Winter is a great time for babywearing. Here in Erfurt it has been below freezing all week with several inches of snow.  We finally got out our ancient GDR sled and have been pulling our munchkin around the neighborhood in it. As soon as we need to go a little farther, though, we start to carry her again.  The umbrella stroller may be great for a lot of situations, but in this icy mess it just won't work. And I hate to even think about trying to push the bugaboo around in this weather.  Sure you can push it the other way around, big wheels in front, but it still is very inconvenient.

So the mei tai is our first choice when we are trying to get around these days, even though she is well over 14 kg.  I don't try wearing her inside my big winter coat anymore, since she wants to get down and walk and needs her own snowsuit on. So I just put on my coat and put her in the mei tai right over it.  This is where the advantage of a sturdy canvas mei tai really pays off in comparison to a soft and flimsy material like cord or twill.  Your baby or toddler's coat stays put, and it is easy to get her in and out.  I have been experimenting with the mei tai in a hip carry lately, too, which works out surprisingly well with a big toddler.

Lately we have even been taking her out in the sling, since she keeps wanting to get up and down so much.  There has been some discussion about whether our jersey really supports a large toddler, mostly from folks who haven't had a chance to actually see our slings in action.  It certainly supports my toddler, yes, even handsfree, and she is really heavy now.  I can not hold her more than a few minutes in my arms, but in the sling I can go for a good half hour before I need to put her down.

Whether mei tai or pouch, I try to carry as much as I can in winter. It is a great way to feel close, we both stay warm and it is practical, too.

 

 

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