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the eric update - day 124: off weego!

we recently received our weego baby carrier the other day and it's amazing how much easier it makes life. it's a lot easier to go about mundane daily tasks when you have both hands free!

we chose the weego over more popular brands because it was recommended on a preemie discussion list. but they don't sell them in the u.s. anymore and it was a little tough to get one shipped from germany.

interestingly, it appears that the owners recently stopped selling them in the u.s. due to product liability concerns and it appears that appears that their german liability laws are supposed to prevent them from shipping them to the u.s. oops! oh well, we get to enjoy the benefits of the carrier that eltern rated the best soft carrier, beating out the always popular snugli and baby bjorn.

odin loves his weego and will often fall fast asleep for hours, even missing his feedings if we're not careful, which is quite unusual for him. but it's best to be prepared for feeding after he wakes up or else he'll be sure to express his extreme dissatisfaction with the circumstances.

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11/05/2004 11:43:00 PM 12 comments

12 Comments:

I would suggest, as Odin gets older, a Maya wrap sling or other sling of your liking. ( I'm partial to the Maya) It is easier to get on then "back pack" style carriers and distributes the weight a lot better. You can easily and discreetly nurse in public (this is probably a Kris benefit heh) and you can wear them through toddler hood. I do lots of things with my sling including laundry and dishes and shopping and everything. :)

By Blogger Suzanne, at 8:48 AM  

thanks for the suggestion. certainly there's no limit to the number of choices you can ponder when it comes to baby carriers.

if i remember correctly ( as i alluded in the post, we ordered the weego a while ago and had some trouble getting it shipped from germany ) went with a weego because there happened to be a discussion about carriers on a preemie discussion list at about the same time we were contemplating the choices and many of the parents seemed to like structured carriers over slings for preemies and the weego seemed to be a popular choice. that said, i know many people who are fans of slings as well and as he gets older we might get a sling and see which one he likes better.

By Blogger e3, at 9:42 AM  

I'm just curious if you had heard of the Ergo Baby carrier. It looks like the one you got is much much better for a small child. I didn't have a preemie and I got the Ergo when my daughter was 9 months old. She's almost 2 1/2 and we can still use it with her. That's one of the reasons I'm curious about the Weego. I am wondering how you will like it in a year.

Also, I highly recommend that Kris talk to people (maybe at LLL) about slings or even try different ones on if she can find someone who sells a variety. Everyone is different in what they like.

Anyway, baby carriers rock. We almost always carried our daughter (over the stroller) until pretty recently when she got too heavy to carry for long and also started preferring to walk.

(here via genehack) Joni

By Anonymous Anonymous, at 11:09 AM  

That looks like the perfect carrier for a reflux baby, if he's having spitup issues still. Some people feel the upright carriers can damage a baby's spine http://continuum-concept.org/reading/spinalStress.html while others say that they are far more supportive of the baby and that the baby is happier in them. And, then you get into all sorts of variations as the baby grows http://store.yahoo.com/thehiphuggeronline/shop.html
You just gotta find what is the easiest and most useful for your situation. I like that the new upright carriers detatch from the straps so you don't continually have to stuff baby in and out. And, I love slings like the new native (http://www.newnativebaby.com) because there are no fancy rings or padding to fuss with and for me it was just easier, but I have the feeling Ethan would have hated it being a reflux baby. I did try a sling with him and he was uncomfortable. It is interesting that the product liabiltiy would be so expensive! Who knew! It's a shame that this product cannot be sold in the US for preemie parents, if it is indeed a good solution for tiny babies. Enjoy those walks :)

PS - I had to cancel my Thanksgiving plans, but I hope to see Odin in the spring :) Can't wait!!

By Blogger Candy, at 12:48 PM  

i forgot to point out that one of the advantages of the weego over other types of "structured" carriers is that you can nurse with it.

hi joni - i hadn't heard of the ergo carrier, which looks like a nice option since it appears as if you can use it up to 4yrs. as you probably noticed the weego allows for three carrying positions and is suitable for up to 2yrs. so i suspect we'll still be using it in a year, but probably won't get much more than 2 years of use out of it.

also, for whatever it's worth, kris' sister and her partner used both a sling and a baby bjorn for their first child, but are buying a weego for their new wee one after they tried it out and liked it so much ( and she pointed out that she tried their sling and odin didn't seem to care for it much at the time, but that could have been just the particular style of sling that they have ).

By Blogger e3, at 12:57 PM  

candy brings up an important point about the potential for spinal damage which is one of the other reasons why we bought the weego since it claims to be the "soft baby carrier with the orthopedic advantages of a sling with the easy handling of a carrier" :-)

ironically, i hadn't heard of the ergo carrier until today, but it also appears to have been designed to keep the babies in a sling-like position until they are old enough to sit in a proper seated positin without risking spinal damage.

and candy also brings up another important point about reflux. odin refluxes a lot less these days, but he still needs to stay at a pretty good incline most of the time so the upright carrier works better for us in that regard as well.

( candy, sorry to hear that you're had to change thanksgiving plans, see you in the spring! )

By Blogger e3, at 1:17 PM  

A really nice alternative to the sling is the asian style carrier, or Mei Tei. You can find a really nice example here www.kozycarrier.com. They're another really nice option for when they grow out of the 'bjorn' type carriers and are easier on a baby's spine (they're sitting on their bums in this carrier, and not hanging from their crotch :))

Anyhow, carriers are likes babies. No two types are exactly alike. It's nice that there are so many types availible nowadays!

By Blogger pumpkinhead, at 12:44 PM  

They are discussing this one on nm.net - it also looks very comfy for parent and baby, and they claim that their carrier distributes weight evenly so as not to harm baby's spine.
http://www.hug-a-bub.com.au/
I had a Snugli with Ethan and I would have to say that is the worst carrier. It is so hard to stuff little legs into it. I also had tried a NoJo sling with him, and would have to say it was the bulkiest, cumbersome and uncomfortable product ever - but some people like those types of slings.

By Anonymous Anonymous, at 8:34 AM  

The hugabub site also claims that the wrap is very useful and safe for preemies.

By Blogger pumpkinhead, at 9:20 AM  

hmmm. i wonder if the weego folks are on holiday. they've normally been very responsive to our phone calls.

unfortunately, i haven't been able to track down the instructions. if i do find them, i'd be more than happy to scan them in and email them to you. in the meantime you might be able to glean some information from the link on this page [1]. click on the link labelled "here" underneath the illustration and you'll see an interactive web page that highlights all the straps and functions.

basically, if you're have the baby sitting in the "face in" [2] position, you put the baby so that it's bottom is resting in the "inner pouch" with it's legs dangling through the "inner pouch" holes. you then zip up the "inner pouch" zipper and clasp the "inner pouch" waist strap. as your baby grows you can adjust how high of low the "inner pouch" sits using the "inner pouch snaps" ( again, see the interactive illustration for more detail ). after the baby is snuggled in the "inner pouch" you close the "outer pouch" collar strap, buckle and zipper. the "outer pouch" collar strap is adjustable to keep the baby more or less snug. after that you just need to adjust the comfort, shoulder and waist straps to keep the weego on you comfortably while you go about your day.

i hope that helps!


[1] http://www.weego.de/english/ortho.htm
[2] http://www.weego.de/english/trageposition.htm

By Blogger e3, at 12:33 PM  

Hi,
I came by here through a search for the Weego. It's too bad that it can't be sold in America!!! I would definately try one out.

Meanwhile, my son is 10 months old. I made a Fan shoulder sling with rings from slingrings.com and guatamalan fabric like a maya. I like the fan shoulder style better than the maya wrap shoulder cap.

Slings are the bomb!!! My son can sit forward facing, facing me (t2t), hip carry, cradle carry when he's eating or sleeping... Or on my back!!! All with a simple adjustment. --It's very much worth learning.

For longer walks/carries, I like the mei tei style carrier like the Kozycarrier.com.

Anyway, have fun carrying and loving on that little one!
Rhonda. http://www.Xanga.com/momk2b

By Anonymous Anonymous, at 2:02 PM  

Hi. You can buy Weego in the US. The orders are processed in Germany and the Weegos are sold in North America out of Loveland, Colorado. Weego is an awesome carrier and they make a Twin and Premie Weego also.
I carried my son in the Weego until he was about 2 years old. I can't imagine what life would have been like with out it. You can use the Weego on your front or your back, it just makes life easier.

By Blogger hopi, at 1:11 AM  

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