How to know what to dress your baby in for bed

When Finn was born, it was the middle of winter and we were living in cold Canberra. As a new Mum I had no idea what to dress him in for bed to keep his little newborn body warm enough. He had his singlet and onsie on but I didn’t know whether to use wraps, sleeping bags, or blankets/sheets or a combination of these. Here’s some information on what sleepwear I’ve used for Finn the last 9 months. When considering a safe sleep environment for your baby I recommend following the advice of Red Nose, they have some great resources to help reduce the risk of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome).

The above picture isn’t what Finn slept in but it was too cute not to share! This was him at 2 weeks old in Daddy’s Army hat.

How do you know if your baby is a comfortable temperature?

Use two fingers and feel the top of his/her chest and back – they should be comfortably warm to touch. The more you do this the more you will get to know what is normal for your baby and you can adjust their bedding or sleepwear accordingly.

Don’t worry if baby’s hands, face, and feet feel cool – this is normal. If your baby is sweating or has a red face, remove some clothing. This may be necessary if your baby is unwell, in which case you should seek medical attention.

Newborn in winter

We decided to keep the heater on low overnight to keep the room at a steady temperature throughout the winter nights so we didn’t need to worry about changing layers throughout the night. It also meant that when I got up to breastfeed I wasn’t freezing my titties off 😉 haha. We would put him in a singlet and onsie with a cotton wrap and sheet and blanket on top. The blankets only came as high as his armpits and his feet touched the bottom of the cot to ensure he didn’t wriggle down and suffocate. We would also keep him sleeping on his back.

4-5 months – warm spring/summer

We stopped wrapping Finn at about 4-5 months as his startle reflex seemed to decrease and he didn’t need the wrap to help him stay asleep anymore. For about a month he slept with just blankets until he began to move around more and kick them off then wake up cold. So we tried a sleeping bag from a well-known brand with a light blanket over the top. This was great for when he wriggled around but they weren’t thick enough for winter and I wasn’t impressed with the quality.

8 months

Once he outgrew this and the weather began to become cooler again. I was contacted by an Australian business The Sleepy Company to try their 365 Sleep Bag 2.0. I’ve been using this the last month and I am convinced this is the coolest designed sleeping bag! Here’s why:

• It’s configurable so you can use it 365 days a year:
  • It comes with two bags a summer bag (designed for 22 degrees and above) and a autumn/spring bag which is recommended for 18-22 degrees.

• You can then zip both of these bags together and use it for winter on those nights below 18 degrees. When it gets really cold in Canberra we will still use a woolen blanket, especially if we don’t have the heater on overnight.

• You can address the overnight temperature drop in winter by adding the summer layer over the top of what your baby already has on.

• It covers more than one size
  • The underarms and arms can be extended so that you can use the sleeping bag over two standard size ranges.
• Removable sleeves
  • This can allows you to easily regulate body temperature without taking them out of the whole sleeping bag.

• Foldable hand mittens
  • To keep those little mits warm throughout the night.
• It is quilted beautifully with high quality 100% organic cotton

• This was something I felt other brands were missing. The padding in other’s I had used seemed thinner and wasn’t quilted into place as much, nor do they use organic cotton. Organic cotton is important to me because baby’s skin is susceptible to absorbing toxins because it is 5 times thinner than adult skin, so I like to reduce the risks where I can.

• Bell shape design to give the baby’s legs room to move around

• Easy nappy change with down ward zip

• It comes with a dressing guide

This helps put my mind at ease having a guide for how to dress Finn.

• Easier to pack for travel

This is far easier than blankets to pack if you are travelling with a baby.

Where to buy:

You can order the 365 Sleep Bag 2.0 here. All Australian orders get FREE Shipping & FREE Returns for 100 Days. 

This post was sponsored by 365 Sleep Bag 2.0. All thoughts and opinions are my own and were not influenced in any way. Thank you for supporting those that make Eat Pray Workout possible.

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