Does anyone use a sling to carry their babies?

I have heard from my lactation consultant that it is possible to wear both babies in one sling as well as to wear 2 slings and carry one in each. My babies love being held all the time so I thought this sounded like a way to manage the holding issue...

Anyway, does anyone do this? Or, have you tried it? What do you think and what slings would you recommend if you do?

 

My boys are almost 6 months now and big boys, so it's getting more difficult to carry them both...
I've used the Maximom carrier..which we used as a sling (it's not in the manual though)..I carried both babies in a carrier each slung across my chest like an X...it was a little rough on the neck.
I've also used a homemade (not by me) ring sling and LOVED IT..it was light and breezy (it's hot here in the summer)...and there's a ton of ways you can carry them...
I've also used a Nojo sling and liked it..it has a padded pillow you can either use as a headrest for baby or a shoulder pad for you..and it has several carrying styles as well...
Except for the Maximom, which is a carrier typically, I've never had both in one sling or 2 in 2 slings before...I have had one in a sling and one in a carrier...one in a sling and one in a backpack type carrier as well...
And I don't care what they say about slings being hands-free..when you're handling 2 babies, there's no such thing as hands-free!
Good luck!!

 

There are ways of carrying two babies at once in the Moby Wrap. I never tried it, but I sure wish I had!

 

You need to scroll down alot on this site.
http://www.storchenwiege.com/differentholds.htm

Here is another
http://www.thebabywearer.com/articles/HowToO/Twins.htm

 

Thanks! I have been trying to do some research on this in all my free time ! I am now torn between styles... Moby Wrap, Mei Tai, Pouch, Ring Sling!!!! So many choices what is best! I know that I wont be hands free, but if you are alone a lot like me with 2 babies that like being held a lot I am hoping that the sling/wrap might help bear some of the load! My little guys are already 10 & 11 lbs so carrying both at once without a carrier of some kind is hard for more than a few minutes... I was also hopng that baby wearing might help with the weight loss issue too...

Anyway, if anyone has further info or ideas I would be greatful! At this point I am leaning toward a Moby Wrap and either a pouch or Mei Tai...

 

We carried our two either in separate slings one for mom and one for dad or sometimes both in one ring sling until they were about 3 ish months old. Then they got too big for me to lug them both around in one sling. We still use slings some now but for just one baby at a time.

When they were little we'd put them both into the ring sling in the upright position with them facing in. I took them into the grocery store a few times like that and they slept thru the whole deal. Often when we'd go out as a family we'd each take one in a sling. We had a few ring slings and a kangaroo sling.

Good luck. It really saves if you have two people to both wear one when they are young and are just happy to sleep on you for hours at a time. Go find a nice teenager to pay a few bucks an hour or a college student looking for some part time work. We had a gal help out here when ours were tiny and it was great to just have her hold one while I held the other, then we'd switch.
Mj

 

I have two ring slings. In the beginning my DD loved it and it was nice but I really couldn't do that much with it. Plus with very little wobbly heads you can't really tend to both babies with it. I bought two thinking I could carry one in each when they were older or somone else could use one too. I once tried carrying them in one sling...that was murder on my shoulder and back. My babies are really big to begin with. Plus they got so hot when put together I was afraid they'd overheat. So I put them in there with only their diaper. Now I can use the one with my dd (ds really doesn't need it) and it does help with fussiness. Per some pp suggestions I'm going to get the MOBY wrap. I wish I would have bought this one in the beginning. I haven't tried it yet but it looks much more comfortable then the ring slings. Anyway, HIH and let us know what you decide.

 

I find that my boys breathing sounds funny when I put them in my pouch style hotsling. They are so curled up in there that I worry that they may have some airway obstruction from the tight positioning. In the NICU they taught us to always hold them with their chin away from their chest so now I'm worried about using the sling.

 

I've done both!

I had a pouch sling that I used to carry both boys until they were both about 6-7 lbs. I would put them side by side, with heads by toes.

When they were bigger, I could wear them both with two carriers. I didn't use slings then, I used wraps and mei tais. I would wear one on my back and one on my belly and while it took me a bit to find my center of gravity at first, I could do MOST of the things I needed to this way.

We actually rarely used our double stroller b/c I would wear one and push the other in the grocery cart or umbrella stroller or dh and I would each wear one.

I was also able to nurse with the pouch and with the wrap without anyone noticing.

I only bought one carrier, a Nojo, and it was HORRID! After that one, I saved my $$ and I made all my carriers using clearance fabrics and free patterns from the web. I got a lot of compliments, too!

I'll attach a pic of both boys in a wrap. In that one, Tony's in front and Ethan's in the back and the boys were almost 9 mo old.

Oh...and I have back issues but never had any problems wearing them

Anthony actually loves being worn so much (he STILL likes it!) that for a long while, I couldn't even pick up a bra without him freaking out and screaming to be tied to mommy!


ETA...b/c i just read the responses...you CAN wear twins "hands free" once you get comfy with your options. I wouldn't have bothered to wear them together at all if I didn't get free hands out of it LOL. And as for the carriers you're considering, I'd suggest trying a mei tai. Wraps are great! (my favorite, by far) but...moby's are spendy and they aren't so great once babies get a big heavier. The stretch really makes them ideal for younger infants. So if you go with a moby (or two), you'd need to anticipate replacing it when they get heavier. Mei Tais are a bit less bulky and have a shorter learning curve and once you're comfy getting one on your back, they are pretty easy to tote around with you incase you ever need/want to use it in public (my mei tais made our ER trips much more comfy for me and for the baby who was with me and made grocery shopping alone MUCH simpler!).