Ergo Baby Carrier Blog

Parents hail the Ergo Baby Carrier as one of the best baby carriers for older infants and even toddlers. Using an Ergo baby carrier is simple and fun. Babies love to snuggle in their Ergo baby carrier, and parents, caretakers and grandparents enjoying wearing little ones in the Ergo. Here’s some tips on buying an Ergo Baby Carrier.

Learn about the Ergo baby carrier to see if it will work for you. In an Ergo, the baby can be worn in the front or on your back (when older). While the Ergo is made for older babies and toddlers, it can be adapted for tiny infants as well. Some parents carry twins using two Ergo carriers, one in the front and another on the back.

Choose a style and color Ergo baby carrier. The Ergo is available in black lined with your choice of camel or green; camel-lined camel and Organic cranberry with tonal lining. There are occasional limited editions, such as the recent Black with Embroidery.  Please note that many of the Blue carriers have been discountinued.  The only current blue option is the Ergo Baby Carrier Organic Blue with Embroidery.

Accessorize your Ergo. Add an infant insert to carry newborns. Consider the sleeping hood to help support a sleeping child’s neck. Purchase the Ergo baby carrier papoose coat for outdoor use in cool weather. Ergo also sells coordinating changing pads, diaper bags, and totes.

Shop for the Ergobaby baby carrier at Little Mountain Outfitters.
Practice using your Ergo baby carrier when it arrives, remembering that it may take several uses to become accustomed to the baby carrier.

Baby wearing is a popular trend due to the increasing number of mothers who nurse, growing popularity of attachment parenting and ease of use. Infant carriers allow new parents to hold the baby and still play with their other children, clean and do everyday activities. There are several types of carriers to choose from.

1. Look at the carrier and decide if you would be comfortable inside. The easiest way to choose between two carriers is to decide if you would want to be held inside. The least favorable choices are carriers that don’t have enough padding or support for a fragile neck.

2. Ensure that the infant carrier provides enough back support for the baby. One major concern for baby wearing is that the carrier may put too much stress on the infant’s fragile spine. Choose an infant carrier that will support the baby. If the baby cannot hold his own neck, use a sling carrier that supports a baby like your own arms. Once the baby can support his head, choose a carrier that distributes the weight through the legs and hips. Do not place a baby in a backpack until he can sit alone.

3. Check for safety. Look over the product to ensure that the infant will be safe. Ensure that you can safely put on wraps yourself. For slings, check the fabric, seams, fasteners, rings and all other components to make sure there is no damage. Also make sure that the seams look tightly sewn. Finally, do a check for product recalls.

4. Determine if you need any special slings for your health. When you are baby wearing it is important that you are comfortable. If you have shoulder problems on both sides, get a wraparound carrier. This puts some weight on your shoulders, while putting some on your hips. If you have shoulder problems on one side, use an infant carrier that puts the weight on the opposite shoulder only.

5. Figure out how many infant carriers you need. If you plan to purchase one carrier, choose one that is adaptable like a sling, rebozo or wraparound carrier.

6. Make sure the carrier is practical for your baby wearing lifestyle. If you need something that is easy to transport, use a sling that fits in the diaper bag. If you need something easy to use, get a soft carrier.

7. Talk to friends who are baby wearers. The most useful information will come from people who have used infant carriers. They will tell you what worked for them and why.

You can also check out our blog about Kid Carriers for more information about frame carriers and soft carriers.

“What is better, The Ergo Baby Carrier or the Baby Bjorn Active Carrier?”  This is a question we often get at Little Mountain Outfitters.  New and expecting parents come to us with this dilemma looking for answers.  Nobody wants to make the investment in more baby gear than we really need.  Whether it’s because of budget, not wanting to waste, or just to be living more simply.  Unfortunately, the question of which one is best really doesn’t have an exact answer.

The first mark in the pro column for The Ergo Baby Carrier is that you can purchase just the one carrier for carrying your child from birth to 40lbs.  One small downside to this is that in order to wear the Ergo Baby Carrier with a newborn it does require that you purchase the Infant Insert.

For the Baby Bjorn Active Carrier the first mark in the pro column goes to simplicity.  Loading a newborn into the carrier is a breeze and can be quickly mastered within the first or second try.

The second mark in the pro column for The Ergo Baby Carrier is weight distribution.  The Ergo Carrier places the child close to your body with the weight resting at your hips.  This makes a huge difference in reducing shoulder and lower back fatigue.  For this reason many parents that already own a Bjorn Carrier of some type come to us looking for relief once their child weighs about 15lbs.

The Baby Bjorn Active Carrier gets it’s second mark in the pro column for it’s ability to allow the the child to face out once he or she develops some head control, around 3 months of age.  Many parents feel this is critical.  Often we hear parents say that the child doesn’t want to face in, he or she just wants to look out.  There’s two sides to this.  The Ergo Baby Carrier theory is that parent child bonding is more important and therefore the child should face in.  It is also said that facing a young child out exposes him to more stimulation than his little brain is able to process.  The other side in favor of facing out is simply that the child is hearing noises and wants to twist and turn to see what is going on and becomes frustrated and unhappy when he is not able to.  This is the opinion that seems to win out the most.

Since I’m writing this post in November from Colorado I feel I also have to make some mention of baby wearing in cold weather.  The Ergo Baby Carrier is more accommodating of a child that is wearing lots of layers because you can just loosen the straps more.  The Baby Bjorn does not have quite as much flex room.  However they do have a great cold weather accessory, with the unoriginal name, the Bjorn Cover. It is a windproof fleece cover that is completely worthwhile for cold climates.

Adjustability and fit for parents and child is different on each carrier.  The Baby Bjorn Active Carrier has a really good range of adjustment for parents.  The straps have four points of adjustment, 2 on each side.   The Ergo Baby Carrier only provides the shoulder strap adjustments.  Both work for a wide range of body types without too much challenge.

to be continued…

Shop our entire selection of ERGOBaby Carrier products at www.littlemountainoutfitters.com.

Below is an update to a popular post from our site, www.outdoorgear4kids.com.  Since the original post the Beco Butterfly II has been released as well as the Ergo Organics with Embroidery.

The newest innovation in the marketplace for child carriers is the soft carrier.  There are many varieties but the first one to penetrate the marketplace and truly carve out a niche is The ERGOBaby Baby Carrier.  Our next favorite up and comer is the Beco Butterfly Baby Carrier which has recently been updated to the Beco Butterfly II.  How do you choose between the two?

Like any kid carrier purchase, the best thing you can do is try them on and compare them.  If you live in an area where this isn’t an option then read on and we will do our best to provide as much worthwhile information as we can for you to make your decision.

As far as how the carriers fit on parents we haven’t found a big difference between the two brands. Most body types can wear the carriers equally as well. One advantage that the Ergo has over the Beco is for waist sizing. Ergo does offer a waist extender if you need a little more room.

Where the Ergo Baby Carrier and Beco Baby Carrier begin to differ is with carrying an infant or smaller child. In order to use the Ergo Baby Carrier with a newborn and up to the stage the legs can be spread across your body (usually 4-6 months old) it requires the Infant Insert.  The Beco Baby Carrier has an innovative smaller harness that is integrated with the carrier that can be used with a baby or smaller child.  The Butterfly II has been updated so this insert is now removable and can be out of the way once your child no longer needs it.

The Beco Baby Carrier is also a little different in the height of the fabric that holds the child.  It comes up a little higher than the ergo does.  Some parents like this because it offers more back support for bigger kids.  It can sometimes be challenging for smaller children because their heads may not be fully above it so it limits visibility a bit.

Loading a child into each of the carriers differs slightly.  The Beco Carrier allows you to secure the child into the carrier first and then put it on your body.  With the Ergo Baby Carrier you first put the carrier on your body and then load the child.  The Ergo requires you to learn and refine the technique but the Beco requires you to adjust an additional strap on each side.  Some people don’t mind messing with buckles and straps for others it’s a hassle.  You probably have a good idea of what your preference is.

The fabrics on both carriers are similar.  The Beco fabric is a little softer.  The Ergo conventional cotton fabric is more rugged but softens up quickly with use.  The most obvious difference is also style.  Many of the Ergo color options have been around for awhile and are fairly conservative.  This is great for many people and helps contribute to a timeless appearance.  There are a couple more fun colors such as the Sienna with Stripe lining and the Grey with embroidered stars.  The lighter Camel color is also really popular for summer wear.  Beco on the other hand has focused on limited run prints making the look much more distinctive but not as accessible for everybody if you don’t find a print you like.  They can also be limited in options that dad is willing to wear.  Beco does offer the option in the Butterfly II of solid black and brown that can be a safe bet for anyone.