I first started babywearing when Toby was tiny and his reflux was so bad that he hated being put down. I had a stretchy wrap and would often carry him around the house when he was struggling to settle. When he got too big for the wrap we got a buckle, or soft-structured, carrier and used it a lot on days out and walks when the buggy wasn’t practical. When Gabe was born I used the stretchy wrap again but I found it quite a faff to put on, particularly if I was trying to wrangle Toby at the same time. I used the buckle carrier with Gabe, and still do use it a lot, but I wanted something I could get him into really quickly and easily – particularly for those times I was just popping in the shop, or needed to carry him but have my hands free for Toby too….

Enter the Rockin’ Baby Pouch! You may remember the boys had some clothes from Rockin’ Baby a while ago, well we were also sent a Rockin’ Baby Pouch to try at the same time. The pouch is a sling type carrier, it is suitable from birth to 18 kg and there are four different carrying positions. The sling is adjustable using a series of zips on the back which are then hidden by a protective cover. The edge which goes under your baby’s legs is padded to be more comfortable for them.

The sling is also reversible – ours has a lovely blue and white floral pattern on one side and the other side is plain black. It is handmade in the USA from 100% cotton. And here’s the best bit – for every sling they sell Rockin’ Baby will donate one to a mother in Kenya or Haiti, and educate her on the importance it holds in her baby’s life.

So how did we find the pouch? I have to admit on the first use I found it a bit tricky to get the fit right. Because you have to adjust the pouch to the right size using the zips before you put it on, if it’s not right once you put the baby in you have to take him out again, change the zips, put the baby back in…and repeat until you get it right. I had to have a couple of goes before I got the right combination of zips and Gabe was getting a bit fed up with me by the end!

However, you only really need to do this once, unless someone else is going to be using the sling. And even then, as long as you remember which zip setting you used it’s quick to change it again. So once you’ve got the right setting it’s quick to pop the Rockin’ Baby pouch over your shoulder and chuck the baby in. [I promise no babies were actually chucked anywhere for the purposes of this review].

I found the Rockin’ Baby pouch reasonably comfortable for short periods and the lack of adjustment means it’s great for those times when you’re just popping into a shop and don’t want to faff about with the buggy, or for me, when I’m dropping Toby off at nursery and having both hands free makes it a lot easier. I’ve also used the pouch at home when Gabe has been in a particularly clingy mood and I’ve needed to get Toby’s lunch ready or something.

However, the same features which make it great for short periods and quick up and downs, also meant that I didn’t find the Rockin’ Baby pouch particularly comfortable when wearing it for extended periods and I don’t think Gabe does either. I did use it when we visited a local farm and Gabe was in the pouch for about half an hour but I think that would be about our limit.

I think most people who babywear regularly have different slings for different jobs though anyway – for a long day out I would always go for my buckle carrier, but for those times when you just need your hands free for fifteen minutes then a pouch or ring sling is a great option.

And it’s so easy to use that even Daddy managed it!

**Disclosure: I was sent the featured products in return for this review. All opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links.