This gallery is our homemade photos of the Medela products in retail boxes, just so you can get a better look at them online before you buy. Follow the link to this other post for a gallery of the SpecialNeeds and sterile items.

Unofficial photos of Medela sterile / special needs products. These are the specialty items suitable for preemies and infants with physical issues that prevent breastfeeding or use of standard bottles, including cleft palate, downs syndrome, or neurological dysfunction.

These are just our amateurish photos, but they should be large enough to really check them out. Click to zoom in and read the print on these packages. These are all available for ordering online in our Medela section. We usually do overnight shipping or other express options on these products. If you are in the San Fransisco / Oakland / Walnut Creek area, these are also in stock at our store location. We are a Medela Certified Nursing Center and have the complete Medela catalog at our physical location.

Medela sterile SpecialNeeds Feeder

Medela Special Needs Feeder - back of package

Medela Specialneeds Feeder

Medela Soft Feeder

Medela SoftFeeder

Medela SoftFeeder

Medela Starter SNS

Medela Sterile Starter SNS system

Medela SNS supplemental Nursing System

SNS back view with fine print

Medela Full SNS system - back view

Medela Full SNS system - front view

All Medela Special Needs newborn feeding items are for sale at this link

Did you Tender Cargo was recently honored as a 2010 Medela Certified Nursing Center?
Come visit our physical location “The Nurture Center” for shopping and breastfeeding support. This year marks our Tenth Anniversary of helping local parents at this same location. Certified Nursing Centers have an especially large selection of Medela products, including breast pumps for sale and for rent,  pump accessories, and pump replacement parts.
We sell nursing bras by Medela and many other brands, including hard to find sizes like extra large cups or narrow band sizes, and we are happy to be your certified bra fitting experts! We have a trade-in program to take back old, broken breastpumps and give you credit to buy a new pump in style advances. We have an IBCLC lactation consultant on staff and offer various support groups and classes related to breastfeeding, such as “preparing to go back to work” or “transitioning to solid foods”

Driving here? The Center is less than 5 minutes from freeway 680 as it passes through Walnut Creek. We are 15 minutes from most of Berkeley and Oakland, come on highway 24 through the Caldecott Tunnel. The Nurture Center is at the Central Lafayette exit.  Our next door neighbors are Wine Theives and Jack in the Box. suit yourself! We are open 7 days a week so if you ever have an emergency where your power adapter dies or your puppy chewed up the pump tubes or maybe you lost your car lighter power cord or some  little valves and membranes, just come right over, we always keep those items in good supply. Of course we do ship nationwide, including express overnight shipments but really, if you’re in the California Bay Area, come to the local store and get your Medela parts even faster! Besides, there is a lot of great baby gear to browse while you’re here, and we have a cozy room to nurse and weigh your little one while you visit.

We know it is confusing that the TenderCargo.com store location uses a different name! See the official Medela.com link about our new status as a Certified Nursing Center, which shows it both ways. www.medelabreastfeedingus.com/for-expectant-mothers/certified-nursing-center-tender-cargo

Psst – sneak a look inside our store!

Visiting the San Fransisco Area? We’re open 7 days a week, click for the map.

These photos are from the front of the store, where the BumGenius diapers and Medela gear goes. We are a Medela Certified Nursing Center and pump rental station. And yes, we have Bumgenius 4.0, one-size organic elemental diapers, Flip, and Econobum diapers all for sale in-person at this location. simply handling the diapers should help you determine if you prefer snaps or velcro. Of course if you aren’t coming by, all the cloth diapers are all available online.

Did you notice? We slipped some Babyhawk brand  “Oh Snap” carriers into our baby carrier section!

The Babyhawk brand is a very respected little company in California, ran by the mom who founded it. They’ve been making mei tai carriers for years and they just launched the new Oh Snap. We were among the first to get it in store and currently there are  8 colors here for immediate shipment.  (Scroll down for UPDATED INFO)

The OhSnap fits babies from 15-45 pounds using either a front carry or backpack position.  It is comprable to a Babyhawk Mei Tai in its style and design, except there are no long straps to tie, and it offers good waistbelt support for carrying older children or for carrying a child for long time periods such as hiking or day trips. The adjustability is meant to fit a women’s size 0 to 22.  The carrier is not meant to be used with newborns, and no, there aren’t any snaps on it, just buckles.

Updated August 11 2010 – The Oh Snaps are getting popular! We now have them in 5 solid colors and 20 fabric prints. These are in-stock items, no waiting. The solid color carriers are black, espresso, steel, charcoal, and caramel.See photos of the fabric print choices below. the only one not pictured yet is the Apple viceroy. Remember, if you have a small baby, the regular Babyhawk is right for you, the Oh Snap is only for older babies, like one year olds and toddlers. you can begin using it with a baby who is sitting up and weighs 15 pounds, but really the carrier design is optimized more for a larger baby than that. We do have one OhSnap baby carrier available to try out in our physical store, but the rest of our supply is in the shipping location so it is better to order online. Click to shop the Babyhawk Oh Snap carriers

Beco Gemini – Left and the Beco Butterfly – Center  and Beco Gemini – Right

Color is Paige – Grey and Black

Notice the differences – the Gemini has the black area at top where they have snapped it down to baby’s shoulder level. If it were left up, the carrier body would look much taller, even above the baby’s head. The Gemini carrier has snaps also where the carrier body meets the adult’s waist belt.  In the left photo those are not snapped down, they are showing the carrier at full width. A smaller baby would want those snapped down so the legs wouldn’t need to be opened as wide. Also, a baby in a front carry but facing outward will need those snapped down for the right size leg openings while they face out (shown in the photo on the right). The Beco Butterfly (right) does not snap down at the top, nor does it snap in for adjustable width at baby’s legs. Instead, the Butterfly carrier has an internal seat for baby and the use of the infant insert accomplishes this same goal. However, it will not do a forward-facing position where baby’s back is touching the adult’s chest. With the butterfly, baby is always tummy-to-tummy if on your front, or tummy-to-back when baby is riding on your back.  The actual colored fabric panel doesn’t run as wide on the Gemini. Also the straps have a thinner or sleeker look to them, partly because they don’t need the extra buckles like the Butterfly straps do.  It doesn’t show in this photo, but the Butterfly straps go “backpack style” that is, they connect to their own side rather than crossing the back as an X. There is a shoulder clip ( or chest strap if you prefer calling it that). The Gemini straps are more shaped to cross like an X over your back when baby is carried on your chest. Many people find this more supportive and distributes the weight better.

Beco Gemini – Left and the Beco Butterfly – Right

Color is Metro Black. Position is Backpack Carry.
This can be done about age 6 months, when baby sits up on their own and has full head control. As you can see in the photos, the Gemini base is fully extended for full support under baby’s bottom. the Gemini top is snapped down so baby’s head is uncovered. The Butterfly in this photo is showing an older child, but both carriers are suitable for about the same age range, 7-35 pounds on the gemini and 7-45 pounds on the butterfly. In fact, the Butterfly can do a back position sooner than the Gemini, because the Butterfly internal seat offers more support to the baby’s position, allowing a safe, secure, and confident back carry at 4 months old.  The Butterfly carrier has more buckles and adjustments than the Gemini, or compared to the Ergo for instance. But it is this extra harness that most people appreciate so much in daily use, especially with new babies, because the carrier offers so much “help” in getting baby safe and snug. Most people put the carrier on themselves first and then lift baby in to position. However, the Butterfly also offers another way – lay the baby in the carrier first, check their position and buckles and then lift the whole ensemble to your chest (or your back). Many nervous parents prefer to do it this way, and only the Butterfly carrier can do it.  However, this same infant insert and internal harness for older babies does prevent a hip carry position.  To see the side (hip) position, look at the gemini below, the photo at the bottom left. Side carry positioning tends to be “a love it or hate it” issue. It’s the sort of thing that most people never even try, while other folks use every day.  If you have been wishing your older Beco could do a hip carry, you’ll love it with the Gemini.  But that said, most Gemini users will stick to the more common front and back positions for carrying baby around town.  Both  Beco carriers accommodate newborn babies without buying an extra insert or other accessory purchases.

Our most popular question so far is “when is the beco gemini coming out” or “when is the gemini carrier available”.  Folks, it is here NOW! There is no more waiting!   After that, people often ask which carrier is right for them.  We hope this blog post helped you. If not, call us to chat about your individual situation – we love to help! (877) 333-0697

Also, you might want to look over the Gemini user manual. The PDF is here

Currently the Beco Gemini comes in 3 prints and 2 solid colors.  The butterfly comes in the very same colors – plus 5 more prints. Priceing is $129 for Gemini and $139 for Butterfly. Free shipping is automatic within the USA. All Becos can be purchased here

Homemade photos here for beco butterfly carriers in Lauren, Argle, Panther, and Avery fabrics.  Click the images to enlarge. The Lauren is stunning – maybe not for everybody but it it goes with your style, you will love how it looks in person. All Beco carriers are in stock at this link. $139 for the Butterfly, $129 for the Gemini, US shipping is free.  We have one store location with baby carriers available to try on, as well as ordering online for anybody not in the local area.

We are getting many questions about the Beco Carrier availability. Here is the latest information (August 10 2010 update):

The original Beco Butterfly is retired and was replaced with version “Beco Butterfly 2” with some noteworthy design changes! We have 12 organic colors in stock – solid black and brown and the prints :  Argyle Deer, Aiden, Carnival, Lauren, Lucas, Paige, Natalie, and Panthers . The fall colors will sell out before long and no more will be made – this means Argyle, Carnival and Panthers. We only have a couple left in stock and Becos move fast, so we will run out on the fall/winter colors before long.   These ship free the same day or next day after you order them.  The Butterfly carrier is not being discontinued – the new Gemini is a quite different product and these are selling side-by-side. Neither model is a replacement for the other kind.

We have the new Beco Gemini carrier in stock now – Organic – colors are black, brown, Paige, Natalie, and Lucas. They’re in the same section as the Butte4fly, just scroll down to order the Gemini carriers. This is Beco’s new 4-position carrier, it does front, back, side, and forward-facing-outward. No infant insert, and price is $10 less than the Beco Butterfly. It is a quite different carrier, and the Butterfly is NOT discontinued. Call or email us if you want help figuring out which carrier would suit you best.

The Beco Gemini colors are :

The automatic free shipping is FedEx ground. There is a new map on our policies page for delivery speed with Fedex ground service. You may find you live close enough to get overnight or 2nd day service at the Ground price.

Everybody is curious about how the Beco fabric prints look close up and in the sunlight, so we blog these whenever we can. Check the sidebar for the “butterfly photos” section. Our homemade close-up outdoor shots of Isabella and Olivia are here. Extra images of Abby Sara and Natalie are here. Our shots of the discontinued Scooters Becos are here. We also took photos of Aubrey, Ethan, and Emma – especially useful because you can clearly see the words in the popular Emma print.  The current print Paige has extra photos here.  The Butterfly 2.0 blog thread on colors and stocking is here.

Many people ask about the sold out colors – we can confirm that the following colors are discontinued and not being made any more:

Duo organic owls in sand, sky blue, or rust orange.  Tyler, Lenka, Grace, Jacob, Sara, River, Hannah, Scooters, Anaya, Alison, Ethan, Abby, Avery.  That lovely photo above with the lady holding a coffee mug is wearing the Joshua print, a very small production run from 2008.   Tender Cargo Exclusive fabrics  – custom-made Abby, Mia, Audrey, Olivia and Emma.

We have a new batch of photos showing the positions for using a Pikkolo baby carrier with small babies and older babies. The Pikkolo is suitable for babies sized 8lbs to 40 pounds and is $129 at this link. Until fall colors come out, we will only have these in solid black, cafe au lait (dark brown) and the Avalon print. The optional support belt and weather covers are available.

This photo gallery shows the new Bumgenius 4.0 diapers, in all colors with natural light at our store location.
The new colors are Noodle, Sweet, and Bubble. The returning colors are shown individually and in the last photos they’re positioned with version 3.0 and 4.0 next to eachother to tell if there is any difference in the shade of the colors. This also allows a good show of the changes in the packaging style. The 4.0s are on hang tags where the version 3.0 diapers have the label wrapping around their middle. Also in all these example shots, the BG 4.0 are snaps and the 3.0s of course are velcro for contrast. The popular “old” colors made in both 4.0 and 3.0  are white, grasshopper, twilight, butternut, and blossom.  The newer colors are pale in comparison, they strike us as subtle shades of off-white or, if you prefer, very light green, very light yellow, and pale lavender.

We took these photos right when the version 4.0 shipment arrived. See the new Bubble, Noodle, and Sweet colors as well as the popular classic colors from the last version. These diapers are one-size-fits-all from newborn to potty training, and they come in snap or veclro closure. Clicks on the potos takes you to the shopping area and more photos of each color choice for the cloth diapers.

Bumgenius 4.0 case packs

1st Box Opened of our BumGenius 4 delivery

New BumGenius Colors on Store Display

BumGenius 4.0 colors on display