I can’t stand the cold but I quickly found that I couldn’t stay cooped up inside with my baby all winter. If you’re going stir crazy and you’ve exhausted every episode of The Crown, The Good Place, or what have you, brace yourself, older siblings and your baby for the cold with some warm winter gear.
Like a cozy sleeping bag, this JJ Cole Bundleme Bunting Bag has a soft lining on the inside and zips up around your baby. I found it to be much more secure and warm than tucking a blanket around my baby, since the blanket always had a tendency to slip off when we went for a walk in the stroller.
Meant for the car seat (and some strollers), both the JJ Cole Carseat Cover and the Skip Hop Car Seat Coverslipover the car seat like a fitted sheet with a hole cut out. This means that the cover doesn’t interfere with the car seat straps (keeping the integrity of your car seat secure), but still allows you to zip up the blanket so your baby can stay snug and warm inside.
A clear stroller canopy — you’ll want to find the right size for your particular stroller — drapes over your stroller so that your child stays dry inside but can still see everything outside. My kids got a big kick out of sitting inside our stroller canopy since they could see the raindrops fall without actually getting wet. Plus, the canopy shelters them if the weather is especially blustery.
Babies in knit hats are adorable. The challenge is keeping the hats on their heads. Good thing there are so many whimsical, playful hats, you can pick up more than one, perhaps a more utilitarian, functional one as well as one of these cuties:
This cat hat even comes with a strap with a paw at the end.
The long floppy ears on thisknit hatwill turn your baby into a widdle bunny wabbit.
Your baby will be ready to take flight in this aviation hat with goggles and earmuffs.
A snow suit will protect your baby from head to toe, particularly older babies who are mobile and want to play outside. Personally, I’m a sucker for reversible clothes, like this Columbia Infant Powder Lite Reversible Bunting, which has color-blocking on one side and a more intricate pattern on the other — like two outfits in one.
I haven’t figured out how to keep mittens or gloves on my kids, so please chime in below with your secrets. These dinosaur mittens are fun, and they’re inexpensive enough that it won’t be too annoying if when you lose one.