Bear Backpack

I'm so glad you all like your back packs. I had a great one with my oldest and I remember it working very well. Then I bought the little puppy with my 2nd. She used it one time at Disneyland. Literally within 5 minutes of having it on she tried to run and got whipped back by the leash, fell over smacking her head on the curb. Fortunately she didn't bleed and she was fine but now she just uses it as a toy when she wants to pretend she is a puppy. I think the reason I like the one my older child had was because the leash part was more elasticy so she could run but not very fast and when we pulled on the leash it didn't jerk her towards us.

You know I always thought how awful it was to leash your kid...then when I was pregnant a news story came on about a woman walking in the mall with her 2 year old twins one holding each hand and a man ran up behind and snatched up one of her kids and ran off. I was tormented and scared silly from then on. We have a the little puppy backpack with the cute tail leash for my two year old. To me it didnt look as oppressive as say the blue first years strap harness. I dont use it to often cause I swear when I do I can feel people looking at me..but bottom line is..It's my child's safety over what lookey loo's think. I just put the end of the leash over my wrist and hold hands with my daughter, but in case she slips out and takes off, I know she aint going to far. That by far is the best reassurance out there. We all remember running off from our parents as kids and hiding in clothing racks and so forth..well bless my mother cause I would loose my mind if my daughter did that to me. So wear that backpack and feel safe with your child in your control.

Hi!

First, I have to say this is a matter of safety over what anyone else thinks, especially since you know your child better than anyone else! Second, we have used something on my son since he could walk. When we found the monkey backpack, it was the greatest. At first, I was aware of people looking, but after a while I didn't care. I knew my son would take off and imagining the consequences of that were FAR greater than worrying about what others think. When I stopped worrying about others, I started to notice more people actually smiled and commented on it than seemed to have any negative reactions. He loves the monkey on his back, and I have a totally different outlook on the "leashes" than I used to. I can't tell you how many times it not only prevented him from running off, but helped us catch him before taking an ugly spill!

I always balked at those too...and now we own one. I don't think its appropriate to use it everyday, but in situations with big crowds (Disneyland was when we bought ours) it can be a safety feature. Of course, we also have to make sure our toddlers know the rules (don't run off) but we all know sometimes they just don't listen.