Summer baby attire

ball.and.chain · April 2014

Clearly I am full of questions. But you are all full of answers! So here goes another one.

What the heck does a summer baby wear home from the hospital?

My wife asked me the other day if we had an outfit for Mr. Baby to wear home, so off I went to the web to find something cute to stick on my registry. All of the "going home" outfits I found had long sleeves and long pants. And a hat. And I know I don't have to buy one of those, but it made me wonder if the manufacturers knew something I didn't. I know that Mr. Baby is currently living in a nice warm womb and that cooler temperatures outside my uterus will be a bit of a shock at first. But after a couple of days, it seems like he will probably be fairly well-acclimated? And in mid-late July, temperatures outside the hospital won't be all that much cooler than my uterus (or they could be. It's New England. Anything goes).

I was planning his summer wardrobe thusly:
Short-sleeve onesies and diapers
Short-sleeve tees and diapers
Maybe just diapers
Lightweight swaddle blankets for snoozing
The end.

The baby book I'm reading indicates that babies feel cold/heat pretty much the same way we do, and should be dressed accordingly. I don't want to overheat the poor guy! But now I'm worried I'm going to be the clueless FTM at the hospital who didn't know enough to bundle her newborn for the arctic temperatures of July.

Side question: I've also read that I should get him kimono-style or side-snap/side-tie shirts for his first few days because a) he may not like things pulled over his head and b) a one-piece will aggravate his gross cord stump. True? Not a big deal? Because if so, that complicates my search for the perfect going-home outfit...

2MamazInSeattle · April 2014

Good question @ball.and.chain! I have an 8/20 due date, and there are loads of summer babies coming so I'm anxious for the moms with babies outside the womb to chime in!

In typical Seattleite fashion, I figured on having layers. August is usually our hottest/nicest month (noting that we rarely surpass 80 degrees here) - so I figured on something short sleeve, maybe even a little sundress but also thought about a top and shorts or a skirt, for the gross cord stump issue. I figure on having a wee sweater, hat and socks available too for layering up. Sunglasses? Maybe.

Looking forward to this conversation!

KH826 · April 2014

I am planning to go with layers. The instructor for our birthing class said that it takes babies on average up to a week to be able to regulate and maintain their own body temp after birth. Obviously they are hanging out in 98.6 degree-ish conditions currently, and anything cooler could feel cold to them for the first couple of days. It likely won't be quite as warm yet when we bring out bundle home, but I am planning lightweight material but something with long sleeves and pants, a hat and a light blankie. We can always remove layers if she is hot, but also I am thinking we may have the AC on in the car etc. and I want her to be cozy. I think there is no one right answer to this question though, and like every grown up, every babies perception and tolerance of heat is prob different. Soooo... I am assuming she will make it known if she isn't comfy and we will adjust accordingly.

ball.and.chain · April 2014

CrazyAunt84 said:

ball.and.chain said:

a one-piece will aggravate his gross cord stump.

Oh my god this just made my day. Thank GOODNESS I'm not the only one totally grossed out by this!

Have you seen the SATC episode where Miranda's cat plays with Brady's stump after it falls off? That did me in.

JGY · April 2014

Hahahaha I think about how much time I spent trying to decide exactly what I wanted to bring Gabe home in, and all I can tell you now is that he had a flannel bunny suit on. No clue what he had on under that. This stressed out mama was in over her head when I brought him home!

Couple of thoughts for you:

1. I found that a good general rule of thumb for the first few months was to put baby in 1 additional layer than I would wear. If I had on a short sleeve top, baby would get long sleeve. If I had on long sleeve, baby would get a sweater.

2. So much depends on the temp of your house. Do you have a/c? If so, you might need more warm clothing that you think.

3. It's highly discouraged to use sunscreen on a baby younger than 12 months these days. So even on warm days, if you're going out and baby isn't protected from the sun, light fabric long sleeves and leg covering is a good idea.

4. The cord stump deal was really only an issue for like, 1 day. What I mean is, it was there longer than that, but was only wet/bloody/oozy for 1 day. Then it was just dry and didn't really cause any problems. I think many times people make a bigger deal of this than it is.

5. I registered for the side-snap tees and used them ZERO times. They were totally huge on my completely average newborn, and consequently were useless. If you're looking to keep things loose around the middle, but still keep the babes warm (and make things easy for yourself), I'd recommend these instead:

https://www.carters.com/carters-baby-baby-boy-sets-giftable-sets/VM_121B710.html?dwvar_VM__121B710_color=Navy#q=gown&prefn1=brand&prefv1=carters&start=24

You guys are giving my uterus spasms today. I'm longing for another tiny baby.

Jazibel · April 2014

I'm hopefully staying home and still concerned about the staying home outfits. I have both long and short sleeve clothes available. Our midwife told us a similar thing to @JGY's post, which is to put newborns in an "additional layer" so slightly warmer than what I'd be wearing, i.e. long sleeves if I'm wearing short sleeves. Also the note about sun exposure is great since for the first months we kept Kaden in mostly long sleeves and a hat with a brim when going out side. He has a good amount of melatonin so when he was a little older we started to let him build up his sun exposure, but friends with fairer children were (had to be) more protective.

So honestly I'd recommend a very light long sleeve outfit for the going home from the hospital, or a short sleeve with a long sleeve jacket, shirt, etc. and long pants.

The cord stump is sooooo gross.

Blech, I totally forgot about it

ugh. When Kaden still had his (with the metal thing in it), EV was changing him and the metal thing got caught and the stump came off. It was bleeding just a little and he was only a few days old so we called the Pediatrician & midwife and rushed him in to the doctors office the next day. They put some silvery stuff on it to "burn it sealed". He still has a discoloration on his belly button from it (though its not very noticeable).

You should have seen EV and I, crying, all upset and totally clueless :P. Why can't babies just come with belly buttons???

ATXmommas · April 2014

I loved the side snap tees (we actually just cut the bottoms off onsies for easy access to diaper). He practically lived in those for the first few weeks when the weather wasn't freezing cold. Make sure to get the ones with the sleeves that roll over the hand like a mitten.

Weather was so odd when LO was born. Was in the 70s when I went into hospital and in the 30s when we left. We had my parents grab the only fleece NB sized pjs we had for his trip home. We didn't buy something special. Cord wasn't an issue.

Wash a few things before he arrives, but not everything, because you will likely end up with way more 0-3 sizes than you need.

As for going home, I would probably out pants on him, but a short sleeve onsie with a blanket if needed should be fine.

ball.and.chain · April 2014

Ew, @Jazibel, you are not helping! Well, with the clothes, yes, stump, no. :P

Jazibel · April 2014

ball.and.chain said:

Ew, @Jazibel, you are not helping! Well, with the clothes, yes, stump, no. :P

I know I should have put a TMI warning on that post :P Blech, blech.

I'm going to look into what @ATXmommas just added and try to find outfits upstairs that won't touch the cord.
I'm so glad you brought this up now! I totally forgot....

I'm sure Mr. Baby will have the cutest and easiest to maintain stump ever (at least I hope this for you!!) ;-)

CageyMack · April 2014

Hi All!

Our baby was born in Hawaii, so we have a little bit of experience with warm weather. Our baby wore a onsie with little light pants and a light long-sleeve "jacket." It was all the same material as the onesie.

I agree that they may not get cold like some people think, but I do think they can get chilled faster. Plus, there is AC everywhere! Except our house.

So the baby was in a 70-ish hospital room and then outside was around 78 or so.

If you do a onesie or no pants (which we did a lot after he came home), just get a little cotton blanket that you can tuck around the baby. Easy on/off in the car, etc.

Good luck!

2brides · April 2014

The boys have a mid-May birthday, but it was fairly warm when they were born (low-mid 80s.) They went home in a long pants and a onesie with a jacket type of thing (similar to CageyMack!)

The day after we came home from the hospital, we ran to BRU to get preemie clothes (Gray was discharged home at 4lbs 6oz so we had nothing to fit him!) and stopped at Chipotle for lunch. I'll never forget sitting in that booth with Gray in a car seat next to me and glancing over and seeing him shivering from the a/c. It was so sad! He was wearing a one piece with long sleeves and long pants with a thin blanket draped over him (while I was in shorts and a t-shirt and was fine.) I had to bundle him and cudde him next to me to warm him up. So dress a bit more warmly than you think in the beginning and have blankets with you!

ball.and.chain · April 2014

This board is priceless. Thank you.

Currently leaning toward this: loose, cozy, cotton, long-sleeved, mitten cuffs, and I'm OBSESSED with the print:
https://www.amazon.com/Magnificent-Baby-Baby-Boys-Newborn-Nantucket/dp/B00HQC0L1S/ref=sr_1_1?s=baby-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1398386527&sr=1-1&keywords=magnificent+baby+nantucket

mwagner25 · April 2014

For the newborn stage... The mitten cuffs were awesome and I preferred snaps over zippers for one piece outfits and pajamas. Oliver hated being cold, so being able to unsnap just the bottom of the outfit for diaper changes rather than unzip the whole thing cut down on the screaming during diaper changes.

I would echo PP with dress baby in one more layer than what you are wearing.

As far as sunscreen is concerned, we use honest co on Oliver currently. With a newborn I would probably try and keep them covered or in the shade. But for me honest co was the only sunscreen I was comfortable putting on Oliver before he hits 1 year.

2brides · April 2014

That gown is adorable! One thing to think about - it is hard to buckle a baby into the car seat if they are in a gown! But gowns are AWESOME for middle of the night changing - we used them for months!

ball.and.chain · April 2014

@KH826 - That week guideline for temp adjustment is helpful.

@JGY - We don't have central A/C. We have several window units that we use to keep individual rooms cool (bedrooms) and a big one we bought last year during a heat wave that can (theoretically) cool our whole first floor. It's always on the warm side in our house in the summer though, and we tend to prefer A/C off and windows open if it's not unbearable.

@Jazibel - I laughed at your melatonin comment. I am what I like to call "fish belly white" and our donor is Danish/Irish. So yeah...I'm pretty much planning on the whitest baby alive. I registered for a SPF 50 sun hat for the poor kid.

I am not holding my breath as far as cute stumpage.

ball.and.chain · April 2014

2brides said:

That gown is adorable! One thing to think about - it is hard to buckle a baby into the car seat if they are in a gown! But gowns are AWESOME for middle of the night changing - we used them for months!

Hmmmm...good to know!

Jazibel · April 2014

@ball.and.chain - love the cute print!! Some of my favorite themes: nautical, sea turtles and whales - who can top that?

Our good friends also have a very, very fair daughter and she has the cutest wide brimmed hats, which worked wonders protecting her skin. Plus babies in hats are too cute. Awwww Mr. Baby is going to be so adorable - I can't wait to meet him (but I'll be patient, just a few more months).

Jazibel · April 2014

CrazyAunt84 said:

ball.and.chain said:

ball.and.chain said:

a one-piece will aggravate his gross cord stump.

Oh my god this just made my day. Thank GOODNESS I'm not the only one totally grossed out by this!

Have you seen the SATC episode where Miranda's cat plays with Brady's stump after it falls off? That did me in.

I have not seen that episode...that would be the icing on the cake for sure. ICK!

@Jazibel - I totally cringed for you and the messy stump tear off! You'd think the vomit and poop would be the gross parts of a baby. Nope. It's the cord stump. LOL!

Agreed!! Except that first meconium poop - that's pretty bad. I told EV that she gets that special honor this time ;-)

trisholio · April 2014

2brides :-) ) My sister is obsessed with clothes for her son and what he is going to wear home from the hospital. We keep joking he is going to do outfit changes on the way home from the hospital because she keeps buying him outfits that are so cute he just has to wear it home from the hospital, haha. The best part is that she lives less than 15 minutes from the hospital. She is having a June baby and I am having a September baby. I plan to have our little one in layers :-)

2brides · April 2014

LOl. No offense taken! It was a rookie mistake (first day home) and not realizing how chilly the a/c made places. It was so sad (must have been that I remember it vividly 8y later!) - but we learned our lesson!

mrl02 · April 2014

I love that gown and the print - but do agree that gowns can be hard in car seats. Outfits with legs tend to work better.

But, I will say that I highly recommend anything by Magnificent Baby - their magnets were so much easier than snaps. We had so many of their outfits from newborn til about 6-9 months.

ball.and.chain · April 2014

Hi @mrl02, nice to see you around again!

Thanks for the MB rec. Good to know. Their stuff is adorable so nice to know it's functional too!

I've switched my pick to something from them with the same print but LEGS to avoid the car seat harness issue. And layers, cause that's what everyone said (And that's how I dress). Now we'll see if someone wants to buy it off my registry or if I have to do it myself.

mrl02 · April 2014

Good call! You will love it. Congrats by the way - boys are the best. Yes, I hope to be back around a bit more. It's been a crazy year for us -moving, etc. But, I am hoping for more downtime online these days. Will be nice to catch up.

ball.and.chain · April 2014

mrl02 said:

Congrats by the way - boys are the best.

Thanks! We're super excited. I sent you a PM.

clairmeij · April 2014

Alarico came home in this, it was around 100 degrees, but with all the air conditioning he seemed comfy. I'm more about soft comfy baby clothes.

Oh...had to add that our dog ate my umbilical cord. Really gross.

ball.and.chain · April 2014

clairmeij said:

Oh...had to add that our dog ate my umbilical cord. Really gross.

Blech! Disgusting.

JGY · April 2014

Hey @stringy813, we've got tons of those in 18 month sizes. They're out there. I think they're Carters brand too, I can double check tonight.

ball.and.chain · April 2014

stringy813 said:

B&C, that gown is adorable and other than the car seat issue could be great - but my first thought was, woah its expensive, so you probably won't be getting more than 1 or 2, and a newborn will likely spit up or poop on it within a few hours

That is exactly why I put it on my registry in the hopes that one of my DINK friends will buy it!

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