When it comes to baby carriers I have tried almost all of them. I’ve spent a small fortune on carriers trying to find just the perfect one that would be supportive and soft enough for a tiny baby but still work for one of those older toddlers who still demands to be held all the time or one who runs off in crowded places.

The perfect carrier needs to make the baby feel safely supported, distribute the baby’s weight correctly for mom/dad so it’s not isolated in the same spot day in and day out, and should be flexible enough to allow for different positions (front versus back facing or even on mom/dad’s front versus mom/dad’s back.) It also needs to be easy to adjust for baby’s constant growth.

If the baby has infant reflux it is critical that the carrier puts him in an upright position closely positioned on mom or dad’s body for support and with a straight spine. If the baby carrier does not correctly support the baby, he will slump which puts pressure on his tummy and causes reflux even though he is in an upright position.

The Moby Wrap fits the bill, easily achieving these requirements. It comes in a wide range of colors which is nice since I consider a baby carrier to be the ultimate mommy accessory – a highly visible item you wear on your person. It’s nice to coordinate it with your wardrobe.

There is a small learning curve to tying the wrap but once you’ve done it, it becomes second nature. When we left the house to run errands I would tie the wrap on and leave it that way, popping the baby in and out when we reached our destination. It was so much easier to do that then to lug the huge carseat carrier in and out of the car.

It made those nights of walking the floor with a fussy baby that much easier since he would instinctively calm down once I put him in the wrap and remain quiet while I gently moved. I used it when vacuuming, making dinner or helping my toddler. The Moby Wrap was indispensible for my family and let us resume some semblance of normalcy during those turbulent new baby months.

The Moby Wrap definitely deserves a Practical Parent Pick!

As a new parent I found it incredibly frustrating to wade through differing parenting methodologies, or to determine which gear was necessary – and of those which ones were thoughtfully constructed versus poorly designed or manufactured. To compound matters, items that worked for mellow babies might aggravate babies with reflux or colic. I spent a fortune on products that I ended up throwing or giving away!

I’ve spent the last five years researching products that work well for infant reflux or colic but I also have a huge appreciation for quality products, thoughtfully made that benefit first the baby and then the parent. I phrase that carefully because I believe there are many items on the market today that benefit the parent to the detriment of the baby (like hands-free baby bottles and baby videos.)

If you have a product you believe is worthy of my Practical Parent Picks Award, or have a website that is sincere and genuinely helpful to families please email me at Annette@PollywogBaby.com with your info.

The other day I finally made it around to some fall yardwork (now that it’s March!) I was thrilled to clear away a huge pile of leaves and find this underneath:

Hopefully it will look this sweet once the chickens arrive…

I’ve been really remiss about posting lately, in part due to designing the makeover for the front yard and starting veggie starts but also because of the crazy number of experiments going on over in my kitchen.

And now, I dedicate the remainder of this post to the kids.