Summer Must-Have: Amphiba Baby's Neptune Carrier

I'm so excited to tell you about an absolute must-have baby carrier that I wish I'd had with my first three kids and not just my fourth! Amphiba sent me a free Neptune baby carrier to try and to write about, and it totally exceeded my expectations. Here's why: 

I've been a babywearing mom since 2009 when my oldest was born, and I've found that having the right baby carrier can make a huge difference in being comfortable and safe anywhere from the hiking trails to a tea party. But I hadn't found a good solution for watery fun that didn't put an expensive baby carrier at risk of being ruined, not to mention that most fabrics are less strong, and therefore less secure for baby, when wet.

And that makes babywearing tough at pools and beaches, splash pads and waterparks, and other wet fun destinations. Luckily, Amphiba Baby has the solution!

The Neptune is such an asset to our summer fun and is definitely a must-have baby item. Here are my full thoughts after trying it out at the pool, at the lake, and in my own backyard:

Features of the Amphiba Neptune Baby Carrier

The Neptune Baby Carrier from Amphiba Baby is a baby carrier that isn't just okay after getting wet--it's designed to get wet and work well for all kinds of aquatic fun. Its basic structure is a soft structured carrier-basically a rectangular panel attached to the parent with a waist strap and two arm loops with a small front strap that holds those together. And the fabric is a neoprene and mesh blend that dries quickly and doesn't hold much water in.

Some of its fun features include:

• Stay Dry Pocket: the small pocket on the right-hand side if you're wearing it on your front is actually waterproof and zips closed securely. 

  

  left pocket is waterproof, right pocket is open, both are roomy!
• Back and Front Wearing: the Neptune works for both, but baby should always be facing in (which is honestly going to be way less hard on your back than forward facing in, regardless of what carrier you use.)
• Works in water and on land: the Neptune holds babies and toddlers securely both while wet and dry, and I found it comfy in both situations
• For babies 7-45lbs: this basically means that for either of my boys it would have worked from day 1, and for my girls it would have worked within a few weeks. So for most babies it would work long before mom was healed enough to be ready to actually go in the water! And my kindergartener has not yet hit that upper weight limit. I wouldn't want to carry her for very long because I am not that strong, but it's awesome to know that in an emergency, I safely could. 
• Machine washable: so awesome
• Shade hood: totally essential on sunny days! also works well as a nursing cover. 

Using the Neptune Baby Carrier in Water

My favorite thing about the Neptune Baby Carrier is that it is perfect for using in the water! We love swimming, and some of our favorite things to do in summer are to swim in the pool and to take a trip to the lake. Because the Neptune is designed to get wet and stay strong and safe while wet, we can confidently use it to carry our baby in both those situations and have our hands free for taking care of other kids or tossing a ball or spraying someone with a squirt toy.

I first tried the Neptune in a backyard swimming pool. We are lucky to have a relative who lives in town and has a fabulous new pool we can swim in anytime, but with four kids, it can be a challenge to make sure everyone is safe and gets the parent attention they crave. Putting the baby in the Neptune made such a huge difference in this! I felt super comfortable walking around the shallow end of the pool with my baby in this Neptune. The straps and waistband felt very comfortable and secure, including while very wet. The carrier recommends not going too deep, and that seems sensible to me as well. I went about waist deep in the pool and thigh deep in the lake, but always made sure my daughter was never submerged past her belly button. I'm pretty short, so I think she enjoyed going with my husband even further in without having to be deeper in herself! He found the carrier very comfortable also, and it was easy to adjust it to fit each of us comfortably when we handed it back and forth. 

Next, I really put the Neptune to the test by taking it with me on a weeklong vacation to a lake in north Minnesota. We went swimming and wading every day, sometimes in the resort pool and sometimes in the lake, and the Neptune held up awesome. By the end of the week, I started to just wear a swimsuit, rashguard dress, and the Neptune around all day with some Crocs so I was ready to be in and out of the water at a moment's notice. And the Neptune not only lived up to my expectations but went way beyond them.

I found it just as comfy at the mini golf course and pickleball court as in the water and felt like the shoulder straps and waistband provided a great distribution of weight that didn't result in an achy back (which is something I often struggle with in general.) I love the huge pocket in front-my phone in a waterproof bag with lanyard plus my waterproof camera and its floatie strap easily fit in at the same time, and my cabin key and some ice cream money easily fit in the waterproof pocket. 

One thing I was a little surprised about because it wasn't an advertised feature, but happy about, was that it did not really seem to retain odor! Our water shoes were pretty stinky when we got home, but the Neptune wasn't. I washed it anyway, but I thought that was pretty cool that it was still wearable in public after a whole week of very active, wet play including lots of smelly lake water. 

The only negatives I can think of are:

1) It doesn't dry super quick. I think it does dry more quickly than other SSCs would if equally wet, but it is worth noting that if you get it soaking wet in the morning and hang it on a towel bar in your bathroom, it's not going to be bone dry that afternoon. Megan from Amphiba let me know that it does dry more quickly outside, so I haven't had a chance to try it yet but I will soon and will update once I do!

2) I can't figure out how to roll up the shade hood when I don't want to use it. There's probably an easy solution to this that I'm just not understanding. So I wish that was more intuitive.

My daughter turned one in March 2023 and is about 22 pounds, and she seemed very comfortable. The carrier kept her well supported in a nice seated "M" position which is like the gold standard for babywearing positioning. 

Besides just wearing her around the lake and the pool and our other summer destinations, I also tried nursing in the Neptune and it worked just fine for that! The shade hood even worked pretty well as a makeshift nursing cover.  

In short, the Neptune baby carrier from Amphiba is an amazingly versatile and comfortable baby carrier that should be part of every parents' toolkit for pools, lakes, the beach, water parks, and anywhere else you want to keep babies or toddlers close to you and also potentially get wet!

For more information or to buy your own Neptune from Amphiba, you can use my affiliate link to visit the Amphiba website, AmphibaBaby.com (or head there on your own, no pressure!)

At time of posting this review the Neptune retails for $210 and comes in mauve purple and navy blue (navy blue is the official color name for the carrier I have, and I think it's such a pretty and vibrant blue!) You can also use my coupon code SIOUXLAND15 to get 15% off, which will save you like $30 if it's still that price when you buy! 

Amphiba Baby also sells matching doll carriers, which I know my girls would definitely love (making a note to myself to add that to the list of Christmas present ideas for them!) and breathable cotton baby blankets that would be so nice on a hot day on the shore. 

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