Carrier question

[hgsmom]

My family is going to WDW in Oct. and my dd will be just shy of 2yo. She weighs about 24 lbs now and is tall for her age. We have the Jeep umbrella stroller (love it!!) but I am worried about the wait in the lines so I am thinking about buying a carrier. I know the baby bjorn carrier goes up to 33 or 35 lbs so she will still be under that, but I am worried if we will get our moneys worth out of it. She likes to be held in our arms but we have never used a carrier before. I think it would come in handy waiting in lines and other places where the stroller can't go. Do any of you have experience with a carrier with a child as old as mine. Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks, Karla

 

[jldriscoll]

Hi Karla, My daughter is a wee one too. She's 4 1/2 now and between 28-30 lbs. We have the same dilema I never used the baby bjorn (but have heard fabulous things about them), but we use 2 things, First at around 2 we were still using a backpack to carry Emily around the parks. The best part of the back pack is that she could see everything peeking over my shoulder. She could sleep in it and everything. Being tall isn't a problem because they can dangle her legs or rest them on the back bar. I found it easy to get on and off rides too. Second, I now use a sling for Emily to sit on my hip. It eases the weight off my shoulders and she can snug up around me if she wants. So I think the best thing to do is see what kind of things are avalible in your area for carrying your daughter and try them out on her. She may not like certain positions. WDW is not the place to find out she's uncomfortable

 

[disneymom3]

I have a baby bjorn and it is fabulous! However, for that age child, I second the sling on hte hip idea. The bjorn would be a hassle to keep taking her in and out of for rides--my baby I just keep in there on the rides, but a two year old, you would want to get her out. I have considered a back pack but what do you do with it when you ride? Just leave it in the stroller area or what?

Julie

 

[jldriscoll]

Originally posted by disneymom3
I I have considered a back pack but what do you do with it when you ride? Just leave it in the stroller area or what?

Julie

I had this great response typed up and then the boards went down....Let's see if I can remember.....

Dh usually slides Emily out the top of the backpack while it's still on my back and then I just wear it on the ride. Not at all uncomfortable. Sometimes if she is asleep I take the pack off with her in it and set her up between my legs for shows and stuff. I admit it does take a bit of bending and stooping to make this work, getting her in and out (benches make it much easier!)...But we're all limber agile young mama's aren't we

 

[hgsmom]

I have considered the backpack type carrier too, but I read a post that it would not fit on the rides and I would be uneasy about leaving it with the stroller as it would be easy for somebody to grab it. Thanks for the replies, I guess I just need to try some out and see what works best for us!
Karla

 

[jldriscoll]

I should point out that the back pack I have is simply a pack for the child. I know they can get pretty fancy with wheels for strolling and all sorts of storage packs on them. Don't know if those would work or be comfortable. Might get too bulky.

 

[tsmspt]

We have twins and we used backpack carriers. We left them on while waiting in lines. As we neared the lines we took the kids out and took the backpacks on the rides. We actually have the evenflo trail blazers which are some of the biggest backpack carriers on the market. I thought they were wonderful. Have a great trip.

 

[MinnieGi]

I have a 21 month old and the Baby Bjorn carrier would be very awkward in my opinion with a 2 yo. I loved it when she was an infant, but since they are carried right in front of you their legs dangle in front of yours and would be awkward to walk. Not to mention I do not think a 2 yo would be pleased to be in this type of carrier.

I mostly carry DD on my hip so I think a hip type carrier would work best like a sling. However at this age I rarely use the sling b/c DD is so up and down. It's easier to just hold her with my arms on her hip. DH often carried her around WDW on his shoulders, which she really loves!!!!!!!!!!! I guess a backpack would work too if you don't mind the contraption on you and taking if on and off.

 

[jldriscoll]

Wish I could use the "just carry them" method. Doing that did some damage to my shoulders when #1 dd was around 1 1/2. Now my arms and back go into spasm if I carry either of my girls too long. I HAVE to have them supported in so way. The sling is easy to get in and out of and it makes a nice pillow folded on mom's are when tired I actually made mine. Nice pattern, has fanny pack, tote bag, water bottle carrier, and doll sling patterns too. And of course you know what kind of fabric I used..... MINNIE!!! Thinking of making a Little Mermaid one for this trip.

 

[MinnieGi]

jldriscoll - Wow, sounds like you have one awesome sling! I love the Minnie pattern idea!!

 

[R4racing]

I have a hip carrier for my DD, who is just shy of 3 and weighs just under 30lbs and is about 36-37" tall (just made the height to ride Goofy's Barnstormer last month) I ordered it from www.Onestepahead.com I forget the cost though. It folds down to about the size of a waist pack/fanny pack. I think if you do a search on their site for carriers it should bring it up. It works fine for us, although I haven't worn it for any long amounts of time at once yet. One thing that I noticed is that depending on how far off to the side I postion her, or just how she sits, her leg might get in the way of walking. We have a backpack carrier too, but thought it was too large to haul around since we also took a stroller and weren't sure how much we would have her ride in the backpack carrier.