“Upright” position (legs out)

This position is suitable for newborn babies and is very convenient even for very heavy children.

1. For this position you don’t need a pocket. Put on your sling open in front of you. Hold your baby in your arms on the opposite arm from the one where you have the rings high on your shoulder, as if you wanted to burp them.

2. Then pass their legs between the sling and your body (so they come out from the lower side). It will be easier if you put your hand under your sling and hold your baby from there. Then spread the fabric around your baby.

3. In order for your baby to come to the right height on your body when you lower them, you need to make sure your sling is adjusted to the right size beforehand.

Supporting the baby on your shoulder, tighten the tail of your sling. We are mainly interested in tightening the lower edge (so it rests behind the baby’s knees). So you should mainly pull the outer side of the tail.

4. If the rings have come down low in the previous step, hold them and turn your sling over your baby so that the rings go back up to your shoulder (perhaps even a little higher than the point where you’d like them to end up).

Stretch the fabric by pulling it up and down with your hands, so that the lower part reaches the baby’s knee joints and the upper part reaches high up to their shoulders.

5. Hold the lower part of the fabric under the baby’s knees and let the baby’s bottom lower slowly toward your belly.

As you “lower” your baby, make sure their legs are open like a little frog and that their knees are higher than their bottom.

6. Now you can pull the tail and stretch the fabric around your baby. To “tighten” the upper edge of the sling (behind the baby’s back) you need to pull the inner side of the tail. If you pull the other side, you’ll tighten the edge that is behind the baby’s knees.

Remember that for safety reasons the rings “lock” with the baby’s weight. So, while you pull the tail you must support the baby’s weight with your other hand.

7. Your baby will mostly rest their head against your chest, but the outer side should reach at least the baby’s nape and support it.

The baby must be close to you, resting against your body, so that their back doesn’t lean outward. The fabric must reach at least the knees, which must be bent and at least at the same height as the bottom (as, after all, all little babies fold them on their own).

8. You’re ready for walks (or for sleep)! In this position your baby can even fall asleep. It’s a position that favors babies with reflux who need to remain upright for a while after eating.

Starting from this position you can turn your baby to the side (over your hip – for babies who support their head well).

You should then start with the rings a little higher (on your shoulder) so that when you turn your sling they end up in the right spot. See instructions here.

You can also carry a newborn baby in this position, but only in front, not on the side (so that they have the proper support against your chest).

If your baby accepts it, you can lift the fabric up over their head. Otherwise, it’s enough for the nape to be supported.

You can also bring your baby slightly to the side, lower their position a bit (by loosening the fabric from the rings) and help them breastfeed from this position.

This is especially convenient for babies with gastroesophageal reflux, who are helped by eating in an “upright” position. However, the baby must support their head in order to be able to breastfeed this way.

See in the video below which points you should watch out for with a newborn baby in a cradle carry:

See detailed step-by-step instructions for this position with video and many more photos of babies in the upright position with legs out in a ring sling, on the babywearing blog, here

If you have already seen the videos with the instructions by following the link above, you can also see a video of the process, as an example (it lasts 24 seconds)!

You can see the same position in the video below as well, with a newborn baby (45 days old):

Note: Even though in the video I am in the 8th month of my pregnancy, notice how I make sure that the baby’s belly rests against mine, so that there is no distance between me and the baby! (This is something we can only do with a ring sling with an open tail, it doesn’t apply with a pouch, nor with slings in which the tail is sewn like a closed strip).

In this position the baby could stay for many hours a day, exactly as in our arms, and of course could sleep this way.

See in the video below, though, how easy the transfer is from the upright position to the lying-down/breastfeeding position:

Notice how comfortably and quickly I bring the baby into the position I want: I lower the head to the height I want, I raise the legs to the height I want. Every mom (and every baby) has their own preferences, especially for breastfeeding, depending on her habits (but also her body, breast size, etc.). The free adjustment of the sling into the right position, while the baby is already inside, is important! And again, this can only be done with a sling with an open tail and without padding on the edges.

New video with instructions for this position, with a baby who supports their head:

Read why this upright position is suitable for newborn babies, here.

If your baby already stands on their own (over 12 months old) and especially if they are large and it’s difficult for you to hold them on your shoulder, then you can try putting them in from below, as shown in this video (with Vasilis, at 22 months old):

Video: Big child in a cradle carry (2.64 MB)

back: Instructions with ring sling