“Ba pa!”

Riley’s very first (intelligible) (well, mostly) spoken word was a direct result from being around this awesome backpack carrier. Why, his Harvard acceptance is virtually guaranteed now! Or at the very least, a “C” average at an online technical institute.

We bought this carrier on a whim at REI, mostly because we had a dividend coming back to us and nothing in particular to spend it on. As it’s turned out, the backpack has been probably the single best investment we’ve made in baby gear, second only in overall usage to the stroller (which we used daily when he was very young, since it converted to a bassinet).

The carrier is nicely adjustable, JB and I are about the same height but I imagine it would work well for switching between disparate body types. It’s lightweight; while the kind with a metal frame has the advantage of letting you prop it open on the ground (in order to drop in the kidlet) this one doesn’t make you feel like you’re dressed to scale Everest for a trip to the mall. It’s not 100% easy to get Riley in it if I don’t have a couch to balance it on, but with a little shimmying I can manage on my own.

Best of all, it’s actually a backpack, too. You can use this as a diaper bag, or fill it with distracting measuring cups, or whatever. We’ve used it a lot as a picnic basket by packing it with a blanket, food for us and Riley, bibs, toys, etc, and heading to a nearby park. We’ve also gone hiking a few times and filled it with bottled water and so on.

Riley now weighs 21 pounds and it’s not as comfortable to carry him; our little dude’s getting heavy. The carrier says it will support up to 30 lbs, but hopefully the boy will be doing some walking on his own soon. I imagine that it will still be useful to have the backpack on hand for some outings even after he’s upwardly mobile, for when he’s tired. And it’s easier and less cumbersome than the stroller.

Plus, he loves it. Loves. The. Backpack. He says “ba pa!” the instant he sees it, and sometimes when I get out my purse (”ba…pa?”).

We’ve used the carrier almost every damn day over the last several months, and it looks just like new (although parts of it may possibly smell a little…milky). Two major thumbs up for the ba pa!

Link: Deuter KangaKid Backpack Child Carrier
Ballpark price: $130