I still have my Ergo baby carrier. It sits in a place of honor that doesn’t seem to be such an honorable place. It’s in a Rubbermaid box in the basement of my house. The box houses those baby items of my daughter’s that are so important to me that I am going to make them into a quilt one day. Or so the plan goes. Whether the quilt ever materializes is another question, but the fact is that the Ergo was an essential part of my early parenting.
I have memories of putting the Ergo on my back in the middle of the night and bouncing a sick or teething baby to sleep, at last momentarily. We hiked with the Ergo, taking long walks up the side of the local mountain. I was one of the first people in my city to have one. I ordered it when my daughter was 4 months old, and we rarely put it down after that.
The Ergo and Beco baby carriers are soft structured carriers. These carriers are a happy medium between the mei tai or Asian baby carrier and the hard structured baby backpack. They have straps that clip together around the waist and shoulders, providing extra support. However, they also pack up really small, so small that they can hide in a day pack and be retrieved as required.
How does the Ergo work? It’s a carrier for newborn to age two and beyond, up to 40 pounds. For small babies, there is the infant insert. This turns the carrier into a sling that can support your tiny baby’s neck. As your baby grows, he can simply sit on his rear end in the carrier, facing you and sleeping on your chest. This seated position is much better for a baby’s hips than the dangling leg position. When your baby has enough ability to support his head, you can turn the carrier around and hike with your baby on your back.
The Ergo snaps on in a fashion that is quite similar to a backpack. Clip the strap around your waist, and put your baby in. Lift the two backpack straps and the back piece of fabric moves up and over your baby’s back. Snap the backpack straps across your chest. The Ergo comes with a sleeping hood that you can draw up and over your baby’s head, especially when he is sleeping on your back. This prevents your baby’s head from falling to the side in an uncomfortable position, and it also blocks out some light. The Ergo also features a zippered front pouch, which is perfect for holding a soother or car keys. The Ergo comes in a host of one-tone options and in a few patterns, some organic.
The Beco is a soft structured carrier that is quite similar to the Ergo. It tends to be a bit more expensive, but it also comes in a number of patterns that are more bold and attractive and look less like a hiking backpack than the Ergo. The Beco is good up to 45 pounds, which makes it a baby carrier that you can use until your child is in preschool.
Have you used a soft structured baby carrier? How did it work for you?