Babies love to be held.  Our little one, Reuben, has always liked being super close to us; he cuddle naps, he sleeps in our bed, and he loves being picked up and carried around, which I find myself doing a lot.  But now he’s 18 months old, Reuben’s a decent weight to lift – heavy, awkward and not great on my back.  There’s only so long you can go on trying to navigate around daily life one handed.

Although I’ve always had Reuben on my hip, I’ve never been much of a babywearer in the official sense.  Both Reuben’s Dad and I have worn him in fabric carriers occasionally but never got into the whole lifestyle like some of my friends did.  (Slings just looked like a massive faff though I quietly envied how easy they made popping a baby into a joey-like pouch looked.)  On the whole, I never had the confidence to wear one, and, being a bottle feeder, I relied a lot on the pram for carrying the weighty essentials.  But remember how I said Reuben fights the pushchair?  Well thankfully now Reuben’s a toddler we carry less and the backpack makes it much easier to go lighter.  And being able to forget the pram and just go as we are is as liberating as it gets for first time parents of one.

On the hunt for a new carrier, I wanted an uncomplicated design that was the simplest to put on myself.  The search brought us to Close (formerly Close Parent), whose urban styled Caboo DXgo really caught my eye.  Suitable for babies from around 6 months, the DXgo is a next stage soft carrier that can be worn to the front or back, offering a super light and comfortable fit for the wearer, and an ergonomic, T.I.C.K.S approved snug ride for the little one.

Soft and ultra breathable, the DXgo is a modern styled carrier that’s tough, super light and completely wearable.  Mesh inserts allow a comfortable and cool fit and it can be machine washed on a regular cool cycle.  (I’ve washed it several times already and it cleans up a treat.)

[ Close sent us the Caboo DXgo in Khaki / RRP £65.99 to review ]

A clever feature of the DXgo is its concealed pocket that the whole carrier can be folded up and tucked inside of, effectively putting itself in its own carry bag!  Super useful because you will want to put it away and keep it to hand without the need for carrying another little bag, which could get separated and lost (trust me on that one.)

Like any carrier, I was daunted when I first took it out of the box; there’s straps and buckles here, there and everywhere.  But it actually isn’t the least bit complicated at all.  It’s basically like wearing a backpack – two broad shoulder straps and a waist belt wrap around your body forming the body of the carrier that your child sits into.

The DXgo has really got me excited about babywearing.  I feel restricted with the pram but now I have the carrier I know I can quickly pop it on and get Reuben into it without any bother.  In fact, Reuben relishes being in the carrier.  He sees it as adventure time with Mummy and loves to take in the world on my level, not a few feet from the ground.  And when he’s seen enough he swiftly drops off to sleep.  That’s when I lift up the hood and clip it into place: with the breathable black mesh providing air circulation and an extended hood panel, it keeps him shaded and cool.

The DXgo is my favourite carrier to date and the amount I’m wearing it is testament to how much I rate it.  But I do have a niggle and it’s with babywearing on the whole – the undeniable backache when I’ve been carrying for a while.  It’s something I seem to experience with carriers regardless of style and who’s fitted it, that I’m unsure whether it’s just normal for carriers, unavoidable with heavy toddlers or if it’s an effect of my fibromyalgia. Does anyone else get this from baby carriers?  Is this the drawback of babywearing?  Or a trait of front carrying a heavy baby?

I’ve worn the DXgo as a back carrier since Reuben’s grown and he’s got a bit too heavy for front carrying, but I’m not sure he likes being carried this way as much.  He tries to look over my shoulder as if he feels ‘out of the loop’, and he ends up getting a bit upset so I don’t carry him for as long.

My experience with proper bra fit tells me the issue is support at the core (although I can not tighten the waist anymore without discomfort), as also like a bra, support shouldn’t be coming from the shoulders.  So this is interesting to me.  Interesting and a bit frustrating!  – Answers on the back of a postcard, please!

So the Caboo DXgo really does go everywhere with me right now.   The only teeny-tiny improvement?  I wish I had one of the new awesome colours it’s just been brought out in – in blue ink or steel grey they look more gorgeous than ever!  Get the Caboo DXgo in any of the three colours here.

Do you ‘babywear’?  Maybe you want to break free from the pushchair and explore baby carriers?  I’d love to hear what you look for in a carrier, and your tips wearing one.