baby wearing?

Does anyone have experience with baby wearing with slings? I want to learn more and think it would make life a lot easier when this little one arrives. What kind do you have? Do you reccomend it? I am a larger woman so will it work for me?

 

I love ring slings, Moby wraps (stretchy wraps) and mei teis... I highly reccommend the moby wrap for one small baby!

 

I have the ring slings and the moby wrap. Both are comfortable and can be used for larger woman. The ring slings uses one shoulder so if you are wearing it a long time it will eventually make your shoulder tired. The Moby Wrap uses both shoulders but you have to tie it correctly which can take about 30 sec to 1 minute to get ready. The ring slings just slip on. Overall the Moby is the a little more comfortable, IMO. Look for them on E-bay.

 

I've been using the Hotslings pouch from day one. I love it. My dh wears one too. You can find them on a ton of websites...just google Hotslings.

reyna

 

I'm a hotslings fan too! I love mine They come in different sizes too.

 

I have a Zolowear pouch, a Kangaroo Korner pouch, and I had but returned a Moby-like wrap from BRU. The learning curve for that thing was ridiculous to me. I absolutely loved my pouches when they were wee ones, but at this age, I'm not getting much use of them because they don't support themselves well enough to be on the hip, but they're too big to be in the cradle carry position. My recent favorite is actually one that I made. I'm including pictures. What I love about it is that you can make the straps really long so that just about anyone any size can wear it. So to answer your questions: yes I recommend it and yes it would most definitely work on a larger person. And I also highly recommend the pouches for the early months. I tried the ring sling that many people swear by, but I just had this terrible fear that it would just fall apart. I'm sure it has NEVER happened, but I couldn't shake it. I don't know what I did with the link to the pattern, but if you PM me, I will gladly find it and send it to you. My sewing skills leave much to be desired and I made this in about 4 or 5 hours spread out over two days. It cost a whopping $8 to make! If you do a search for Mei Tai carriers (that's what it is by the way), you'll find that they usually range anywhere from $60 to $100 so I think sewing one yourself is the way to go. Good luck!

Homemade Mei Tai
Mei Tai Front View
Mei Tai Side View

And I really do have real life babies that go in there, but they're napping so monkey volunteered to model

 

I love my Moby wrap and yes, it will work for larger women. I use it for one baby and then can still pick up the other one!

 

Thanks ladies!!!!!!! Keep the suggestions coming. I am going to keep researching. I know there is no way I can make one since I can barely sew a button on.

 

I started with a moby wrap that was given to us and it worked pretty good...very versatile and secure for carrying one at a time (both when they are really tiny). I bought a couple pouch slings (New Native Carriers - discounted) as they got bigger and those work alright as well. You can use two at a time (one over each shoulder)...very convenient for short trips without buckles or straps where you don't need to use your hands much. I just bought an Ergobaby and DH even loves this one. He doesn't like any of the others, they hurt his back or they aren't 'manly' and I admit, my back starts to ache after awhile using the slings and moby wrap. You can use the Ergobaby from the birth with an insert but we just recently got ours. It feels so comfortable! I can wear DS (he's 22 lb) and carry DD (16 lbs) in my arms very easily around the house or on short errands alone and they are almost a year old! Anyway, that's my two cents. They all have their advantages and disadvantages.

 

I used ring slings with my singletons. I used a moby to carry the girls together up until about 3.5 months and with just one baby until I found the ergo around 4.5 months. Now I only use the ergo with a baby on my back. I wish I'd had that with my other kids. Easy on/easy off and truly hands free.

 

I have a Mei Tai and I still use it occasionally!

 

Moby moby moby! You can even make your own. Easy as opening a cup of pudding!
Buy 5 yards of stretch, but not too stretchy material, Tshirt cottons are great!
You can also make it a bit easier to put on each time by getting a ring (sling rings are perfect) and have it at the center of the fabric, have someone stitch it down for you if you can not sew. Then you just put the ring on your back near your waist, lengths over your shoulders, cross and then weave through the ring in the back and tie.