Ready to go for a walk!

The Beco Gemini is one of a few different baby carriers available from Beco.  I bought this carrier because I knew I wanted to carry my son during his non-walking years.  I don’t like strollers for the people traffic jams most of them create and I like to travel light.  I figured I could keep Gavin strapped to me while I clean, vacuum, do chores, er, um, I mean while I work on my truck and build things in the garage.  Also, I would be able to strap Gavin to me and walk the dogs at the same time.  (Multitasking!)  It really allows me to have both hands free to do things around the house or elsewhere.

NOTE:  If you’ve got no interest in having a baby carrier and are one of those people that push an enormous stroller around while oblivious to everything and everyone around you, then this is probably not the product for you.  It takes a certain type of person to want to carry a baby and I’ve found these people to be more minimalist in nature.

Given the opportunity to try on and test different baby carriers, I found the Beco Gemini able to carry baby: facing out, facing in, on the hip, and backpack style.  These options were in my desired list.  The only style of carry I haven’t used up to this point is the hip carry.  (I’ve got no hips for now, but I’m working on the middle age spread!)

The instructions for the Gemini were pretty easy to follow and there is ample padding for the different methods of carry.  I started carrying Gavin when he was about 6 weeks old (facing in).  Beco claims that the carrier can hold 7-35lbs.  Gavin was 7lb 13oz when born, but I didn’t feel at all comfortable trying to carry Gavin at that time.  It was just my personal preference and I waited until he got a little bigger.

At this time, Gavin is 9 1/2 months old and about 20lb.  He’s easy to carry with the Gemini and there is still enough padding to keep him comfortable.  We’ll see if he’ll still wants to be carried like this at 35 lb.  Either way, there’s room for him to grow.

This baby carrier was one of the few that did all the styles of baby carrying that I wanted.  It didn’t look too girly, but couldn’t they print bullets or knives on at least one of their carriers?  I don’t want to discourage anyone from this carrier because it is great, but I’ve seen plenty of use with it and I’ve got a few small issues with it.  I can’t get the waist support around my waist.  I’ve got a 29″ waist (31″ after eating a steak) and the waist strap doesn’t cinch tight around me.  The problem comes when I put the baby into the carrier and he sinks down into that space between me and the strap.  When this happens, his chin ends up resting on the top lip of the carrier.  After walking for a while, it rubs his chin skin and gets red.  Either have the top part fold down further or make the thing for skinny dads.  We do exist and we do carry babies.  Another issue I have is that there’s no storage, not even a place to hold a nickel you may pick up on the side of the road.  Lastly, washing the material, even once, causes it to fade slightly and look worn.

On the bright side, the safety buckles are great and the stitching of the material seems to be holding up quite well.  I like having the top part to fold up for shading Gavin’s head from the sun or supporting his head when he’s tired.  The Beco Gemini has enough support to be functional without being a problem to fold up and travel with.

I guess the real question is:  Now that I know all the ins and outs of this product, would I buy this again?  Yes.

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Overall Rating:  7 Worms   

Ease of Use:  7 Worms 

Performance:  7 Worms 

Features:  7 Worms 

Durability:  8 Worms 

Manliness:  6 Worms (No guy looks manly carrying a baby.  Though, he does look sensitive and caring!)

Retail Price:  $130

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Pros:

Safety clasps, 4-way baby carrier, lightweight, quality stitching, packs tightly into my suitcase for travel

Cons:

No pockets.  Doesn’t cinch tight enough around my waist.  Could use more adjustability in padded portion for different size babies.

Things I would modify:

Add pockets or bags that you could velcro to the straps.  Just something small to carry a pacifier, diaper, and a couple wipes, so I don’t have to carry around a diaper bag everywhere I go.  I’d like to see the top fold down portion able to fold down further.  My baby isn’t small, but his entire head still doesn’t clear the top flap. (It may also have to do with the loose waist strap.)  I’d also like to see more adjustability in the padded section, like possibly more button fasteners so that I can fine tune the comfort for baby.  Maybe breathable fabric?

Where to find:

www.becobabycarrier.com

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