Outward Facing Carrier

[PlainJane]

I would like some help deciding if I should invest in an outward facing carrier. The ones that I know the most about are the Ergo 360 and the Lillebaby. I would probably get the air flow version of either. We currently have a Boba 3G, which I like well enough, but my husband wants an outward facing carrier something fierce.

It would be nice in situations like church services where I don't want to spend the entire time with him sitting on my lap while I try to keep him contained. If I have him in the Boba he gets really frustrated because he can't see he preacher. I've also heard at Disney they sometimes make you turn the baby around and we wouldn't have that option in the Boba.

So, here's the biggest issue, he's 7 months old and huge. He was 91st percentile for weight and 78th for height at his 6 month. A rough guess at weight and height would be 21lbs and 29 inches. He fits in 18 month pajamas. I just don't want to buy an outward facing carrier If we can't really use it in the outward facing position for very long.

Thank you for your help!

 

[KrazeeK120]

I have a huge kid too. He's 19 months...weighed 30 lbs at his 18 month appointment (97%). He doesn't look "fat," but he just has a very solid build. I tried forward facing him a couple of times between 6-9 months and it hurt my back even then. However, I'm very small (5'3, 110 lbs). I'm not sure if that makes a difference. Like, maybe if I were taller or his weight were distributed differently, it wouldn't have been as uncomfortable? My husband tried it as well, but he is small too (5'5, 140 lbs) and had the same experience I did.

To sum up, I don't personally recommend forward facing with a huge kid. YMMV of course!

 

[PlainJane]

I have a huge kid too. He's 19 months...weighed 30 lbs at his 18 month appointment (97%). He doesn't look "fat," but he just has a very solid build. I tried forward facing him a couple of times between 6-9 months and it hurt my back even then. However, I'm very small (5'3, 110 lbs). I'm not sure if that makes a difference. Like, maybe if I were taller or his weight were distributed differently, it wouldn't have been as uncomfortable? My husband tried it as well, but he is small too (5'5, 140 lbs) and had the same experience I did.

To sum up, I don't personally recommend forward facing with a huge kid. YMMV of course!

Thank you for chiming in!

I'm also 5'3, but I'm more average than slender. My husband is 5'10 and pretty average weight as well. It seems like he has the best chance of it being comfortable, which is good because he's the one who really wants it.

 

[Dismama2boys]

I'm a member of a large baby-wearing group with some very knowledgeable members, and none recommend forward-facing carrying. Not good for the wearer or the baby, supposedly. I baby-wear all the time, but have never (and likely will never) tried forward-facing.

 

[PlainJane]

I'm a member of a large baby-wearing group with some very knowledgeable members, and none recommend forward-facing carrying. Not good for the wearer or the baby, supposedly. I baby-wear all the time, but have never (and likely will never) tried forward-facing.

I know outward facing can be a little controversial. I definitely would want to buy one that gave adequate support to his hips, but I'm aware it's not the most ergonomic option for either baby or parent, and I have even bigger concerns on that front since he's a large baby. I know there are also concerns about overstimulation. The use of it would be pretty limited, so I'm not super concerned about that. Now he's normally in his stroller when we're out and about. We do baby wear on occasion when the stroller doesn't make sense.

 

[Dismama2boys]

I know outward facing can be a little controversial. I definitely would want to buy one that gave adequate support to his hips, but I'm aware it's not the most ergonomic option for either baby or parent, and I have even bigger concerns on that front since he's a large baby. I know there are also concerns about overstimulation. The use of it would be pretty limited, so I'm not super concerned about that. Now he's normally in his stroller when we're out and about. We do baby wear on occasion when the stroller doesn't make sense.

I have giant babies, so that was part of my concern too. Have you tried a hip carry in a ring sling? That was my life-saver for my babies, and they could see all around them that way.

 

[PlainJane]

I have giant babies, so that was part of my concern too. Have you tried a hip carry in a ring sling? That was my life-saver for my babies, and they could see all around them that way.

Does that work while sitting? My husband seemed to like the idea of a sling when we were expecting.

And, I totally get that the concerns when it comes to forward facing are valid. I agree with a large baby it just doesn't make a ton of sense. He's bigger than my friends' one year olds. Except one friend who had an 11 pound baby. He hasn't caught up with her yet.

 

[Dismama2boys]

Does that work while sitting? My husband seemed to like the idea of a sling when we were expecting.

And, I totally get that the concerns when it comes to forward facing are valid. I agree with a large baby it just doesn't make a ton of sense. He's bigger than my friends' one year olds. Except one friend who had an 11 pound baby. He hasn't caught up with her yet.

It works sitting for me, and I have a very short torso, but I wouldn't want to do it for super-long periods of time. Maybe you could borrow a ring sling to try it first? I know our local baby-wearing group has a lending library; maybe you can find a resource like that.

Sounds like my kiddos....my second weighed over 10 lbs, and I'm 6 months pregnant with my third. She already feels huge! I'm a little scared!!

 

[ADS2508]

I have used the lillie baby airflow since little man was 2 months. He is now 12 month old and off the charts. At 12 months he is 27 lbs and 33 inches. I am 6 feet and used to carring my 40 lbs 3 year old. I had to stop forward facing him at about 30 inches, or 9 months. He would latch on to things and pull which would kill my back. When we were sitting he would use his feet to push up and out. With the airflow you can side carry, but I much prefer him on my back. He can still see everything and I'm more comfortable. It's quick to snap him in and out, especially when I have an extra hand. I know it's not ideal for rides, but it's what works for us.

 

[PlainJane]

It works sitting for me, and I have a very short torso, but I wouldn't want to do it for super-long periods of time. Maybe you could borrow a ring sling to try it first? I know our local baby-wearing group has a lending library; maybe you can find a resource like that.

Sounds like my kiddos....my second weighed over 10 lbs, and I'm 6 months pregnant with my third. She already feels huge! I'm a little scared!!

Hmmm.....This might appease my husband then. Though, I don't know if he'll be game to learn how to use it. I know, it must become second nature, but it looks a little involved from the videos I've seen.

We're pretty average people, so we weren't expecting a chart topper. We feel very blessed though after we had allergy and failure to thrive issues. He was born huge and has been able to get back to his growth curve after his health issues were properly addressed. It definitely has required me to restrategize though. I pay very close attention to weight and height limits on any baby gear we buy now.

Congrats on your little girl!

I have used the lillie baby airflow since little man was 2 months. He is now 12 month old and off the charts. At 12 months he is 27 lbs and 33 inches. I am 6 feet and used to carring my 40 lbs 3 year old. I had to stop forward facing him at about 30 inches, or 9 months. He would latch on to things and pull which would kill my back. When we were sitting he would use his feet to push up and out. With the airflow you can side carry, but I much prefer him on my back. He can still see everything and I'm more comfortable. It's quick to snap him in and out, especially when I have an extra hand. I know it's not ideal for rides, but it's what works for us.

I had thought about grabbing, and that it would cause us to need to be extra vigilant, but I hadn't considered the force with which he flings himself towards things, that could cause some back soreness pretty quickly.

 

[Dismama2boys]

Hmmm.....This might appease my husband then. Though, I don't know if he'll be game to learn how to use it. I know, it must become second nature, but it looks a little involved from the videos I've seen.

We're pretty average people, so we weren't expecting a chart topper. We feel very blessed though after we had allergy and failure to thrive issues. He was born huge and has been able to get back to his growth curve after his health issues were properly addressed. It definitely has required me to restrategize though. I pay very close attention to weight and height limits on any baby gear we buy now.

Congrats on your little girl!



I had thought about grabbing, and that it would cause us to need to be extra vigilant, but I hadn't considered the force with which he flings himself towards things, that could cause some back soreness pretty quickly.

I found it a super-easy carry to get used to - very little learning curve. Good luck if you try it! Thank you for the congrats! So glad to have ended up in a good place. Parenting is so much harder than I ever expected!

 

[DisTravels]

I've also heard at Disney they sometimes make you turn the baby around and we wouldn't have that option in the Boba.

Why would Disney have you turn the baby around?

 

[PlainJane]

Why would Disney have you turn the baby around?

I've seen it show up in other threads about child wearing that sometimes parents are asked to turn the child to forward face. It's supposedly park policy, but only sometimes enforced. There must be a safety concern, we can only really conjecture about why Disney deems it to be safer to forward face on rides. From what I've read bigger kids are requested to forward face more, but your mileage may vary.

This of course is very unfortunate if the baby is faced toward the parent and sleeping.