8/13/2005

Traveling alone with a baby and a kid, AKA I love my Ergo baby carrier

I just have to share this story because it's so amazing to me. Amazing in that it was no big deal! When I had just one child, I couldn't have, in a million years, dreamed of traveling alone with her. I couldn't have managed her and all the stuff. We always had a carseat and a stroller to carry the carseat and luggage piled on top of that.

Fast-forward to my recent trip to visit friends. My husband dropped me off at the airport and off I went with my 5 year old, my baby on my back in the Ergo baby carrier, and 2 carry-on pieces of luggage. That's it!

I always get really stressed out about going through the security checkpoint and this time was no different. But putting the luggage on the rack to get x-rayed was no big deal. My shoes went into a plastic bin. They insisted on xraying the Ergo but I just walked through carrying my baby, got her on my back right away, slipped my shoes back on, and off I went with my two daughters. Honestly, it was a breeze.

But that wasn't the end. Getting on the plane was so easy with my baby safely on my back, directly behind me. My daughter wheeled her luggage so I felt very free with only one piece of luggage to handle. As baby was behind me, stowing my own luggage was a breeze. Same thing when we landed.

The friend who was picking us up wasn't able to meet us when the plane landed and there was no way I was going to hang out in a major airport for hours so I took public transportation. Had to, really; I had no carseats. I wound up taking a bus, train, trolley, train, and another bus. It took about an hour and a half. The baby snoozed in the Ergo on my back, hoodrest up, and arrived refreshed. I could not be more thrilled to have pulled that off. Much more relaxing to keep moving than to try to keep track of a toddler in an airport and luggage and my older daughter. What a nightmare that would have been!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Great story! I can totally relate since I can't live without my Ergo Baby Carrier with a three year old boy and my little baby girl. People don't understand how much it helps to have two free hands to tend to a toddler and know the baby is safely playing or napping on your back. No backpack could even come close to being as comfy as the Ergo, which I can wear for hours without any discomfort. I even carry my 3year old in it when he gets tired.