Backpacks

O
nce baby gets to around six months, he or she becomes rather too heavy to carry on the front with a sling. A backpack is needed. However, the growing weight often means that many parents give up on the idea of carrying their child completely, despite the fact that this is often more convenient than using a buggy, especially when on holiday.

Backpacks can vary from very simple ideas – often an extension of a front carrying sling – to something with all the latest technology from the rucksack industry. Indeed many parents chose to use an outdoor activities shop for this purchase.

In no particular order, features that are important for choosing a back pack include:

  1. Price – as usual!
  2. Colour – fashion can also enter into this market, and who wants puce with yellow stripes?
  3. Ease of adjusting the shape and size for the baby or toddler.
  4. Waist/hip strap – the weight of the child should be transferred onto the hip with a strap. A padded one is more comfortable.
  5. Adjustable frame – if the frame is not putting the weight onto the hips in the right way, carrying a child is more difficult, resulting in backache after only a very short time. With cheaper backpacks, the frame cannot be adjusted to suit.
  6. Day bag – when carrying a child, it is very difficult to carry a separate bag so integral bags are very useful.
  7. Shape and size when not in use – it is difficult to pack a framed backpack in a suitcase but not impossible and it needs to be packed in the car with all the rest of the paraphernalia of children. Backpacks that fold when not in use also make for smaller packages in the shop.
  8. Standing leg – it is a lot easier to put the child in a backpack and then turn around to get it on your back. A standing leg helps to stabilise the backpack when it is on the table or on the ground. This can also be useful when stopping for a break but it is not stable enough for use as a seat and you should always warn parents that the child can easily tip over.
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