Dressing Newborn

[Everdreamer1990]

Ok so my OH went back to work on Tuesday & I've been a prisoner at home since then. My friend who was meant to be coming to see me today has bailed so I'm thinking of taking my 2 week old out for a walk.

I am so anxious about dressing her though for the weather. It is supposed to be about 7/8 degrees Celsius here today & I'll probably take her in her car seat on the buggy instead of the carry cot.

What would you recommend she wears? I'm paranoid about her being too hot or too cold & I can't take her anywhere in a car atm as I'm still in pain from my C-section.

If I did use her carry cot, should I put her moses basket mattress in it & cover her with blankets as apposed to the really thick carry cot sleeping bag thing?

I would go with short sleeved vest, long sleeved babygro, hat and blanket. She will be better in the carrycot than the car seat.

You can lie her on the blanket and wrap it over her like a loose swaddle if you are worried the carrycot will be too cold. Don’t put the mattress from the Moses basket in it.

Also, don’t worry - 7-8 degrees is not freezing cold the walk will do you both good and your DD will hopefully sleep well. Don’t overdo it & look after yourself!

I’d put her in a vest, babygro, a cardigan and then blankets/hat etc. Better in the carry cot than car seat at this age. It’s not bitterly cold, and she’ll be fine This anxious not know wtf you’re doing period does end by the way! It’ll get easier every time you go out.

Congrats!

Vest, grow, cardi, hat and blankets. Definitely the carry cot on its own. It's safer.

The others have got the clothing right; I just want to echo that this feelings goes away.

I remember being petrified of getting things wrong with a newborn.

I used to put what I thought was right on my dd. Take an extra layer. Give it a few mins outside and see how she was doing then add or take away a layer as needed.

Mine was a spring baby so I always thought it was easier to warm her up if we were a layer light in warm weather but easier to cool her down if we were a layer heavy in colder weather

Same temp here and for my newborn I’m planning vest and baby grow plus snow suit/pram suit that has a hood in the carry cot part of the pram.
If I was doing car seat I’d do a cardigan and thick blanket.
During the walk I plan (15 mins) I’ll check he isn’t too hot. I’m going on the advice of an extra layer compared to us plus take into consideration that he isn’t moving to keep warm like I am.

In this weather I dress my daughter in a short sleeved babygro, long sleeved sleep suit, snow suit, hat and blanket.

If I go into a cafe or shop I remove the blanket and unzip the snow suit, and if I'm there for a long time I might take her hat off, too.

I have a lie flat pram (is that what a carry cot is?) and a mattress from a moses basket. I used to constantly check if she was too warm or cold, but after a few weeks I realised she was just fine :)

It's scary taking a two week old out, but the more you do it the better it is, imo. Good luck - let us know how it goes!

Yeah what they all said. Bless you though. This has brought back all those feelings I had when ds was born and he’s 13 now. I used to genuinely wish that the weather forecast included details on what babies should be wearing outside

Taking a few blankets is easiest so you can monitor her temp and easily add/ remove layers as needed. Layer a baby blanket over a cellular/crocheted blanket (their body heat gets stored in the holes and keeps them warm).

If you can get a star wrap I recommend them as they are easy to take on and off.

Use the carry cot as newborns are not meant to be in car seats for very long and it's easier or overheat in them.

We went out for about 2 hours in the end which was lovely.

She had a short sleeve vest, baby grow, cardigan & hat on & had a blanket on top. She seemed warm enough & the hat came off whilst I nipped for a coffee.

Thanks for your help!
I use a GroSnug at night & that's made knowing how to dress her for bed much less stressful.

That’s brilliant @Everdreamer1990, I am pleased for you! Each time will be easier now and you’ll look back and smile at what you fretted about.

I’m a few weeks ahead of you - DS is five weeks old - and I was so nervous a couple of weeks ago on our first solo outing. But today I hopped on a busy bus with the pram to go and see my mum, and it was fine. I still feel awkward and nervous and worried, but I keep an eye on other people with prams to see what they’re doing/wearing/etc. I was also concerned about temperatures until I realised that DS will cry if something’s bothering him and he won’t be irrrperably damaged if he’s a bit hot or cold for a few minutes.

The grosnugs are good for wriggly babies! For the pram I would recommend a Morrck blanket, especially if you are going into a cafe or something as it’s easier to unwrap them a bit rather than take off a clothing layer.

Make sure you get out for a walk as often as possible, it’s so good for physical & mental health.