Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Other subjects
Original poster

Help - how to dress baby in colder weather

38 replies

AussieSim · 21/10/2003 18:54

I am new to this hemisphere and my ds is 9mths. This morning it was 5 degrees and I had to go shopping before we both starved. I ended up dressing him in:

short-sleeve body (the new L/S ones I just bought were in the wash)
a T-Shirt
a jumper (not very thick)
a pair of tights (don't know correct term in english)
a pair of denim overalls (unlined/padded) - if they are lined/padded do you think I can skip the tights and just have socks to the knee?
a jacket (I just bought from Chicco that is made out of some special thermal material that I selected because it is not as thick as others I have seen but is supposed to be very warm)
a hat that covers the ears and looks very cosy

(I don't have any mittens for him yet, but have strong doubts that he would let me put them on or leave them on if I did have them).

In all this stuff he can barely move when I strap him into his car seat, which doesn't make him very happy. I also never know whether I should strip off the hat and/or jacket when the car warms up or when I get into the supermarket or not.

I have read somewhere that babies should wear one more layer than mum, but I am not confident that I am even a good judge of how much I should be wearing when it is cold. I spent the trip home trying to figure out how to minimise the number of times I need to leave the house in a week. Any advice on how to fight off transistion of season depression also welcome

OP posts:
LIZS · 21/10/2003 19:09

That lot sounds how I would dress dd on a normal autumn/winter day - but then I'm in Switzerland where it is a few degrees colder and snow is forecast in some of the hills in the next day or so! I think you may have one layer too many there at the moment, given that it will get colder still, and that by 9 months they don't really need "the one more than you". You may want to invest in a snow suit/all in one outer layer for later on or use a footmuff/blanket on pushchair. Keep the outer layer for outside otherwise he'll overheat and then not feel the benefit. Try to persist with mittens as have found to my cost that cold fingers make tempers, and thereby outings, very short indeed.

If you find a cure for SAD I'll be first in line please! Getting outside for a walk or play each day does help.

hth

LIZS · 21/10/2003 19:12

btw we had Australians as neighbours who arrived last December and their one year old didn't feel the cold half as much as our dd who was born here!

lucy123 · 21/10/2003 19:16

I know the problem.

Last winter I dressed dd in warmish clothes (vest, T shirt, tights - that is the English term! - cardie etc) but I would sometimes swap the jacket for a thick pram blanket so she could move a little bit. She used to get really grumpy in those all in one coat things.

As to the weather: the thing that really cheers me up is an open fire, or failing that, a nice electric fire to come home to. You can't do that in summer! (new house doesn't have an open fire - I'm working on alternatives as its getting colder fast here.)

BadHair · 21/10/2003 19:19

The all in one is definitely a good idea though don't spend a fortune on one as they get grown out of quickly.
By the sound of it you might have 1 layer too many (perhaps just ditch the T-shirt), and as long as he has a warm coat, hat and socks he's going to be pretty cosy.
In this weather my 12 mth DS2 goes out in a vest or short sleeved body, long sleeved T shirt or jumper, trousers, socks, shoes, hat with ear flaps and a coat, and has a cosy footmuff and blanket on the pushchair.
You must remember to take the hat and top layer off when in a heated car or supermarket as babies can get too hot in that environment. If nothing else it makes them scream blue murder all the way round Asda!
If it's any consolation, it really has been unusually cold today - I don't think we normally get this chilly until late November.

codswallop · 21/10/2003 19:19

MIne is 7 months and I would have put on normal clothes plus a hat gloves coat combo or a snow suit(have never had one but may well invest for ds3)

Plus a pram cosy toes and maybe a blanket

fisil · 21/10/2003 19:40

Ds (9mnths) did the 20 min. pushchair ride to nursery today in cord trousers, socks & shoes, short sleeved shirt, cardigan & fleecy anorak with hood. Generally it's indoor clothes plus cardi & anorak.

Seems a lot less than you, but doesn't mean that we're right - I keep wondering whether it's enough, and I was thinking of investing in some gloves. Also, in retrospect, a vest would've been a good thing too.

codswallop · 21/10/2003 19:41

LOl fisil - did this occur to you as he turned B;ue?!!

fisil · 21/10/2003 19:52

well, it matched his outfit

codswallop · 21/10/2003 19:53

stop it .. am sniggering Like a loon

ninja · 21/10/2003 20:02

I must be a bad mum - my dd wears less than me (tho' to be honest she is better padded iykwim!). I only put a cosy toes on my pushchair to stop other mums thinking I'm cruel - but she always seems alright. I guess what you're wearing is a good guide and then adjust for your particular child. I do alwyas carry a lightweight fleece blanket with me which has come in handy

Davros · 21/10/2003 20:43

Sounds like a little too much to me too, maybe one layer less but I don't believe in over-dressing babies and hate those pram suits where their arms stick out so they look like a corkscrew! Its usually coldest here (UK) in January and February so this is nothing. In fact, I think the weather at the moment is just gorgeous, my favourite time of year

motherinferior · 21/10/2003 21:08

I can't get the hang of cosy toeses - mine lurches about down to dd2's knees. I wrap her up in an all-in-one snowsuit over her indoor clothes (short-sleeved body, fleece, trousers, socks and slippers); realise from reading this that I should put a blanket on her as well. The fleece really is very warm (in fact dp worries about her overheating!) and she seems pretty toasty when she comes out. Going to move her into long-sleeved bodies soon, and buy her some fleecy trousers to wear when we're out.

Feel very guilty as I REALLY get cold myself.

codswallop · 21/10/2003 21:13

I would say they need more as theya re not moving around

Bron · 21/10/2003 21:25

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

ninja · 21/10/2003 21:29

KIddicare.com have a good cosytoes, parasol and bag set for 7.99 if you buy something else from the site (one of the extras) - and it's really secure (bent in the middle iyswim) - just in case that helps anyone

I took my dd out today in a velour all in one, sox and a fleece jacket (with a hood) - but I ended up undoing it as she seemed warm in the sun. Maybe she's a lot more padded than most

handlemecarefully · 22/10/2003 08:38

Its not really got all that cold yet.... My dd (15 months) has been wearing trousers, socks, no vest, a long sleeve t-shirt, a cardigan and light jacket to go out and seems just right. As its getting a wee bit chillier I will be swapping to tights under her trousers soon rather than socks to cut down on drafts. She'll switch to her winter weight coat when it gets a few degrees colder.

You kind of answered your own question when you mentioned one layer more than you. That's probably spot on. If you feel comfortable without a woolly hat, mittens and scarf piled on top then chances are so does your little boy.

And yes do take off coats etc in cars and centrally heated shops / supermarkets.

Have more confidence in your mothering skills - I'm sure you're doing just fine with your son!

CnR · 22/10/2003 08:51

My DD (18 months) seems to wear much less than any of this, btu she complains if she is too bundled up. I think DD takes after my dad as he doesn't feel the cold either.

When we went out on Monday DD had on:

vest
long sleved top
poncho
trousers
socks & boots
cosy toes

I did get her a hat and gloves whilst out though for our holiday next week and she wore them home.

She just hates having a big coat on, I think because ut impairs her movement. She never feels cold to touch anyway.

Bozza · 22/10/2003 09:06

I too find that my DS is a warm bod. He was born in winter and when he was young and we were off visiting family everyone wacked the heating up in deference to the baby and we'd end up stripping him to his vest (well, bodysuit).

motherinferior · 22/10/2003 09:27

Any recommendations on a really good warm snowsuit? I quite like the look of those polartec ones, but mightn't they get drafty?

Katherine · 22/10/2003 09:31

I always worry more about my lot overheating than being cold. Generally they wear the same as me - normal clothes then a cosy coat on top. If its really nippy then I make sure they have hats on as most heat is lost through the head.

Gloves or mittens is always a problem - worse than loosing socks! You can get little clips to fasten them to their sleeves so that even if they don't keep them on they don't get lost. I find that mittens are easier to get on but gloves stay on better.

I hate the snowsuits myself. They are a nightmare to get on and you end up with a babe who can't move. Also when you get in the car and it warms up they get grumpy cos they are hot. Same in hot shops. I prefer a snuggly fleece blanket which can be removed as things warm up. Cosy toes also seem like a great idea. snugglers make lovely fleece blankets for prams and buggies, and snugglytots make wonderful cosy toes for buggies and also for car seats. Made by mums so much cheaper than the shops but excellent quality.

motherinferior · 22/10/2003 09:51

THose are lovely, aren't they. I do shudder when I think of how lightly I took out dd1 (born in Feb. But she was in a sling, pressed up against my vast hot bosoms, and cried if we put anything warm on her!).

DP gets terribly worried the baby will overheat and keeps lecturing me on her fleeces - I did point out that he was at liberty to comb shops for affordable (aka cheap) zip tops for her age group

huppa · 22/10/2003 10:02

As you know I´m also in Germany and although it is alot colder here than in it was where I lived in England (London) I still think the Germans go a bit overboard with how many layers of clothing they put on in winter. Last winter after my dd was born quite a few people hinted she wasn´t wrapped up warmly enough. However the one day when I decided to take their advice I thought she´d developed a fever, but it was simply that she was too warm, so I went back to what I normally did.Like Katherine I tend to worry that my dd might overheat. I think you could safely leave the tights off - I can never face the battle of trying to get them on again after a nappy change. I´m sure with a fußsack (whatever that is in English) he´ll be warm enough.

motherinferior · 22/10/2003 10:04

I have to say I prefer snowsuits to cosytoeses; I think they keep the baby warmer. But then I have to trog quite a long way with babe in buggy.

Northerner · 22/10/2003 10:32

I'm looking for a nice snowsuit for ds (18 months) but they all seem to stop at 12 months. Can't find one any where. And gloves on string, no where has these.

wilbur · 22/10/2003 11:38

Northerner - re gloves on strings, dh works for Monsoon and they were not allowed to put string on their gloves due to safety regs in kids clothing (mad, eh?), but I do still see them occasionally and I have a fleecy snowsuit bought from Green Baby which came with mits on a string. Dd just pulls them off with her teeth though.

I also carry a blanket around just in case, but usually to avoid comments from people who think ds or dd are under dressed, I hate that. Still, showing my MIL a video of me taking ds outside to experience snow falling for the first time without him wearing a hat, was probably a mistake.