Spring and autumn weather is variable, so caregivers need to prepare before longer and shorter trips. The mornings are cold, but it can be warm during the day. It can rain, and the wind can blow – sometimes both at the same time.
Some are discouraged by the weather, since they don’t know how they should dress themselves and their baby. But how cool it is to walk together in the rain under one umbrella! You don’t have to worry about drying the pram, or about the mud and leaves getting in the apartment on the pram’s wheels, or hiding your baby behind waterproof foil which doesn’t even let the fresh air reach your baby. It’s possible to wear your baby in this weather, but a few handy ideas can be helpful.
Here is a collection of tricks and special accessory ideas from experienced moms.
Some are discouraged by the weather, since they don’t know how they should dress themselves and their baby. But how cool it is to walk together in the rain under one umbrella! You don’t have to worry about drying the pram, or about the mud and leaves getting in the apartment on the pram’s wheels, or hiding your baby behind waterproof foil which doesn’t even let the fresh air reach your baby. It’s possible to wear your baby in this weather, but a few handy ideas can be helpful.
Here is a collection of tricks and special accessory ideas from experienced moms.
The key: multiple-layered clothing
TDress your baby in comfortable, babywearing-compatible clothes! As pretty as a pair of jeans with buttons, buckles, and a thousand pockets can be, it may be uncomfortable when using a wrap. Better choose elastic cotton trousers with a jumper. Don’t dress your child in clothing (especially during babywearing) which can be uncomfortable and can harm her/his sensitive skin.
Cover properly the body parts sticking out of the carrier, because the baby’s heat balance is not the same as a grown-ups’! Their heads, necks, arms and legs can feel cold even when we don’t feel it. As adults we feel less cold, and even less so because of the extra warmth that comes with babywearing. A cap, scarf, legwarmers, soft shoes or a double layer of socks can provide decent protection.
TDress your baby in comfortable, babywearing-compatible clothes! As pretty as a pair of jeans with buttons, buckles, and a thousand pockets can be, it may be uncomfortable when using a wrap. Better choose elastic cotton trousers with a jumper. Don’t dress your child in clothing (especially during babywearing) which can be uncomfortable and can harm her/his sensitive skin.
Cover properly the body parts sticking out of the carrier, because the baby’s heat balance is not the same as a grown-ups’! Their heads, necks, arms and legs can feel cold even when we don’t feel it. As adults we feel less cold, and even less so because of the extra warmth that comes with babywearing. A cap, scarf, legwarmers, soft shoes or a double layer of socks can provide decent protection.
Dressing up separately
The seemingly easiest solution is if the caregiver and the carried baby are separately dressed for the weather. The advantage is that you don’t need any special clothes or preparation. It can work perfectly if we don’t count on significantly cold weather, and we don’t have to take off pieces of clothing on the go. The disadvantage is that when you are going into a building or shop you can get uncomfortably warm in a few minutes. Consider, too, that, as we are getting closer to winter, our clothes are getting thicker, and this way wrapping your baby in a wrap can be harder. And you lose the advantage of keeping your baby warm with your body’s heat. But it’s still a better option than a cold pram…
The seemingly easiest solution is if the caregiver and the carried baby are separately dressed for the weather. The advantage is that you don’t need any special clothes or preparation. It can work perfectly if we don’t count on significantly cold weather, and we don’t have to take off pieces of clothing on the go. The disadvantage is that when you are going into a building or shop you can get uncomfortably warm in a few minutes. Consider, too, that, as we are getting closer to winter, our clothes are getting thicker, and this way wrapping your baby in a wrap can be harder. And you lose the advantage of keeping your baby warm with your body’s heat. But it’s still a better option than a cold pram…
Dress up together!
Personally I prefer to use joint clothes during babywearing, so I especially recommend the use of a bigger-size poncho, coat, jumper, cardigan, or a special sleeveless top made for babywearing, if you’d like to cover your baby this way. It can be a professionally developed product, or an oversized piece of clothing.
A smart solution is to use an oversized cardigan or coat together (like your maternity coat). My experience is that this works perfectly during a front carry. When my children were quite little I wore them on my front, and we warmed each other; it was easy using a wrap, and we didn’t use much more space than when they were still in my womb. Even if we can’t find a suitable piece of clothing in our wardrobe and have to purchase one, it can be a good solution for an entire season and doesn’t cost much. The disadvantage is that we cannot use it for back carrying or with bigger children.
Personally I prefer to use joint clothes during babywearing, so I especially recommend the use of a bigger-size poncho, coat, jumper, cardigan, or a special sleeveless top made for babywearing, if you’d like to cover your baby this way. It can be a professionally developed product, or an oversized piece of clothing.
A smart solution is to use an oversized cardigan or coat together (like your maternity coat). My experience is that this works perfectly during a front carry. When my children were quite little I wore them on my front, and we warmed each other; it was easy using a wrap, and we didn’t use much more space than when they were still in my womb. Even if we can’t find a suitable piece of clothing in our wardrobe and have to purchase one, it can be a good solution for an entire season and doesn’t cost much. The disadvantage is that we cannot use it for back carrying or with bigger children.
A poncho made for babywearing covers the caregiver and the carried child too. This is a poncho which has not just one hole for the adult’s head, but also a smaller one for the carried child’s head. It can be easily home-made from a polar fleece or something similar. The disadvantage is that ponchos are open below, so it’s not the best choice in windy weather, and it doesn’t give enough warmth in really cold weather. When using a poncho, always pay attention to keeping the carried child’s legs warm (shoes, legwarmers)!
If you’d like something giving more coverage you should try a sleeveless top made especially for babywearing. This is a widely affordable piece of babywearing equipment. It’s a rectangular fabric which you can wrap around your upper body and zip up at your chest. It’s like a warm blanket which you can easily take on and off whenever needed. It takes up little space and can be used no matter where you wear your baby. However you have to pay attention to the body parts the sleeveless top doesn’t cover – the carried child’s shoulders and legs – and use legwarmers, shoes, a babywearing bolero, a jumper or coat to cover them, because these body parts stay uncovered if the carried child is bigger. The caregiver’s shoulder is uncovered as well, so she/he also needs a scarf or outerwear to keep her/himself warm.
The babywearing cover is a special accessory, which simply keeps the carried child warm. You can strap it around your body. It can made from thinner, thicker or even waterproof fabric. The disadvantage is that it doesn’t cover the person doing the carrying, so she/he needs her/his own coat or jumper.
The most special piece is the babywearing jumper and coat, which is a specially designed piece of clothing. You can purchase several types. It’s special design allows you to wear it during pregnancy, and use it for every form of babywearing. It’s a complicated design and needs some experience to create it, so that shows in this product’s price.
Extra advice for cozy walks
Slings don’t get on well with velcro, zips, or any sharp, pointy objects. When picking a bag or piece of clothing, be careful to avoid these surfaces, because they can damage – even tear – the wrap’s yarn. This can be a crucial weakness when a back-carried child’s cap slips or slides. If you don’t have really flexible arms it can be hard to put it back in place without damaging any weak points in the wrap. At first I also had difficulties with it because after a time my children took their caps from their head by themselves. Then I took the advice of the more experienced: ask for help from random people to put it back on their heads. Not a surprise they are ready to help you. Preferably ask the help of a woman who you think might be a mother herself, she surely knows what to do. But if you can’t find someone who meets this criteria, anyone can do it for you. If your child is mobile – which means she/he doesn’t spend the whole trip in the carrier – it’s worth dressing her/him up separately according to the weather, and choose for yourself some outerwear from the listing above which you can wear while your child explores the world on foot. When choosing an accessory, think about who’s going to carry the child. If it’s only you, the only criteria is your comfort and taste, but if there is an other person who wears her/him habitually, think about them, too, to make sure you can enjoy the autumn walks together.
Slings don’t get on well with velcro, zips, or any sharp, pointy objects. When picking a bag or piece of clothing, be careful to avoid these surfaces, because they can damage – even tear – the wrap’s yarn. This can be a crucial weakness when a back-carried child’s cap slips or slides. If you don’t have really flexible arms it can be hard to put it back in place without damaging any weak points in the wrap. At first I also had difficulties with it because after a time my children took their caps from their head by themselves. Then I took the advice of the more experienced: ask for help from random people to put it back on their heads. Not a surprise they are ready to help you. Preferably ask the help of a woman who you think might be a mother herself, she surely knows what to do. But if you can’t find someone who meets this criteria, anyone can do it for you. If your child is mobile – which means she/he doesn’t spend the whole trip in the carrier – it’s worth dressing her/him up separately according to the weather, and choose for yourself some outerwear from the listing above which you can wear while your child explores the world on foot. When choosing an accessory, think about who’s going to carry the child. If it’s only you, the only criteria is your comfort and taste, but if there is an other person who wears her/him habitually, think about them, too, to make sure you can enjoy the autumn walks together.
