From: siegela@deshaw.com (Andrew Siegel)
Subject: Baby Carriers: Summary and Conclusion
Organization: D. E. Shaw & Co.
Date: Thu, 24 Dec 1992 04:37:16 GMT

As promised, here is a summary of all that I learned regarding
front-carrying baby carriers.

I ended up getting the Comfey Carrier, and my wife and I find it
*extremely* comfortable -- so much so that I have been intentionally
looking for situations in which to use it.  It is more expensive than
most carriers ($45, plus $3 shipping), but I feel it's well worth it.
There are no buckles and nothing to adjust -- it takes a little getting
used to, but it is far superior to the Snugli I had used previously.
I've included more information about Comfey Carrier below, courtesy of
Marilyn Walker.  BTW, Betsy Sites, who designed and personally
manufactures the Comfey Carrier in her home, is looking to sell her
business.  Contact her for details.

Below are excerpts from the e-mail I received regarding people's
experiences with these carriers.

Andy

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From: Marilyn Walker <mwalker@taimyr.Colorado.EDU>

Andy - Comfey Carrier is alive and well.  I just bought one 3 weeks ago,
and I'm not sure I would have survived without it!  It is the ONLY way
(OK - riding in the car works too) that my little month old will fall asleep.
It is super comfortable - I wear it around the house during the day, take hime
for walks, and we have even gone skiing twice.  I don't think you could find
anything that carries in the front that balances the weight better.  BTW -
we tried other carries (Snugli, etc) and found that most were hard on our
backs or didn't really support him well.

Betsy Sites makes them here in Boulder:

Comfey Carrier
2888 Bluff
Suite 437
Boulder, CO   80301

303-444-9582

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From: Paula Burch <pburch@cmb.bcm.tmc.edu>

Well, you've definitely been listening to the right people. The Sara's Ride 
is great before the 4 months indicated on the package, because even though 
you have to support the head with your hand or elbow, it's still easier 
than carrying the baby in your arms. We used a sling until 2 months or so, 
and then suffered with arm-carrying until we got the SR at 3 months and 
started using it immediately. In retrospect, I should have gotten the SR 
earlier.

The Tough Traveler is a fine device for serious hiking. I really like our 
Kid Carrier.

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From: pam@netcom.com (Pamela Araki)

I'm not sure of the configuration for the Snugli Caress, but I
used the Snugli Escort and really liked it.  I found it pretty
comfortable and I'm not a very strong person - kind of a 
weakling, actually ...  Brandon was great in it until he was
about 16 lbs and it started hurting my shoulders too much...
It is supposed to be good til 20 lbs though.  Hope this hleps!

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From: valjorge@leapyear.EBay.Sun.COM (Valerie Jorge)

I liked my Snuggli "Legacy" (I think that's it).  Instead of
the thin criss-cross straps, it has and "H" shaped harness
in the back.  It has the child carrier section, and a sort
of cover that goes over the front that you can use with
or without the seat section to make a sort of sling
(I never used it that way myself).  I got mine at Toys R Us,
but have seen them everywhere.  This one was on the higher
end of the price scale of the Snuggli's.

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From: Dena Rollo <rollo@xylogics.com>

Andrew - I *strongly* recommend the carrier
made by Evenflo (it's grey and turquoise - maybe
it's called the Adventure or something).
Great support, comfortable, easy to adjust, etc.
Isabel (my now 10-mos.-old) lived in this
until she was big enough to use the Sara's Ride.

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From: ctopp@cup.portal.com

I would skip the front carriers and wait until he can handle a
pack with blanket surrounding him fo support. I have a number
of hand-me-down snugli type carriers. There is one that is better
than the others, but at two-months, my daughter is getting too big
to allow me to domuch with her in it.

carol

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From: phvinson@mailbox.syr.edu (Pauline Homsi Vinson)

Hello.  I use what's called an "Over the Shoulder Baby Holder."  It's made
of cloth (I know you said you don't prefer it) and it goes over one shoulder
and around the opposit waist.  The baby can lie in it as if in a hammok (sp?)
or sit facing towards or away from you.  I and my daughter really enjoy it;
so does a friend of mine who *always* has her son in it.

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From: wang@optigfx.com (Alice Wang)

I have a Tot's Tender which I won from one of these pre-birth
classes.  It was the first time I won anything!

The carrier can carry the baby 4 ways:  front facing out, front
facing in, back facing out and back facing in.  The back options
only works after the baby can hold his/her head.

When Christine was smaller (< 6mo), I used it a lot for carrying
her around, front facing in.  She would often fall asleep in this
position and it was very convenient for nursing.  The carrier puts
most of the weight in my upper/middle back.  This wasn't a problem
since she weight less than 20 lbs.

The one down side is it takes a little work to get the baby in
and the straps in the right positions.  The problem is a lot
worse when Christine trys to wiggle away.

The carrier is rated up to 35 lbs.  I can still carry Christine
in it but she much prefers the Gerry backpack.  This preference
probably started showing around 7-8 months.

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From: alison@husky.informix.com (Alison Suggs)

I returned my snugli and go a NoJo, which I liked.  It has cotton straps,
however.  The key to absence-of-backache I think is a waist strap, just 
like a heavy backpack should have a waist strap.  Anyway, I liked the
NoJo, for what it's worth.

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From: casper@tsoft.sf-bay.org (Johanne Kaminski)

Buy a sling type carrier!!!
We had a snugli-type carrier (ours was a kangaroo), but after the 3rd or 4th
month most all babies hate these because they want to look out, and not at
your chest.  We had something like Sarah's ride (ours was called a
Baby Bear) which was ok for some times.  We had a backpack,  and one other
carrier that is too hard to describe.  We tried them all (we are firm 
believers in carrying ones small children, and we love going on hikes).

My son (when he wasn't out crawling/walking on his own) spent infinite hours
in a sling (ours is called a Kocoona-  it is very deep, adjustable,  washable,
the weight is carried on the shoulder, not the neck, it is most comforable 
for both perant and child.  You can put the weight on either shoulder by 
simply turning it inside out, and it comes with a sewn on zippered pocket
for little things like tissues, keys, etc.)

My son use to love sleeping in it, going on hikes in it, being in it while 
we shopped, houseworked, etc.  It literally seemed like we were like
kangeroos (and we loved it): when he wanted out to play, he was out of it;
when he wanted in the pouch, in he went and we could do what we needed.
He enjoyed it until he was about 2 1/2, when he got to be a bit too heavy,
and better able to be on his own two feet.

We highly recommend something like our Kocoona sling/pouch type carrier
for both babies and toddlers!

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From: rollo@xylogics.com (Dena Rollo)

I already wrote to Andrew with my recommendation,
but wanted to respond to the following post:

Johanne Kaminski wrote:


Buy a sling type carrier!!!
We had a snugli-type carrier (ours was a kangaroo), but after the 3rd or 4th
month most all babies hate these because they want to look out, and not at
your chest.  We had something like Sarah's ride (ours was called a
Baby Bear) which was ok for some times.  We had a backpack,  and one other
carrier that is too hard to describe.  We tried them all (we are firm 
believers in carrying ones small children, and we love going on hikes).

***************************

Just wanted to say that, unfortunately for our
wallets, different carriers work for different
babies. We now use a Sara's Ride - and I'd
bet that most babies over 4 or 5 mos. old do
fine in these, as by then they're (the babies)
usually over the infant aches, pains, or whatever
that make being held in very particular ways so
effective. But just as different babies "like"
different holds, they also prefer different 
types of carriers.

When Isabel was tiny, she practically lived in
her carrier -  but it was the *third* one we
tried (sling type and open snugli just didn't
do it for her). The one that did work was the
Evenflo Eventyr (?- I think - the grey one with
the turquoise binding) which is very enclosed and
confining - has an adjustable seat inside a pouch,
which zips up snugly (can go over the baby's head)
and holes through which hands and feet can peek
out (though Isabel preferred hers in). For her,
the feeling of being tightly enclosed was
crucial. At one point, it was the only way
she'd nurse, and it *never* failed to calm her/
put her to sleep when she was really nuts. There
are other brands of similar carriers, but if your
baby likes this type, I highly recommend the 
Evenflo - very sturdy and comfortable, with
padded shoulder straps, easily adjustable
everything, good weight distribution, etc.

Anyway, my point is that you may have to test
a few types of carrier to find the one that 
works for your child. Perhaps  you can borrow
several kinds from friends before purchasing?

(And oh boy, do those days of pacing with the
baby in the carrier (should have said "days
and nights") seem mercifully distant now that
she's almost 11 mos. old! So remember, though
it may seem endless, this stage will be over
soon, and you'll be wondering where your little
baby went.)

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From: kim@m44.unm.edu

Another brand name for a sling carrier is the Over the Shoulder Baby Holder. 
My wife, when tired of carrying the baby all day, calls it the Over the
Shoulder Boulder Holder.  It's especially nice for nursing on the run.  After
Rachel got too big to be enveloped in it, it converts easily into a seat-type
carrier a la Sara's Ride.]

The first sling carrier she used was a cheap scarf from Woolworth's.

Daniel Kim
KIM@FLOVAX.LANL.GOV

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From: sybase!peac@Sun.COM (Jeff Peacock)

this isn't going to be terribly helpful maybe, but here's our experience.
We didn't like the snugly type carrier's at all.  They seemed very precarious
and were uncomfortable for both of us, especially if we used them for any
length of time.  We got a sling, which worked very well indeed, but didn't
last long (its usefulness, that is, the sling is in great shape, but the baby
no longer fits.)

Frankly, the best carrier that we found was the car seat.  We had one of 
those detachable ones that you can carry around like a basket, and though
it was pretty awkward, and towards the end it got pretty heavy, it was
still better than anything else we found.  We could even set it down and
have dinner or lunch while she slept.

Once our daughter got strong enough to sit up comfortably we got a baby 
backpack.  This is the best carrier ever (IMO).  Not only is it comfortable
and secure, it is also a breeze to set up and get her into, she loves it
because she's up high and can see everything that's going on, and it provides
a wonderful opportunity to pull hair and yank on glittery things dangling
from Mommy's ears. ;)

-- 
Andrew Siegel			D. E. Shaw & Co., New York, NY
siegela@deshaw.com		(212)478-0000
Newsgroups: misc.kids