Baby Stories
ERGObaby carrier > Baby Stories > Chrysta Richards, US Army Garrison, Garmisch, GermanyChrysta Richards, US Army Garrison, Garmisch, Germany
I live on an Army base in Germany with my husband, Karl, and two-year-old son, Hudson. Ever since Hudson got too heavy for me to comfortably wear in the Baby Bjorn (about 15-16 pounds, and since he was just shy of 10 pounds at birth, that didn't take long), I've been looking for another alternative. My husband and I have been determined that having a young child would not prevent us from traveling and really enjoying our time here in Europe. We can usually just use the stroller, but there are times when we have to park it, such as when we tour a castle with lots of stairs or a palace (Versailles comes to mind) which doesn't allow strollers beyond the coat check area. I've tried a pouch, a ring-sling, a hip hammock and a Didymos, which all fit in the stroller basket or diaper bag, but which all have various drawbacks. All but the Didymos were uncomfortable after a short time because all of the weight was on one or both shoulders, and while the Didymos could be tied to put my son on my back (more comfortable), all that fabric could be a pain in the behind and made it difficult when my son wasn't at his most cooperative. When we moved to the Alps, we also bought a high-end frame-style backpack carrier, which is more comfortable for longer periods of time with a larger child, but which is not very portable for traveling (doesn't fit in the stroller basket) and is nearly impossible for me to put on by myself. So after all that money invested in carriers, I still didn't have the optimum solution. The problem became more acute in the last couple of months thanks to the impending arrival of our second son.My now-30-pound toddler came to the sudden realization two months ago that the baby "brudder" he'd been talking about excitedly would actually be coming to live at HIS house, with HIS mama, and that he'd be doing a lot of sharing real soon. He has become clingier and clingier as my lap has gotten smaller and smaller. He's taken to insisting on being carried by his mama - no stroller, no daddy allowed - or else it's a total meltdown, usually while we're on a walk and far from the car, or downtown running errands. With my very pregnant belly in the way, it's been difficult, to say the least. I started looking at carriers again and decided to try the ERGO. Your customer service department was quick to reassure me that if I didn't like it I could return it, so I took the plunge. Shipping was remarkably quick from Hawaii to my European APO address. And the ERGO? WHAT A LIFESAVER!!!!! Even though I am now a full eight months along, I can comfortably carry my son on my back when he decides he just has to have some Mama-love. In fact, sometimes I think having Hudson's 30 pounds on my back helps to balance the 30 pounds worth of baby I'm carrying in the front. Just to give you an idea, I've attached a few photos taken a couple of days ago at an Austrian castle called Hohenwerfen. It was a steep hike up the mountain, followed by a castle tour that seemed to be nothing but stairs, and then back down the mountain to the car. Hudson was in the ERGO for a good chunk of that, and we were both quite content. (Although Daddy felt a bit guilty because all he had was the camera and the diaper bag and thought that people were giving him funny looks, I actually insisted on being the one to wear the ERGO. It's that weight-balancing thing.) Thank you so much for designing such a wonderfully comfortable and practical carrier. I've already started recommending it to everyone I know, and I can't wait to try it with the infant insert, which is waiting in the closet for baby #2 to arrive. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!
