ergo is a blessing when it comes to traveling as well. It compresses and folds down to virtually nothing so it takes up no space in your luggage. And because all the babies weight is dispersed mainly on your hips and across your back, your baby feels lighter than ever (especially nice when you have to lug around a behemoth baby such as mine). The design keeps carrying your baby for long periods of time comfortable and bearable. In other carriers, I had a maximum of 30 minutes wear time before my shoulders cried for mercy or the fabric stretched too far the whole tying and inserting baby process has to be started over.

All in all, though the Ergo can run you upwards of $130, it is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO worth it. You'll appreciate it the moment you put it on until you take it off and realize you don't need a Ibuprofen from lugging your two-ton baby around all day.