Sling use and babies' clothing

[Cj1981]

Probably a really stupid question, but I've just bought an Ergo carrier for my 5 w/o and I'm a bit unsure of what to dress him in when I'm 'wearing' him. I would usually put him in a snow/pramsuit if we were out and about and he was in the pram but will this be a bit warm considering the body heat I'll be giving off? I'm
a bit worried about overheating him. Any advice would be appreciated.

I carried dd2 a lot in a moby wrap and found it easier to use a big jacket round both of us. I left her in the cloths she wore indoors and the wrap ,plus my coat kept her warm.The only extra clothing I used was a hat. It is also easy to undo the coat if you go inside but dont want to take them out of the carrier when shopping etc.

count the sling as a layer of clothing. A pramsuit is too warm unless the weather is literally subzero.
If you are feeling very flush you can buy sling coats. I got a knitted panel that buttons onto my coat and covers the baby - a lady on facebook was selling them.

With an Ergo, I'd class it as a layer equivalent to a coat.

When I carry my 3 week old I wear my maternity coat. With a warmer Ergo-thickness sling I put him in normal indoor clothes too, and either do up my coat around him or leave it open depending on how cold it is.

l don't use a hat because his head is tucked under the fabric of the sling, but I would if his head were sticking out more, which it probably would be with an Ergo.

Babies are great for keeping the parent warm in this weather! :)

I used to just put DS in a vest, babygro, cardigan and hat with my coat over both of us - he was an October baby and perfectly snug :) A coat that fitted in pregnancy should be big enough, or I used to steal XP's work fleeces or wear a big man's size coat, but then I'm not too bothered what I look like.

He only tolerated the hat when outdoors so it was handy that he was so near me, I could just pull it on or off! Sometimes I found he was too hot in the cardigan, even - you get a feel for it, you can check their temp quickly by putting 2 fingers just under the back of their collar. If it's sweaty then they're too hot, if it feels cool then they're too cold.

When my kids were tiny I generally put them in a cardigan/ light wool coat in the Ergo and the wrapped my coat round them as best I could. As they got bigger and moved onto my back they wore their coat and if it was really cold I put leg warmers on them just to keep them a bit warmer.
There are baby wearing coats, if I knew about them for my first child I probably would have bought one, but didn't think I could justify the expense for my second one as I knew I wasn't having more children.

With the infant insert it's like a mini duvet,so I would add a hat and maybe an extra cardi/ light coat.

Once they are out of the insert it is just a matter of keeping little arms and legs warm the extra heat of the ergo outside and your body means unless it is seriously cold (below 0 generally I found) they are fine. I have a snowsuit but it's much too hot. I generally make sure she is wearing a baby gro or socks inside leggings to prevent the ankle gap and add a coat if she is well awake and wil want to be sticking her arms out a lot.

Are Ergos legs in or legs out?

If legs in, I used to just dress him normally, then put on a hat and wrap my coat around us both. If very cold then I'd tuck a blanket over the front of us first and tuck it in like a scarf around him.

If legs out, I always worry about their legs getting cold - once mine was big enough for legs out the mei tai I'd always make sure he was in long socks of his own, then some fluffy socks of mine over the top of everything (like babylegs.. but with feet.. so I guess socks) to keep him snuggly.

Ergos are legs out. The trouble with legs out is that the trousers always ride up. I put tights under my baby's trousers, or if it is too warm for that, I make sure he is wearing something such as trousers with feet, or a babygrow with feet.

Ahhh - legs out is a bit of a pain - balancing the limb temperature with the torso temperature.

My DS might have looked a bit silly wearing a big pair of fluffy, spotted, purple socks pulled up over his trousers like stockings (or like my dad when he forgot his bicycle clips), but it did stop the gap problem.

You can get babylegs from most online cloth nappy retailers. I used to pop ds in a a pair when he was in the sling.

I used cheap adult long socks with the toes cut off instead of expensive babylegs. :)

Hi. I have the moby. Pfb is 13 weeks so legs out now. We went out for a walk today with vest, tights, babygrow, cardigan and hat. She was snug as a bug. Tights were very cheap in aldi few weeks ago. Even if you have a ds wearing trousers they will just look like funky socks. Far cheaper than babylegs.

I used to put a babygrow undr dungarees - long sleeved t-shirt and socks all in one

Get one of these MAM sling covers - we had one for DS two winters ago when there was snow on the ground for six weeks and it was utterly, utterly brilliant. It covers them completely, legs and all so no bother about tights, legwarmers/covers etc, it's windproof, waterproof, fleece-lined, reversible and has pockets for your hands. I honestly can't recommend it highly enough for winter slinging.