My dear friend and loyal customer, Rachael, was generous enough to write this witty piece about her experiences traveling with her two young boys....her sling saved the day! :)
Our first experience of international travelling with small children (Three years-old and eight months old) was anything but successful ( near-drownings, cancelled flights and tropical storms were but a few of our dramas, but that’s another story), but my experience of travelling using a ring sling was a great success.
Anyone who has travelled with children before is, I am sure, well aware that you don’t travel light. From the minute we entered the airport, I was grateful that I had had the foresight to pack this marvellous invention as strapping the eight month old to my chest using the front carry technique meant that he could see what was going on and I had both hands free to juggle the incorporated paraphernalia that we were dragging along with us; and restrain the over-excited three year old. My ring sling also has handily discrete pockets which were unbelievably handy for hiding passports and important documents.
The beauty of a ring sling is that is adjustable and can be used for babies of varying ages, and in many different ways. The front carry and hip carry positions were fantastic for the airport as they enabled Tane to see the world from his lofty position on my chest and hip. However, whilst on the flight I was able to adjust it so that when Tane finally got tired enough to want to sleep (this did take a while, even he knew something exciting was going on!), I could place him in the cradle hold position and he slept as if he was in a hammock. This was again a blessing in disguise as it meant that I still had my hands free to entertain the three year-old who was not in the least bit interested in sleeping.
I also found the sling handy while I was breast feeding on and off the plane as it covered us both discreetly – not high on my list of concerns normally, but always something to take into consideration when travelling in more conservative or restricted countries.
When we arrived at our destination, the ring sling time and again proved its worth when carting gear around with children in tow, or when travelling through busy city areas. Knowing that you have both your hands free to grasp on to wriggling three year-olds when trapped in small areas with thousands of people gave me more peace of mind than I can begin to describe.
My partner even braved his fear of wearing pink (ok, so I didn’t think about the manliness factor when I chose my sling colour) and wore the sling when I had to work and he was left with the children for the day. I think his exact words when asked for comment were: “Oh yeah, it’s pretty good”, which I am sure many women will appreciate as generous praise from the male species.
If we were to head away from these shores again in the near future, the first thing I would pack would be my ring sling.
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