BEST BUY: Carriers - The Beco Gemini
Being an amateur baby-wearer, I have owned a number of baby carriers over the years. My very first carrier was a standard Baby Bjorn, a gift from my cousin to help me get up and out when I had a newborn baby. I LOVED the Baby Bjorn, and used it to take my son to the aquarium, shopping, or just around the house...for about a month and a half. Then, my big baby boy started to hurt my back, and carrying him was an exhausting experience. Honestly, I expected that all carriers felt the same, and so I didn't really investigate other carriers until my son had outgrown the weight-limits of the Bjorn, by which time carrying him in my arms was far more comfortable than putting him in the carrier.
Then, I purchased a sling so that I could carry him on my hip, but it was also a back-ache waiting to happen. I also tried a Mei-Tai, an Ergo, and a Moby Wrap, but none met my needs (the Moby Wrap's flaw, to it's credit, was that my children hated it - it fit me just fine). Finally, when my son was about 11-months old, I found and purchased a Beco Butterfly II from an excellent online seller known as FrogMama (I especially love her return policy!). This carrier was very comfortable, and pretty easy to use for a beginner back-carrier. I still love that carrier, but the downside is that my son, used to facing forward in the Baby Bjorn, was not thrilled about having to face in in the Butterfly. Also, the interior sling makes a back-carry much easier for the inexperienced baby-wearer, but it seems to get in the way and complicate things once back-carrying has been mastered.
When my daughter was born, I went looking for a carrier that would allow out- as well as in-facing, and I found the Beco Gemini (also available from FrogMama). This is an awesome carrier. It has a bunch of different, great features. You can wear it in a hip carry, back carry, and front carry (both in- and out-facing, which distinguishes it from the Ergo), you can narrow or widen the crotch area depending on the size of the baby and the type of carry (no infant insert needed), and you can lower or raise the neck support. You can also cross the straps on your back or wear the carrier back-pack style depending on what is most comfortable for you, and it has the added hip support that is missing from the Baby Bjorn to make everything that much easier on your back. You can carry a child from 6-35 pounds, which means it will work for at least two years for the average child (my two-and-a-half year old is in the 60% for weight and I can still carry him comfortably)! It runs around $130 (compared to the Ergo, which runs $115-$160 depending on the style, or the Babyhawk Oh Snap, which is solidly at $150), but you can sometimes find it on sale.
Cons? Just a couple. First, if you have a short (in length) baby, you may find that they are physically ready for the out-facing carry long before they are tall enough to fit in the carrier out-facing, which can be irritating. Also, the carrier only seems to come in very dark colors, so if you have a household like mine that is filled with animal hair, or your baby is prone to spitting up, your carrier will rarely look sparkling clean even when washed regularly. But despite these cons, I still believe the Beco Gemini to be the best carrier out there, and I would recommend it to anyone.
Please note that although this carrier does offer out-facing front-carry, that is NOT the recommended way to carry a child, as that particular carry is hard on a baby's back, and so such a carry should never be used for extended periods of time.
