Sleepers vs. Onesies during the Summer

seattlestef

I have about a million onesies for the babies and only a few sleepers. Since they'll be born in late May, do you think that they will be warm enough in a onesie and swaddled for bed time? It just seems like they would get so hot in a sleeper and then wrapped up tight. Also, their bedroom is on the 2nd floor and gets direct sunlight all day so its a warm room anyway.

Thanks ladies- I'm just trying to figure out if I should go buy some more sleepers for this summer or not....

pixelvixen

I always had Payton in sleepers, unless it was *extremely* hot out.  Babies generally like to sleep on the warmer side (both mine do at least).  Payton was a late summer baby and I used either thin cotton sleepers or NB gowns.  Those are handy because you don't have to worry about buttons or zippers.

tfarabians

I agree with Kim I always had Cruz in light cotton footed jammies or gowns. 

seattlestef

Ok here's another question to show how clueless I am  -

Do you swaddle over the gowns?

pixelvixen

You can always swaddle.  They'll let you know if they don't want to be wrapped up.  Ryan always screamed until he either pryed his arms free or we loosened up the blanket.

pearly1

Thanks for asking this Stef, I was wondering about the same thing. I was figuring onesies plus swaddling would be warm enough in the heat of the summer, especially since DS's room tends to get really warm.?

Seattle_JiLLn

At first, I think you'll want sleepers.  They don't regulate their heat well at first.  But then you can just see how it goes.  It depends on how hot it gets/stays in there at night.  Ben is a really hot sleeper, so I think we did onesies with a swaddle.

cmcmillan

For spring/summer we either had him in a footed sleeper or cotton bag sleeper.  Mason wasn't still being swaddled at this point, he was around 6 months old.  On the hot, hot nights in I remember him sleeping in his onsie only, but he was sharing a bed with us at my parents (we were between houses).

jwt6

I am sure she will be fine with onsies. You cuold always get some baby legs and just use those and some socks. They are awesome and you don't have to undress the LO for a diaper change.

RobynK

We kept the babies room at about 68 - 72 -- for the first few months (I think the first few) they slept in a onsie, sleeper or gown, and a swaddle.  Now for the most part they sleep in a onsie, sleeper & sleepsac.  Last night it was warmer in their room so it was just a onsie and sleepsac.

I think every baby is going to be different.  Having a hot room, or a hot baby is actually a SIDS risk.  I think you will likely start off with at least a sleeper/swaddle but eventually you will need to change things up.  If you feel the back of the baby's neck you can tell if they are really warm or not.    One thing to note -- if your baby's hands or cheeks are cold it's normal and does not indicate they are cold. 

keri1013

I think a onesie and swaddle will be fine. Remember their diaper also counts as a "layer." I am paranoid about overheating (like Robyn said, it increases SIDS risk) so a couple nights lately where it was warmer Max has been in just a onesie and swaddle. Like Jill said, when they're just born they do need a bit more help to stay warm, so you might want a few sleepers, especially since the weather in early summer can still be chilly. But for most of the summer I think onesies will be fine, you can always do socks also to help them stay warm.

pearly1

jwt6:

You cuold always get some baby legs and just use those and some socks. They are awesome and you don't have to undress the LO for a diaper change.

Good idea!?

Melanie Hooper

We're going to have to adopt a different sleep attire approach this time around.  Joey was born in southern VA in July so it was HOT.  We started with onesies and a swaddle but he didn't like to be swaddled so we switched to sleep gowns and socks.  He wasn't too cold or too hot.  Our second baby is due in September and I have  feeling that the onesies and sleep gowns we used with Joey aren't going to cut it.  I hear it's cool here at night and in the fall so I'm going to aim to buy a bunch of footed sleepers just to be sure they are warm enough (especially if the swaddle doesn't work). 

Seattle_JiLLn

Good point about feeling the hands.... I can always tell when Ben has a fever because his hands are warm.    And when they're little, their hands seems to be cold all the time.