I received this item and monetary compensation in exchange for my review. All opinions remain my own.
Before I became the #TryAllTheBabyGear blogger that I am today, we went to a resort in Mexico with a 6-month-old Cub. I didn’t even know that there was such a thing as a baby carrier for the water, but boy do I wish I had! Here we are, in 2013, about as far into the pool as we ever got:
Our hotel room only had a large shower stall, so it was awkward to bathe Cub. The best beach for swimming was a decent trek over marsh and sand, and my buckle carrier got soaked every time we made the journey. If I had a DeLorean, I’d go back to that blissful vacation and pack my ByKay AQUACarrier.
The AQUACarrier is a wrap-style carrier made of a fine gauge knit, 100% polyester fabric. It absorbs very little water, wicks away moisture and sweat, offers over 90% UV protection and dries quickly. It can be used, provided you are both comfortable, from newborn to toddler. The current safety rating is for children up to 20 lbs.
Sadly, there is no vacation down south anywhere on the horizon, and big brother’s loathing of pools means I haven’t brought his sister to the pool yet since I can’t exactly just leave him alone in the observation area. I’m looking forward to the water park this summer and to hitting the pool when Papa Wolf is free to wrangle his water-averse son while I splash with Little Miss Cub.
It’s been unseasonably hot in Calgary (last week we hit 28•C), so I at least got to pretend we were going to the beach and try out our AQUACarrier. It was easy to put on (even if it’s your first time with a wrap) and very comfortable for the both of us.
I figured I would at least give it a try in the shower. Don’t get me wrong: I’m not so enamoured of my children that I feel I cannot even be without them in the shower. However, at a public pool, in a hotel without a bathtub or once in a while for fun, it’s handy to be able to wear Little Miss in the bathroom. I wasn’t sure if she’d like it, but her wide grin and giggles while she watched me wash my hair and then hers was proof she loved shower time with Mommy!
ByKay also makes an AQUASling in the same material.
I chose to go with the AQUACarrier over the sling because I am somewhat sling-challenged, and because I prefer a two-shoulder carry. That said, there are advantages and disadvantages to both styles, so it will depend on your particular preferences when choosing the wrap or the sling for your aquatic adventures.
Shop & Connect
ByKay is based in the Netherlands, founded by mother of four, Kay Poeler, ten years ago. They don’t just make water carriers! They make a variety of structured carriers, slings, wraps and mei tais.
Maman Loup sponsor, Lil’ Monkey Cheeks, carries a variety of ByKay Carriers. Find out more about the brand and locate a retailer near you by visiting their Canadian distributor, PEC Canada.
The AQUASling & AQUACarrier are available at my sponsors, Lil’ Monkey Cheeks and Gentle Nest! (shipping to the US & Canada).
KD says
My baby and I would take my preschooler to the pool!
Steph I says
I would wear her this summer in my parents’ backyard pool!
Gloria says
I would wear my baby on a similar trip that we’re planning to Mexico!
Jeannine cymbalisty says
With Baby girl arriving soon, we’ll have all summer to wear at the beach, the lake and likely our small pool In the backyard! It would also be ideal if we go fishing! I won’t have to worry about wrecking our other carriers ?
Smistecki says
I would wear my new little squish out at the lake – hoping for another little fish that loves the water!
Carine says
We are hoping to go to Cuba for Christmas, it would be perfect for our little guy! 🙂
Chelsea Janelle says
I wold use it in my parents pool or if we go on a beach vacation
Alanna says
I would wear my little guy when we go camping at the lake.
Cara Inglis says
I’d love to use this at our community splash pad!
Jennifer Muir says
I would use this in Iceland! (And hopefully somewhere tropical!).
Barbara says
I’d use the aqua carrier and use it in the pool!
Melissa P says
I would take my baby and toddler to the wave pool!
Ashley morel says
To the beach with my toddler and family.
Heidi says
I’d wear my youngest when I take her two older sisters to the pool.
Shannon says
I would wear my baby in the pool and at the beach on our trip to Colombia in June.
Danielle Petryshyn says
I would use it for going to the beach!
Esther Pelletier says
I would wear it at the pool, splash pad, and lake/beach!
Jennifer S says
I’d wear my daughter while swimming as she sometimes gets scared 🙂
MelindaJ says
Cuba! I’d babywear in Cuba in the ocean ???
Viv Sluys says
My baby is child #4 on our family so we go to the pool and lake a lot! I would love to have my hands free to help my other daughters with swimming while still keeping my little baby with me!
kathy downey says
I would wear my baby at the Beach !
Jon T says
Hopefully we would wear baby to Cuba this Fall!
Sabrina D'Arcy says
I would use it at the pool and hopefully at the beach.
Tara says
Grammy is taking us on vacation in September, and our aunt has a pool that we would love to visit this summer, and wearing baby boy sounds like a safe solution!
Lisa P says
We would wear baby in our in-ground pool!
Larissa Macklem says
I would wear my 16 month old at beautiful Okanagan Lake BC this summer, and at the splash park, and at friends’ pools, and at the ocean on the coast when we go on vacation and to visit Aunty and Grandma & Grandpa!!
Melanie Morin says
I would wear my baby at the beach and at the pool in my apartment complex
Monica Miller says
Meemaw and Papa just bought a cottage on the lake! So I would wear Huckleberry in the lake…all summer long!
Holly MacRitchie says
I live very close to Lake Huron, so I would take it to the beach to swim with my little one!
Sunnie says
Id take my little man to the pool.
Anne-Marie says
I would wear my baby in my Mother-Baby aquafitness class!
wendy browne says
My apartment overlooks the pool and I have been wanting to take my baby in it.
Janice says
I would wear baby in the shower!
Sabrina Hansne says
I would take my squish to the pool, the spray parks, and outside with my preschooler during sprinkler time.
Sabrina Hansne says
Edit: I would use the carrier.
Linda Passerini says
I would choose the carrier 🙂
Doriana Hutton says
Having an aqua carrier would be so handy for showering!!! Also for trips to the splash pad 🙂
Kayla Lewis says
Her Auntie’s pool!
Maryhtc says
Going to my friends pool with my toddler and a trip to the beach this summer
Elishia says
I would love to take my daughter to the beach this summer, and the ring sling looks like it would be so easy!
Libby says
I would wear my baby in the shower. That sounds like fun.
Andrea L says
I would wear it to go to the waterpark!
Linda says
I would wear my baby in the lake in the summertime.
Rekha says
I’d love to wear her to a local splash park, and also on a tropical vacation next winter… already looking forward to it!
Sydney White says
I would wear baby girl at the beach and in the pool!
Susanne says
I would go wear her at the beach in Hawaii next time 🙂
Trisha Murphy says
I would most definitely wear it for a day at the lake/beach! Also to get her used to the water before starting swimming lessons this summer!
Shayleigh Bennest says
I would wear my little guy at the lake so I’d be better able to take my toddler in swimming
Breanna Rae (Nagy) says
I would wear babe EVERYWHERE! We are on Van Island so we are literally surrounded by multiple bodies of water at our fingertips – ocean beaches, lakes, rivers. I am a water lover and spend the majority of my summers in or near water..I was wondering how I’d manage this with a new babe, and it looks like a water sling or carrier will do just that!
kayla sheehan says
The beach, the pool and the shower on those days that my husband isnt home to help watch him, while i grab one.
Michelle Fraser says
We are going to Old Orchard, Maine this summer and would love to sit in the ocean with my little munchkin who will then be 10 months old.
Cheryll says
We just got back from Florida and this would have been ideal. I wish I had seen this post a month ago! This summer we would use it at the pool so I would have free hands to help the little man’s sister. Also likely in the shower because he does not like the bath and a carrier would be much safer!
Jen Houle says
My husband is doing Ironman Coeur D’Alene this summer and we have rented a VRBO on a lake. I will wear it there!
Megan says
In the shower 🙂
Eve Garner says
This would be perfect for taking baby to the spray park with his older sister so I can join the fun ! ?
Kyla says
I would love to be able to baby wear my little one at the beach this summer !
Crystal says
I would take my little one to the beach and the splash pad at our aquarium.
Natacha D says
I’d wear our newborn at the pool and beach. It’ll make it much easier to chase our toddler around!
Laarni Vasallo says
Planning a trip to Florida this summer, this would be perfect!
Carina Vause says
We have a few friends with babies that would love to use this while visiting us and using our pool
Allie cotterill says
In the shower 🙂
Mckenna Mitchell says
At our cottage, all summer long!
Diana C says
I need to try something like this, so I can take my toddler and my new babe to the pool!