HugaMonkey

I'm putting this oversized fleece jacket to good use. This is how I go out to get the mail every day... with kid in tow!
Below, you can see the carrier better. It's called the Over the Shoulder Baby Holder. Neat name, I must say, but as far as effectiveness goes... We got it when Trenton was little (and cranky). At the time, I just didn't know all the options for babywearing that were out there. This one is a ring-style sling, which means it can be adjusted to fit any body size (so Jim could wear it, too). But it is really thick and bulky, making it hard to just slip on or stuff into the diaper bag to take with me when I'm out. And there was always so much slack to deal with... annoying!
Of course we also have the Baby Bjorn (probably Jim's carrier of choice). And it does well. It really gives you the support you need to have both hands free. Ollie likes it so long as he is well awake. If he is cranky, he does NOT want to fall asleep upright. Plus, you are being suspended by your crotch... can't be too comfortable for long, right?
Thanks to Bridget, I'm now a subscriber to babysteals.com, a site that sends you a daily email with some sort of ridiculous bargain. Most of the stuff I already have some version of, or it is still too expensive... but the other day there was an offer for an organic baby sling by a company called HugaMonkey. Also, I had just been talking to a mom at the library about her sling and really wanted to look into getting a new one...
HugaMonkey slings are unique in that they have different sizes (I'm a small-- imagine that!) which allow for the baby to fall at your center of gravity (around your hip) and are wicked comfortable. I also really liked all the video clips that they have up on their site-- shows you exactly how you can put the baby in the sling. Oliver really likes the Kangaroo Carry and the Traditional Carry when he is tired. I'm looking forward to putting him on my hip and around to my back as he gets older. As with all slings, there comes a time when the kid is just too darned heavy... But for now, I was able to walk around Ocean Grove for an hour or so with him in it and didn't have much trouble.

That's right, folks, we took the sick kid out to Chocolate Lover's Weekend in Ocean Grove. The way I saw it, he had been in the house for two days (as had I) and fresh air could not harm him. The weather was in the low 40s so we brought blankets with us as well as several barf bags.
Check out the double stroller! It held up nicely through the sloshy snow-covered sidewalks but was just a wee bit too wide to fit into any doors. We ditched it outside the places we went in to. No biggie.

Okay, so below you can see Ollie in the new carrier. He loves being close to me, and I never feel like he is going to fall out.

Dude, how come no one clears the snow off of the boardwalk? We found it odd.

Yes, I did get my chocolate fix. We hung out at the Manchester Inn for most of the time, as they were serving free soup, apple crisp, coffee, cider, and all things chocolate. Highlights included chocolate covered strawberries, chocolate covered pretzles, and chocolate covered popcorn (although I swear it was cheese puffs). It was hard to eat around Trenton, as he was supposed to be eating only crackers and ginger ale... but we didn't stay long. Once we got home, the marathon nap started and he was back to his old self again after that.

Finally, here's a cute clip of Mommy being a silly gal and Ollie just eating it up... Celery! Crunchy!!!