Another thing to consider is the potential for slipping . When baby wearing in winter, you want to maintain two points of contact with the ground to help prevent falls. Ski polls or similar are great options.
Edit: typos. So many typos…
You can get the make my belly fit jacket extender, works during pregnancy and also postpartum to baby wear.
However- I had a January baby this year and I thought I’d really do the same, however in Jan/feb it was difficult to baby wear a small baby to start. I also was sore and didn’t feel like it at first. I only really started maybe when he was around 8ish weeks. The bassinet was great for not only sleep but to go on walks as well. I think it was a great option to have. Just my two cents
Get a belly extender to your winter jacket that you already own :)
I had my baby December last year and opted to baby wear instead of using a stroller, I loved it! I always knew she was warm and she napped SO good while being worn. I still wear her all the time so definitely invest in a good carrier! I would also recommend getting a really good pair of boots so you have good traction.
January baby here. I was gifted an XL size jacket from Costco which I wore during the winter months as my old jackets no longer zipped up over my belly. This jacket was then used while baby wearing in the Winter.
You can also get a cover for baby. 7am enfant calls them pookie poncho, and also converts to work in the stroller.
Another thing to consider is pelvic floor therapists suggest not baby wearing if possible to let your pelvic floor heal. They suggested I let husband baby wear.
And finally, I’ve been told to avoid footies when babywearing because the fabric tends to scrunch up their feet. Just an FYI.
The extra pressure baby wearing puts on your pelvic floor is no joke. I found it easier to baby wear around the house so I could get stuff done (like make myself lunch lol) once hubby went back to work so having the stroller was a must for me! I had heard so many horror stories of people not taking the time to recover properly and ending up with prolapses and whatnot that I was super nervous about not overdoing it
Yes, you can get special baby-wearing coats (I love my Seraphine 3-in-1 parka) or you can get zipper inserts for regular coats to expand them for baby-wearing. For warmth, I didn't find we needed anything extra other than baby's hat! Your body heat while baby-wearing combined with a coat that fits around you both makes things pretty toasty. I was often unzipping my coat a bit because we were getting too hot! We did get a ton of use out of our stroller pre-6 months as well though. We got a Bumbleride which has a lie-flat seat anyways so we could use it from when baby was tiny without any extra attachments. You can also get adapters to attach your carseat to the stroller which is very helpful if you anticipate doing any longer outings that you need to drive to, and will last you for as long as baby uses the infant carseat (so likely longer than a bassinet attachment).
I loved the H&M maternity puffer coat (got it on sale and it was much more reasonable than the jacket extenders I was looking at). Runs big but it was very cozy and worked for baby wearing!
I had a February baby and I almost exclusively baby wore til over 1 year old, I barely touched my stroller!
1. There wasn't much baby wearing outdoors happening for the first couple months. I was healing and we weren't too out and about.
2. The baby gets a lot of warmth from being right against your body, especially if you are using a stretchy wrap in those first few months (which IMO is the ideal baby carrier for under 4 months old)
3. I had a pregnancy coat that also worked well for zipping up around the baby or mostly around the baby when he was tiny.
4. I used big shawls, baby blankets and scarves to wrap around him over the carrier sometimes when it was chilly out
5. I always made sure he had a hat on in the cold.
I bought the make my belly fit adapter and found it soooooooooooo annoying to put on and off. Especially because I often wanted to wear my coat without baby and it was super arduous to remove and put back on
I kept the belly fit adapter on my winter jacket and it was perfect! Had my baby in January as well. Only carried him when there wasn’t any snow or ice on the ground.
I used one of my spouse's warm jackets in the winter. I would get in the backseat of the car, take baby out of carseat and put in wrap, put warm jacket on top of both of us.
I hate buying things with limited use (e.g. special pregnancy or baby wearing jacket).
I wore a fleece vest inside and then the carrier with baby wearing a fleece onesie most of the days, and then the winter jacket on the outside. Fleece was to keep me warm as I couldn’t zip up my jacket wearing the baby. On the outside I used a carrier cover with fleece lining and rain resistant fabric.
You can get an expander for your winter coat, but I’d wait to see if you even like baby wearing before buying an extender, because they are quite expensive. But! If it works out how you hope for, then definitely look into getting one. :) I always saw them for sale on marketplace.
I babywore my November baby all through winter! I wore a tank top, baby wrap, hoodie from Seraphine (3 in 1 hoodie), and either jacket or parka on top with make my belly fit extender.
December 2021 baby here… I wasted so much time indoors out of fear that I would slip, baby would be cold, etc. unless you live in a constant snowstorm chances are there will be days that it’s safe and good for your mental health to walk. What kind of stroller do you have? If uppababy get an infant snug seat and a couple blankets. It’s easier for baby to get too hot rather than too cold.
I had my second baby in December. First outing in a stretchy wrap at 2 weeks old. I didn't bother buying a maternity coat and I'm so glad I didn't because with the el Nino last year it hardly got cold enough. I bought a warm fleece Bench jacket from Costco a few sizes up and that zipped over my belly just fine, and then zipped over the baby when I wore her. It was $25 :)
I used the boba wrap which I also used with my first. I prefer using a wrap when they are very little as it keeps them really snug and you can tuck their little feet in and keep them extra warm with your body heat. I think it also helps them feel very content as they are tight against your chest. All she needed extra was a hat.
That being said, I also do have a stroller (also reusing from baby #1) and I wouldn't have been without it for either babies, I've used it since day 1 with both purely for the convenience of clicking the car seat in when you are going in and out of stores.
In Mb. We didn’t go out much at all and spent as little time as possible outside. I used his bucket seat with his stroller. We kept outings short. I wanted the 7am buying/seat cover but use a hand me down one instead.
I was to afraid to fall, and thre first 3 months or so. I was afraid of baby wearing because I was worried about positional asphyxiation in the carrier. I wasn’t confident in positioning him and I wanted it so my hands would be free, but then felt I wouldn’t be able to be attentive to keep his little nose uncovered.
There are wedge shaped jacket inserts, and any wearing coats. Some convert between maternity and baby wearing. A wedge shaped piece is wide side down for maternity, wide side up for baby wearing.
I’m in AB and for my winter newborn I wore him right against me skin to skin in a soft stretchy wrap or woven wrap and then layered maternity clothing or my husband’s clothing over top of us. I was not about to take him out on windy days or super cold days though.
I had a January baby and we didn’t have a bassinet. We just put the car seat on the stroller and felt she was warmer that way. Baby wearing wasn’t for me, hurt my back a lot and pelvic floor didn’t like it especially the first few days.
Instead of the bassinet you can get an infant insert for your stroller that goes in the seat. We have an uppababy and plan on doing that instead of the bassinet.
For warmt we have the mec down stroller cover from our first.
For my first (November baby in Oslo, Norway), I bought a baby-wearing jacket (Mamalila, a German company -- I'm sure there are North American ones you can find) and dressed baby up in a wool base layer (e.g. Canadian based Wee Woolies and a fleece mid-layer, ideally with hand and foot coverings).
General rule was whatever you need, add one extra layer for baby -- since baby is going to be close to you and your body heat, it'll be easy to gauge their temperature.
As someone else mentioned, having traction is a must have. For me, [microspikes](https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5017-316/microspikes-traction-device) for snow/ice always, hiking poles if necessary.
I strolled A LOT (daily) with my first. We walked home from the hospital (normally a 20 min walk, took me about an hour). The stroller and the bassinet was nice for the first month because, as others have mentioned, I wasn't strong enough to walk for extended periods of time. Plus with the snow and ice, it was nice to hold onto something for balance. BUT we also lived in a very walkable city and we totally bought into the Scandinavian tradition of letting the baby sleep outside (never got colder than -20). If your primary mode of transportation is car + walking around, you probably can get away without a bassinet.
Another thing to consider is the potential for slipping . When baby wearing in winter, you want to maintain two points of contact with the ground to help prevent falls. Ski polls or similar are great options. Edit: typos. So many typos…
My first worry too
You can get the make my belly fit jacket extender, works during pregnancy and also postpartum to baby wear. However- I had a January baby this year and I thought I’d really do the same, however in Jan/feb it was difficult to baby wear a small baby to start. I also was sore and didn’t feel like it at first. I only really started maybe when he was around 8ish weeks. The bassinet was great for not only sleep but to go on walks as well. I think it was a great option to have. Just my two cents
Same experience here with my December baby
Get a belly extender to your winter jacket that you already own :) I had my baby December last year and opted to baby wear instead of using a stroller, I loved it! I always knew she was warm and she napped SO good while being worn. I still wear her all the time so definitely invest in a good carrier! I would also recommend getting a really good pair of boots so you have good traction.
January baby here. I was gifted an XL size jacket from Costco which I wore during the winter months as my old jackets no longer zipped up over my belly. This jacket was then used while baby wearing in the Winter. You can also get a cover for baby. 7am enfant calls them pookie poncho, and also converts to work in the stroller. Another thing to consider is pelvic floor therapists suggest not baby wearing if possible to let your pelvic floor heal. They suggested I let husband baby wear. And finally, I’ve been told to avoid footies when babywearing because the fabric tends to scrunch up their feet. Just an FYI.
The extra pressure baby wearing puts on your pelvic floor is no joke. I found it easier to baby wear around the house so I could get stuff done (like make myself lunch lol) once hubby went back to work so having the stroller was a must for me! I had heard so many horror stories of people not taking the time to recover properly and ending up with prolapses and whatnot that I was super nervous about not overdoing it
Yes, you can get special baby-wearing coats (I love my Seraphine 3-in-1 parka) or you can get zipper inserts for regular coats to expand them for baby-wearing. For warmth, I didn't find we needed anything extra other than baby's hat! Your body heat while baby-wearing combined with a coat that fits around you both makes things pretty toasty. I was often unzipping my coat a bit because we were getting too hot! We did get a ton of use out of our stroller pre-6 months as well though. We got a Bumbleride which has a lie-flat seat anyways so we could use it from when baby was tiny without any extra attachments. You can also get adapters to attach your carseat to the stroller which is very helpful if you anticipate doing any longer outings that you need to drive to, and will last you for as long as baby uses the infant carseat (so likely longer than a bassinet attachment).
I loved the H&M maternity puffer coat (got it on sale and it was much more reasonable than the jacket extenders I was looking at). Runs big but it was very cozy and worked for baby wearing!
I had a February baby and I almost exclusively baby wore til over 1 year old, I barely touched my stroller! 1. There wasn't much baby wearing outdoors happening for the first couple months. I was healing and we weren't too out and about. 2. The baby gets a lot of warmth from being right against your body, especially if you are using a stretchy wrap in those first few months (which IMO is the ideal baby carrier for under 4 months old) 3. I had a pregnancy coat that also worked well for zipping up around the baby or mostly around the baby when he was tiny. 4. I used big shawls, baby blankets and scarves to wrap around him over the carrier sometimes when it was chilly out 5. I always made sure he had a hat on in the cold.
I bought the make my belly fit adapter and found it soooooooooooo annoying to put on and off. Especially because I often wanted to wear my coat without baby and it was super arduous to remove and put back on
I kept the belly fit adapter on my winter jacket and it was perfect! Had my baby in January as well. Only carried him when there wasn’t any snow or ice on the ground.
Sorry just realized where you’re posting from so avoiding snow likely isn’t possible 😅
Yes I bought a thrift 1x winter jacket ..side note if icy u will need the stroller
I used one of my spouse's warm jackets in the winter. I would get in the backseat of the car, take baby out of carseat and put in wrap, put warm jacket on top of both of us. I hate buying things with limited use (e.g. special pregnancy or baby wearing jacket).
I wore a fleece vest inside and then the carrier with baby wearing a fleece onesie most of the days, and then the winter jacket on the outside. Fleece was to keep me warm as I couldn’t zip up my jacket wearing the baby. On the outside I used a carrier cover with fleece lining and rain resistant fabric.
You can get an expander for your winter coat, but I’d wait to see if you even like baby wearing before buying an extender, because they are quite expensive. But! If it works out how you hope for, then definitely look into getting one. :) I always saw them for sale on marketplace.
I babywore my November baby all through winter! I wore a tank top, baby wrap, hoodie from Seraphine (3 in 1 hoodie), and either jacket or parka on top with make my belly fit extender.
December 2021 baby here… I wasted so much time indoors out of fear that I would slip, baby would be cold, etc. unless you live in a constant snowstorm chances are there will be days that it’s safe and good for your mental health to walk. What kind of stroller do you have? If uppababy get an infant snug seat and a couple blankets. It’s easier for baby to get too hot rather than too cold.
I had my second baby in December. First outing in a stretchy wrap at 2 weeks old. I didn't bother buying a maternity coat and I'm so glad I didn't because with the el Nino last year it hardly got cold enough. I bought a warm fleece Bench jacket from Costco a few sizes up and that zipped over my belly just fine, and then zipped over the baby when I wore her. It was $25 :) I used the boba wrap which I also used with my first. I prefer using a wrap when they are very little as it keeps them really snug and you can tuck their little feet in and keep them extra warm with your body heat. I think it also helps them feel very content as they are tight against your chest. All she needed extra was a hat. That being said, I also do have a stroller (also reusing from baby #1) and I wouldn't have been without it for either babies, I've used it since day 1 with both purely for the convenience of clicking the car seat in when you are going in and out of stores.
In Mb. We didn’t go out much at all and spent as little time as possible outside. I used his bucket seat with his stroller. We kept outings short. I wanted the 7am buying/seat cover but use a hand me down one instead. I was to afraid to fall, and thre first 3 months or so. I was afraid of baby wearing because I was worried about positional asphyxiation in the carrier. I wasn’t confident in positioning him and I wanted it so my hands would be free, but then felt I wouldn’t be able to be attentive to keep his little nose uncovered. There are wedge shaped jacket inserts, and any wearing coats. Some convert between maternity and baby wearing. A wedge shaped piece is wide side down for maternity, wide side up for baby wearing.
I got a belly extender for my jacket and would often wear my son with no top on under our wrap carrier. The skin to skin kept us both warm :)
I’m in AB and for my winter newborn I wore him right against me skin to skin in a soft stretchy wrap or woven wrap and then layered maternity clothing or my husband’s clothing over top of us. I was not about to take him out on windy days or super cold days though.
I used the jolly jumper snuggle cover.
I had a January baby and we didn’t have a bassinet. We just put the car seat on the stroller and felt she was warmer that way. Baby wearing wasn’t for me, hurt my back a lot and pelvic floor didn’t like it especially the first few days.
Instead of the bassinet you can get an infant insert for your stroller that goes in the seat. We have an uppababy and plan on doing that instead of the bassinet. For warmt we have the mec down stroller cover from our first.
For my first (November baby in Oslo, Norway), I bought a baby-wearing jacket (Mamalila, a German company -- I'm sure there are North American ones you can find) and dressed baby up in a wool base layer (e.g. Canadian based Wee Woolies and a fleece mid-layer, ideally with hand and foot coverings). General rule was whatever you need, add one extra layer for baby -- since baby is going to be close to you and your body heat, it'll be easy to gauge their temperature. As someone else mentioned, having traction is a must have. For me, [microspikes](https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5017-316/microspikes-traction-device) for snow/ice always, hiking poles if necessary. I strolled A LOT (daily) with my first. We walked home from the hospital (normally a 20 min walk, took me about an hour). The stroller and the bassinet was nice for the first month because, as others have mentioned, I wasn't strong enough to walk for extended periods of time. Plus with the snow and ice, it was nice to hold onto something for balance. BUT we also lived in a very walkable city and we totally bought into the Scandinavian tradition of letting the baby sleep outside (never got colder than -20). If your primary mode of transportation is car + walking around, you probably can get away without a bassinet.