Walking Wings

My baby is not walking yet, but I have several friends who have little ones that are on their way to walking (or should I say "creating havoc around the house"?). So, this will be a different type of review, since I have not actually tried the product out myself. I often get input from many others when I talk about different products, however, this time I left the reviewing up to my friends.

I found this pretty unique item, called Walking Wings (recommended for babies 9+ months), created by UpSpring Baby. I was not really sure about this product, but the more I read about the more intrigued I became. These walking wings are an assistant to your child when learning to walk. There are several benefits to the Walking Wings:

1. Your child experiences less falls
2. They can balance more naturally with both hands free
3. They will gain confidence and independance
4. You will avoid backpain
5. There is no tugging on your little one to keep them upright

How do these Walking Wings work? Well, they remind of the child "leash" you often see parents using for their toddlers when you are at a fair or the mall. The Walking Wings have a padded chest band that fits around your toddler's chest with velcro and a safety buckle. There are also shoulder straps that fit over your child. There are two adjustable, handle straps for the parent that extend from the top of the Walking Wings. Am I painting a good enough picture? Once the Walking Wings are securely on your little one, you can now provide extra support (by holding the handle straps-without bending over) while your child feels the freedom of walking on their own. If you are worried that your baby is too heavy for these Wings, don't worry, as long as the vest fits around your child's chest then you are good to go. "Straps hold up to 155 lbs and buckles hold up to 200 lbs. The seam strength testing comes in 10 times higher than the minimum weight requirement. The straps are connected to the vest inside and attached to a reinforced webbing material for additional fabric strength."

I had a couple friends try these out with their children, who are learning to walk. Both of them felt that the Walking Wings helped encourage their child to take their first steps without holding on to Mom. They felt that they were easy to put on, however, seemed to slip off over their child's head if the straps were not tight enough. They said it took a little getting used to, because all you want to do is grab your child's hands to help them! But after they got over their own fear of their little one taking a fall, they loved the Wings. Another great plus is that the Walking Wings are 100% cotton and machine washable! It also received the iParenting Media Award.

You can purchase the Walking Wings at Babies R Us for about $25! Check out the website, there is even a video to watch the Walking Wings in action.