My 6 1/2 month old son weighs 19lbs 7oz, and is fast outgrowing his infant car seat. My baby has an almost 3 yr old brother, and we go out a lot to playgrounds, hiking, museums. So far I have been carrying the little guy in a Baby Bjorn (sport model) but I'm beginning to have almost constant back pain. I'd love to be able to carry the baby for as long as he'll tolerate being in a carrier. And when he grows out of that car seat, would also like a carrier that's easy to get in and out, to get us all to and from the car. Do any moms of large babies have recommendations on infant carriers that have worked for 20+ lbs?
bjorns are horrible carriers. Try an ergo they are wonderful :) I can wear my 30 lb 3 year old on my back no problem with it and its easy to put on.
As far as a car seat goes they do make infant carriers that go to 32 lbs but its probably not worth the money. I say get a convertible car seat that will allow you to rear face for quite a while like a graco my ride. At that point you can just put the ergo on and put him in the carrier on your front or back.
We adore our Baby K'tan and have seen it successfully used with toddlers.
There are many, many carriers out there that are far better for you and the baby than the Bjorn (which is bad for your back and bad for the babies hips and spine). You can either go the route of an Ergo or Beco (which would be the most similar to the Bjorn you're used to but much, much, much better for you and baby). Or there are woven wraps (my personal favorite), ring slings or mei tais. A great resource for learning about all the different baby carriers is www.thebabywearer.com . It is an on-line community based around baby wearing. The ladies there will certainly be able to help you figure out what is the best carrier for you and your LO.
I have a mayawrap and I love it. Have used it for both of my kids. It will hold a little one up to 35lbs. As long as you have it on correctly it is very comfortable. I carried my 17lb 10 month old around sea world all day and my back never hurt once. It's very versatile too as far as ways to carry baby.
Given his current weight you are most likely not going to find a seat that will be easily taken in and out of the car. Most infant seats like that only go up to around 22lbs at the most. Most are 20lbs so you need to get that little pumpkin a new seat pronto.
One thing we did because my daughter's Britax couldn't be taken in and out of the car was to carry the infant seat that was my son's in the back of our suv and I'd pop her in that after taking her out of the car if I wasn't going to be wearing her.
For the car seat-Look at the Britax website. They have a cool feature where you plug in baby's size and it gives you all the seats that work for you. We have 3 Britax seats in our house and I wouldn't trade them for the world!
It is now recommended that infants/toddlers stay rear-facing till age 2 so look for a convertible seat that will take you rear-facing into the 30lb+ range. Our seat will go to 33 or 35 lbs. rear and up to 65lbs foreword facing
My son was the same way and out grew his by 6 months. I bouth a Graco MyRide 65 and like if FAR better than my Britax.
I do teach babywearing (and breastfeeding and instinctive parenting) and can honestly say that my BabyHawk saved my sanity. It is easy to get on and off and frees your arms to zip in and out of a store. I would get a TODDLERHAWK size though. They hold up to 40 lbs and you can wear the baby front or back. Love mine!
Both my kids outgrew our britax infant carrier at about 6 months, and the Bjorn too. The bjorn gave me terrible back pain. I got a lillebaby everywear carrier, which is like a bjorn but can be used side or back as well and LOVE IT. I carried our 10 month-old all over Disney World in it. We also stick with Britax carseats (Boulevard, Frontier,and Regent) and LOVE THEM!
I have a Calyx from Mama by Design...it is a buckle type Mei Tai carrier. I love it. I bought it when my daughter got too long from me to comfortably carry her in front in the Moby Wrap (I never could master a back carry). She is 3.5 now and about 35 pounds...she is still within its weight limit and I keep it in the car for emergencies...or when we travel.
Here is one more vote for either the Ergo or Beco. I have both but tend to use the Ergo more. My husband prefers the Ergo so that is usually the carrier we keep handy. Both are great though.
I understand totally! We ended up buying the Graco My ride 65. we used the Evenflo Aura Elite until he was about 10 months old (he was born 9lb5oz...he's almost one and weighs about 30lbs)
I suggest the Baby Bjorn Comfort carrier. It's design is for bigger babies.
I used a metal frame backpack for my big boy ... wraps would have been great, but none ever fit OR distributed his weight correctly
http://www.rei.com/kids/Baby+Carrier+Backpacks?cm_re=toc*toc*baby_carrier_backpacks
We stopped using a carrier at a very young age and went to a stroller full time when outside the car. it was so much easier. The babies get very heavy and when you add the weight of the car seat it just made sense to use the stroller. You can use them walking, shopping, going to anywhere.
I hope you got the information you were looking for, you must be VERY strong to be able to carry your child around all the time.
I love my sleepy wrap. My son is also large and is very clingy. It's a wrap so it does have lot of fabric to deal with, but I still love it away. It's adjustable to you and for the baby.
Ergo or patapum toddler
My son was 22 pounds at 6 months so I feel your back pain. I switched him from the baby bjorn to the ergo carrier and it is much easier on my back. He is 9 months old and I still carry him in the carrier (though I'm not sure for how much longer). Good luck!
I too favor the Ergo. I carry my 25-lb daughter in it all the time. I started with the Björn and found the Ergo MUCH easier on my back; the weight is placed almost completely on the hips, not the back. It is also better for the child's spine. The child can be front or back, but do know he can't be in the front facing out (don't know about the Beco) if that's important to you.
Best of luck!
Shelley
Ergo all the way!!!
The Ergo baby carrier is suppose to be great. Everyone I know that has one, loves it. I've also heard good things about the Beco baby carrier.
I've heard the Bjorns will kill your back. The Ergo is supposed to be amazing, although I can't use it (it doesn't fit well on really small women; my shoulders are just too narrow). They're pricey, but they're supposed to be much better for your back and for the baby's legs and spine; they let the baby sit in the carrier instead of dangling all their weight on their crotch, which some doctors feel is bad for the hips.
They fit babies up to 45 lbs, too.
If I were you and I was having back pain, why don't you just put him in a
stroller? As far as car seats, he should be able to stay in his infant
carseat until he can face forward. Infants do most of their growing in the
first several months so chances are he will not continue to grow fast
and will be able to stay in seat. If not, you need a convertible seat. One
that is rear facing and converts to forward when baby is 1 yr.