Like many people in the Washington, D.C. metro area, riding mass transit is a part of my life. Babywearing makes getting around on the train a lot easier for me.
I now use a baby carrier when I commute to and from daycare on Metrorail. Although I’d worn my daughter daily during maternity leave, I was embarrassed to use my carrier on the train when I went back to work. However, I didn’t last two full days on the train with the snap-n-go.
I spent Monday struggling through rush hour crowds and looking for working elevators. Tuesday morning I saw a father zip onto the escalator while wearing his baby in a soft structured carrier over his suit. He inspired me to use the wrap I had in my bag.
Tuesday evening, I wore my daughter home on the metro and I’ve left the stroller at home since then.
There are many benefits to using a carrier on the metro. I can get into a Metro car quickly and fit into tighter spaces. I can also focus on other things like reading or dealing with e-mails on my Blackberry, and know that my daughter is safe and close to me. I also get extra cuddles before daycare drop off. After a long day of being away from one another, my daughter and I get to reconnect on the ride home.
Riding the metro daily has made my daughter very sociable. Since she’s at an adult eye level, she makes lots of friends as she observes and “talks” to the interesting people around us. Riding the train around the same time every day, allows us to interact with other regulars along our route. If the commotion gets to be too much for her, she snuggles into me for a bit of peace. When she needs to, she takes a nap.
We had a couple weeks where we rode both Metrobus and Metrorail.
I was surprised to learn that strollers are supposed to be collapsed before the parent or caregiver boards the bus. I'm not sure how you could collapse a stroller while holding a baby in your arms.
In addition to riding the train during the week, we sometimes use it on the weekends to go into the city for events.
One weekend, my husband and learned one thing about riding the Metro with the snap-n-go: It comes in handy on the way back from Eastern Market when we’ve got bags of fresh produce and bottles of water to that we need to bring back home.
Posted by Cynthia
