# Carseat safe outerwear



## deditus (Feb 22, 2006)

With fall in the air, I anticipate that the questions regarding safe outerwear in carseats will be coming up often. It would be lovely if we could keep a list here to reference. I am thinking specific info here for people to reference, ie, from what store, brand, size range. I always have a hard time finding stuff.


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## BeckC (Nov 27, 2006)

This is a great idea. And anyone with a couple flece blankets and a sewing machine could make one.

http://www.carseatponcho.com/


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## Emma's_Mommy (Apr 28, 2006)

with my babies i always used one of those bunting things that cover the carseat, then just tucked a blanket around baby after i buckled her in.


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## BeckC (Nov 27, 2006)

Beware of buntings. If it goes around your child but not under her, you're all set.

This kind is safe: http://www.elitecarseats.com/Kiddopotamus-CozyUp.pro

This kind is not: http://www.toysrus.com/product/index...ductId=2967801

You don't ever want anythign to come between your child and the harness besides clothes and maybe a light fleece jacket.


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## paquerette (Oct 16, 2004)

Last year we got one of the Hanna Andersson microfiber jackets and that was thin yet warm. Not quite heavy enough for a regular winter coat here, but good enough for "back and forth to the car" trips without having to do the bundle/unbundle.


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## dahlsk (May 23, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *BeckC* 
This is a great idea. And anyone with a couple flece blankets and a sewing machine could make one.

http://www.carseatponcho.com/

Cool, as a cold weather mama, that's a great idea! Thanks for sharing.


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## Kessed (Nov 28, 2007)

I need to say this...

Those solutions are great for people who don't live where it actually gets cold.

Here it will be -20C for most of the winter with many weeks going down to -30C and probably a week or two at -40. We will have to leave the house at 7am every morning. That will be an hour or so before the sun starts to rise.

In temps that cold - kids need to be bundled fully before you leave the house. A fleece jacket will not cut it. We also live in a townhouse in a city with an idling bylaw. Technically it's illegal to have the car running for more than 2 minutes. So there is NO WAY to have the car warm up before we get to it. (The complex we live in has people who seem to enjoy calling in bylaw infractions). It takes a solid 5 minutes of driving before the car warms up enough to even thing about not having a real winter parka on.

If anyone has any workable solutions I would LOVE to hear them. Last year we used a full snow suit (with full face mack/hat combo).

snowsuit

The only solution we could come to was to put her in a fleece jacket - adjust the straps - and then squish her into those staps. We figured that way there would be minimal compaction.

http://imageshack.ushttp://img123.imageshack.us/img123/4408/075vw5.jpg - here's a pic (minus the face mask)


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## BeckC (Nov 27, 2006)

This wouldn't work with a snowsuit, but I think it would with a parka.

Before leaving the house put her jacket on backwards, as in zipping up the back. When when you get into the car you can unzip the back, and fasten the straps underneath the coat and then keep the coat on her backwards for the ride.

I don't know exactly how well that would work in practice, but it's worth a shot.


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## Kessed (Nov 28, 2007)

She's still small enough that she needs to be in a 1 piece.

Otherwise there are too many air gaps. And in temps where exposed skin can freeze in under 5 minutes I want her protected.


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## deditus (Feb 22, 2006)

Yeah Kessed, it doesn't get that cold where I live, but it does get down to -20F for a week or two at a time. I also can't warm up my car because we live in an apartment building. I used lots of layers last year and just avoided going out, but now my toddler really craves interaction with other kids so we will need to get out more and dh is working more so I'll need to do more errands with dd.
I think I will definitely be doing rice socks.


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## avivaelona (Jun 24, 2005)

Kessed I hear you I had the same problem. I adjusted the straps for DS without the snowsuit on and then wrestled him into those straps with the suit on...he didn't love it feeling so tight but he survived it. It helped that we found a pricey snowsuit on consignment, it was much thinner and warmer than the cheaper ones. This year he's not so little and the baby can be in a carseat cozy so I'm looking for better solutions for him. Im wondering if one of those car blankets that plugs into the lighter would help?


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## thepeach80 (Mar 16, 2004)

Target and Wal-Mart both sell a 4-in-1jacket system. That's what the kids have. It has a fleece jacket inside that can be zipped out and then a heavier coat that can be worn outside over it later or you can wear the top layer alone etc. The kids really liked it and the fleece worked great in the car.


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## Kessed (Nov 28, 2007)

The 4 in 1s will work great when we don't need to be so worried about her legs. But she needs to have the same warmth on her legs as she does on her top. So a 1 piece is really the best solution.

I would LOVE to no go anywhere when it gets that cold. But I have to work - she has to go to daycare. And we'd go crazy staying inside for that long. Her daycare goes outside for 2 1 hour plays in the winter up to -20C. We don't have enough money to buy a good snowsuit for that and another one for driving. Especially with all the dressing/undressing in a freezing car that would happen.


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## crazylady (Mar 18, 2008)

OK so what are rice socks?
We just moved to Alaska from Oklahoma and I am terrified of the winter cold and my ds.


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## Smalls181 (May 12, 2006)

We have wool blankets that we bring out to the car.

Rice socks...? Is that where you fill the socks with rice, sew it up, and then microwave it? They stay really warm for a good while.


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## lnitti (Jun 14, 2004)

We use a warm blanket and carry the kiddos out wrapped in the blanket. open it long enough to buckle the car seat, then re-wrap the blanket. in addition to a thinner jacket/coat. We also had a 1 piece microfiber "snow suit" that was thin for dd1.

However, that only works for going in and out of houses, doesn't help when going in and out of a store, or the childrens museum, etc.


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## BetsyS (Nov 8, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Kessed* 
I need to say this...

Those solutions are great for people who don't live where it actually gets cold.


And, I always think that the recommendations are a bit of overkill. Where we live, a fleece jacket IS our winter coat, if we wear one. But, to be told that you have to take it off each and every time you get in the car seems a bit excessive. (I asked this question last year, and I was assured that to be very safe, I needed to take the coat off every time)

I think you have to do what is right for your climate.


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## chickabiddy (Jan 30, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *BetsyS* 
And, I always think that the recommendations are a bit of overkill. Where we live, a fleece jacket IS our winter coat, if we wear one. *But, to be told that you have to take it off each and every time you get in the car seems a bit excessive. (I asked this question last year, and I was assured that to be very safe, I needed to take the coat off every time)*

I think you have to do what is right for your climate.

A bit of a tangent -- I am a CPST. If you asked me, I would tell you that it is safest to take the jacket off each and every time. I feel obligated to tell parents about what is best practice. I also know, as a parent and as a tech, that not everybody is willing and able to follow best practice each and every time. Real life gets in the way. Parents make decisions. But I want to arm you with the information about what is safest and best practice so that you can make informed decisions.


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## BetsyS (Nov 8, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *chickabiddy* 
A bit of a tangent -- I am a CPST. If you asked me, I would tell you that it is safest to take the jacket off each and every time. I feel obligated to tell parents about what is best practice. I also know, as a parent and as a tech, that not everybody is willing and able to follow best practice each and every time. Real life gets in the way. Parents make decisions. But I want to arm you with the information about what is safest and best practice so that you can make informed decisions.

If this is the case---should we strip our children naked each time they get in the car? Cause I live in Georgia. And, we're a hot natured family. Normally, my children have on a sweatshirt OR I put them in a fleece vest. That's it. All winter long. Oh, and a hat.

They have no snowsuits, no other coats. Either a sweatshirt or a fleece vest. It's probably less than a few centimeters difference in fabric thickness than their summer t-shirts. So, that's why I think that it's probably okay.


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## ChristyMarie (May 31, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Kessed* 
I need to say this...

Those solutions are great for people who don't live where it actually gets cold.

Can you take a large blanket, put it in the dryer for a few minutes before leaving and wrap that over her once she's in the seat? It would stay warm until the car heater can start to take over.

Another option is to take a hot something (rice sock/pillow would work) and lay that in the carseat when you start the car. Leave it there for the allowable 2 min then she's getting into a warm carseat instead of a super cold one.

I always have a large, thick blanket to completely wrap around DS for going in and out. We call it a baby burrito.


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## thepeach80 (Mar 16, 2004)

A good test is to put baby in whatever it is, strap them in nice and tight and then take them out of the seat w/out loosening the straps. Then take the coat or whatever off and put them back in the seat. If the straps are tight enough you can't pinch any slack, then that is safe to wear in the seat. Or like another mom said, put baby in the seat like normal and then just force the coat to fit, lol.

I would never take my kids in the winter here w/out at least fleece on. They always wear their fleece coats in the car, have blankets when we have to work at night (I can't warm up the car then), and have their bigger coats to wear backwards on top of them if needed as well. Here's a thread that shows a great idea as well.
http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=29772


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## lindsayncadence (Mar 27, 2006)

One thing I have done in winter with Cadence when it is cold is put her coat on (unzipped) and kind of pull it through the straps (really hard to explain need to find a picture got the idea off carseat.org forums) and then buckle the coat still keeps her warm and does not get in the way of the straps. I can take a picture if anyone wants one but it is really hard to explain otherwise


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## grumpybear (Oct 5, 2006)

We also live in a place where weather conditions tend to get a little bit extreme during the winter.
WHat I do is I'd usually dress DS in a fleece jacket and a winter coat on top.
For the legs, he'd have Babylegs and jeans or thicker corduroy-type pants.
When we get in the vehicle, I'd take off the winter coat, strap him in and put either a fleece or wool blanket over him.

When he was younger and could fit in his bucket, I just put blankets over him and over the shell of the bucket (to protect his face from wind, snow, etc) when getting in and out of the car.


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## AngelBee (Sep 8, 2004)

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## TefferTWH (May 13, 2008)

I'm reading this with interest. We don't get as cold as PPs, but we do go out when it's 15 or 20 degrees. I always take my son's coat off in the car and either put it back on to leave the vehicle or bundle him in it and bolt for the door. With #2 on the way, I'm wondering how that's going to work because I generally leave the bucket seat in the car and wear the baby (although I did get one of those shower cap type fleece things for around the bucket). Hopefully I can teach my son how to put his coat on, so I can unclip him, let him dress in the middle aisle of the van while I sling baby and rebutton my coat, unload the stroller, zip him up and then get him loaded in the stroller. Whew, it makes me tired just thinking about it!

Perhaps a better idea would be to move to a warmer climate!


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## crazylady (Mar 18, 2008)

You make me tired just picturing it! We live in Alaska and it gets -50 here. Talk about needing to go somewhere warmer!!!


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## mbhf (Jan 8, 2005)

For those that live in really cold climates-
http://www.autoanything.com/garage-a...A1591A0A0.aspx

The coldest place I have ever lived was upstate NY. It was pretty cold during the winter, and we always just put the baby in a fleece jacket. I wrapped him in a blanket before leaving the house and put the blanket over him in the carseat, I usually wore a fleece jacket too and I was comfortable.


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## thepeach80 (Mar 16, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *crazylady* 
You make me tired just picturing it! We live in Alaska and it gets -50 here. Talk about needing to go somewhere warmer!!!

I remember those days! The coldest it got when I was up there was -60 and that was BEFORE wind chill. Makes me happy for Midwest weather even though I could still go warmer.


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