Not sure where to post - Baby sleeping bag?

[TheHermitCrab]

Hello all!

New mum due in Jan, and conflicting info on the net is confusing me.

I have a couple of sleeping bags for my new baby (I think they are 2.5 tog) And I can't seem to find what the "normal" is for what they wear while sleeping in it! :/

I may sound like a dummy even asking this.

My thoughts were for Jan it would be a long sleeve sleepsuit? But I really haven't the foggiest. I mean I know what temperature the room should be, but not sure what the little un should be wearing.

Any help would be greatly appreciated :)

The last couple of nights dd2 has been in short sleeved vest, long sleeved baby gro and 2.5 tog sleeping bag. When it gets colder again she'll go into a long sleeve vest, long sleeved baby gro and will have a cellular blanket over the 2.5 tog sleeping bag. Hope that helps!

Few more layers than I suspected! thanks :)

Online it says a lot less, but it just didn't seem right to me :/ lol

I always needed an extra 'legs' than the Grobag website table suggested, so if it said long sleeved I'd go for a sleepsuit.

I use this. I think it is easy to put far too many layers on babies, my pfb in hindsight was boiling the whole time...

We always did long sleeve sleep suit with Gro bag over.

They are brilliant.

When they're newborns I found that they slept on or with me so no sleep bags needed. (Them lying peacefully in a cot didn't happen for a loooong time!)

But once they were in one, it was trial and error. I would slightly under dress - a 2.5 tog plus long sleeve sleep suit then add a vest if they didn't seem warm enough (popping a light blanket over them in the meantime). It also depends on the baby - ds loved being warm, dd didn't and got heat rash!

Hi, I used baby sleeping bags for my 4dc, they are great things.

A footless baby grow (with a vest underneath) should be fine unless the room is cold, then you could add a long sleeved tshirt as another layer. You can tell if they need another layer, if their hands are a bit cold...

In a warm room, just the sleeping bag and a longsleaved vest will be enough. Mothercare (and so on) sell bright printed vests that look lovely and far less boring than plain white :)

Hatch art by the gro company is a great place to start. Lots of people find their babies sleep better slightly warmer, so with one more layer than Gro suggests.

Be careful and sensible, and remember that baby hands are always cold and this is not an indicator of their comfort.

*that chart"

Thanks everyone! I was going to ask what are the best signs if my little un is too warm or too cold? One of you said hands then the other said not hands lol. Really fretting I'm going to freeze or over-heat the little un. Hard to determine in my house because I'm always cold and OH is always Hot haha.

I should get a thermometer for the room then you can use the grobag guidelines there should be one in the pack with the grobag.

I've seen the online one, They aren't official grobags that I've got.. just non-branded 2.5 tog ones. The grobag guidlines online just looked not enough to me.. but what would I know! :)

When tiny I reckon vest+sleepsuit+blanket fine as they'll prob come out of their basket quite a bit and mine needed to be changed twice in the night. From about
3 months he had sleepsuit and grobag - unless your house is very warm I'd put a vest on under the sleepsuit too.

Ps supermarkets do perfectly good cheaper grobags. There is also a strong second hand market. Brand new branded ones are £££!

it's 18 or 19 degrees in our room and dd sleeps in a sleepsuit plus vest plus sleeping bag. We were in a hotel last night and it was a little warmer so we ditched the vest. She's 4.5 months. I was also told by a midwife to feel her chest to gauge her temperature as hands are unreliable indicators. hers are always cold because she sucks on them!

Christelle I don't have a basket just a cot, hence why I got the sleeping bags, thought it was a bit easier than worrying about the sheets..etc. x

mrsmilkymoo checking the chest? I'll look into that, does seem like a better indicator as he hands will be out! :)

Yes check chest or back for warmth. You soon get the hang of it. My dd flushes immediately she is too hot so her cheeks are a great indicator.

Great, thank you! :)

We were taught to swaddle ours when they were newborn (don't know current guidelines tbh). Babies feel more secure wrapped up apparently. We probably didn't move on to grobags until they were around 2 months old, when they started to wriggle more and sleep through the nights.

And yes to the grobags chart and getting a thermometer for baby's room. Ours slept in a vest with a long sleeve babygrow.

I have 11mo DD in a vest (short sleeved) plus padded sleepsuit (extra warm), plus 2.5 tog sleeping bag. But her room is single glazed and she likes warmth.
Def get a room thermometer. Our baby monitor has an integral one.

Apols if I've misread, but you will still want sheets on the cot - plus a waterproof mattress protector - in case of accidents (puke, pooing through, etc). Two sets, one on, one spare, minimum.

Congrats!

As pps have said chest or back is the place that should be used to check they are warm enough - newborns hands are freezing if they are the right temp.

In winter I think best starting place is bodysuit/vest with a babygrow over it. Then adjust according to your baby.

GlaceCherries I've been told by midwives and other mums that it is perfectly fine to use a sleeping bag straight from the off :/

HumptyDumptyBumpty Yes I know I need sheets on the cot lol.. When I said I was clueless about baby temp I didn't mean about everything :)

WhyOWhyWouldYou Thank you I think that will be my starting point. :)

Sleeping bags fine for newborn as long as they are big enough and the bag can't work it's way up.
Hand on chest best for gauging baby's temp - use the back of your hand though as more accurate.

I used gro bags from about 3 months up to about 2.5. Would be on my must have list.

Glad someone else mentioned this - you must make sure the baby can't wriggle down into the sleeping bag. I know it sounds unlikely, but they have minimum weights and sizes for a reason.

And do get a room thermometer. The question "how many layers" means nothing without a temperature.