Best Baby Carrier - Spokane,WA

I used a homemade Moby wrap when my son was little (it is not that complicated once you do it a few times) and then when he got bigger I got a Boba. Best carrier EVER.

I like the Becos - either the butterfly II or the gemini.

I had the Ergo with my first and it was too hot for both of us and impossible for me to put on by myself. With our second, I'm using and loving the Beco butterfly 2 - check amazon for good prices. It's lighter weight than the ergo, works with newborns, and is easy to put on yourself after the first time. It distributes most of the weight at your hips, so it would be great for your back. I use it all the time!

i had bjorn with my first, liked it until she was about 7 months/15 pounds or so, then started to hurt my shoulders. got the ergo with #2, and LOVE it. i think it's super easy to put on, and you bare most of the weight on your hips instead of shoulders, making it much more comfortable for your back. you do need an infant insert at the beginning, but my daughter grew out of that by about 4 months.

My vote is for the Ergo. I had the Bjorn with my first and hated it. It hurt my back and was very difficult to put on by myself. Now I have a Ergo with my second and I'm kicking myself for not buying earlier. It gives me great back support and my husband says it makes me stand up straighter. It's super easy to put on and my little one loves it.

I absolutely loved my Moby. It is a bit complicated the first few times, but you get used to it and it becomes very easy to manipulate and getting baby in and out is easy. I found the Ergo to be much more difficult because I couldn't easily reach all of the straps and buckles. The Ergo also needs the extra infant insert. It costs way more than the Moby and the Moby can be worn even without baby. If you have errands, just keep it on and baby slides right in and back out for the car seat.

I got a Moby right before going to Paris when my dd was 5 months old. I had an awful sling prior to that and my shoulder killed me after any walk with her in it. I was able to use the walking tour cards and nurse in it, stop and have a bite myself (she stayed in it). She could watch and interact with people during our walks and I turned her around to face me for nap time and continued my walk. I did this every day for the entire week I was there. My hubby was at a conference all week, so it was just the two of us. Strollers weren't too good there with the train stations not all having elevators. (Found that out the hard way.)

There is a place here in Portland that allows you to go in and try on various carriers. It is called Mother Nature's, you might look around for the "organic/all natural" boutique stores and call to see if they offer this service. Give the Moby a chance. It does seem awkward at first, but gets very easy after a few times and you get the hang of it. Also, baby can curl up in it as if they were still in the womb, very comforting. No legs being stretched in directions I wouldn't be comfortable in...

there are a lot of mai tei wearers in my area. i would definitely find a baby wearing group near you or a store that would let you try them on first. make sure to take a sack of rice to put in it to test it out.

I have tried many over the years, but my favorites are:

For newborns: The Sleepy Wrap (pretty much the same as the Moby). It is especially wonderful for tucking away a newborn from germy hands when in public. It is very warm & cozy, so it is great in the winter, but not too wonderful in the summer. Yes, it is a bit difficult, at first, to figure out the tying, but once you've gotten the hang of it, it is not bad at all. I'd just get it now and start practicing the tying. Once you put it on, you can pretty much wear it all day around the house (if you are nursing, just wear a nursing tank underneath it, and then you can slide the fabric out of the way when you want to nurse.)

For older babies & toddlers: Ergo
I wear both my 9 month old, and when needed, my 2.5 yr old. After a bit of practice, I can easily put it on unassisted. Sometimes when I am cooking and my 9 mo old is getting fussy, I will put him on my back so I can keep cooking without worrying about getting him too close to the stove or cutting board.

The Ergo is awesome, especially if you have back problems. The Moby fabric was too stretchy for my taste.

Another vote Beco!
http://www.becobabycarrier.com/
The Butterfly 2 and the Gemini just won Mothering Mag's top baby carrier of the year award.
I love the Gemini. Distributes the weight and is easy to put on.

If you have a bad back and neck I would absolutely avoid like the plague the Baby Bjorn. It puts all the weight on your back. Even the one w/ the extra support. It's a decent carrier while baby weighs little but once they put on weight is very uncomfortable.

I have a wrap similar to the Moby. It is not the easiest to put on. Definitely takes some practice. But can be quite comfortable until baby hits the 15lb. mark. My baby quickly grew to dislike the confinement of it (but they're all different!).

HTH! Congrats!

I really like my becco. My little guy is 16 months old and I'm still using it.

I love my Moby wrap. After you watch the photos/videos online it's easy to put on, and it's like wearing a shirt - my back/shoulders/neck never hurt with it. I always used it at home.

Going out I love the Ergo because the Moby fabric would land on the ground, and it has a pocket and ring to hang keys. (Although, I have also put the Moby on at home and then stuck baby in when we arrived.)

Baby Bjorn with back support (helped so much with a back/shoulder issue I was dealing with), then when the baby outgrew the Bjorn, I switched to the Ergo. The Ergo carrier was by far one of the best investments I made in baby gear. You can wear the baby on the front or the back, and it's so padded and comfortable that I had no issues wearing my very heavy baby/child for hours at a time (we hike).

BTW I tried a couple of slings, but both my wee one and I rejected them all.

Good luck!

I also vote for the Ergo. We didn't get ours until my son was a year old and I wish I'd just spent the money sooner. I'm looking forward to using it with the little one on the way, but I've read mixed reviews about the infant insert. Without the insert you can't start using it until at least 12 pounds. So I'm debating the infant insert or a moby wrap for the first couple of months. The moby is slightly more complicated to put on, but so much snugglier.