58 out of 58 people found this review helpful.
excellent sling
Date of Review: Oct 9, 2000
I bought my NoJo Original Baby Sling from Ebay. Even used, it was $17, but
I'd been unable to find ANY baby slings in the stores where I live. Before I gave birth to our daughter, I'd read up on attachment parenting - including the classic, the Baby Book by Dr. William Sears. I had visions of carrying my new bundle everywhere, constantly, and being able to do everything I'd done before. I agreed with Sear's idea that close contact promotes alert, secure children, and makes the parents life easier, too.
I enjoyed carrying my daughter in the sling when she was a newborn. You have to take care to position the baby's head just so, so it doesn't slide down and get squished in there. She's two and a half months now, and we still use the sling on walks, around the house when she's grumpy and wants to be held all morning, and even out to dinner sometimes. I love having her close to me and she seems to love it too, but it does weigh on your shoulders and back, and mine aches after a couple hours of the sling. I don't know how Sears and Mrs. Sears, with their 8 kids, did it. Sometimes you have to put them down. Of course, you can't cook, drink hot liquids, bike, or mow the lawn with baby in sling. They do make mesh slings for showering, but this scares me - too slippery.
One cool thing is that the closeness it brings helps with breastfeeding (for me, anyway) in that when my daughter's hungry, she doesn't have to yelp from the other room to me, she just turns around and my milk comes in. I've nursed her in public in the sling, and you just tuck up the top for modesty and go to it.
If you have the back strength to take it, this sling is great for outings- I've used it in a bookstore and was able reach for books and stand around reading comfortably. Just keep a hand there while getting the hang of it, watch out for doorframes, and try not to drop too many bits of food down there.
