Infant Winter Wear

Here's some great, in depth information on winter wear for infants. I found it on a network on facebook. It talks about everything you'd need to know. I recommend that all mom's and dad's read it. Even though it's super long! I promise it will be worth it!

Layers: This is the most important principle for enthusiasts of any age. The colder the weather, the more layers needed. Your baby will generally need more layers than you will, since he or she is not as active, therefore not producing as much heat. Start with one-piece undershirts and work your way outward. Synthetics like fleece are better than cotton, which is deadly when wet. For really cold days, be sure the outermost layer is wind- and waterproof or water-resistant. A snowsuit with a nylon shell and a heat-generating inner layer like fleece or wool (stack layers so that itchy wool won't irritate your baby's skin) should do the trick. (See discussion board regarding choosing a baby snowsuit.)

Heads: Humans lose more heat through their heads than anywhere else. This is especially true for babies, who have proportionately bigger heads than adults. This translates into hats, hats, and more hats. Don't be afraid to use more than one hat, and hats inside hoods. For infants, always keep heads and faces protected, but be sure they can breathe! Cozy-fitting fleece hats with earflaps protect the head, ears, and much of the neck. Velcro straps at the bottom of the hat are always a help keeping them on. This sort of hat makes a great combo with a hooded snowsuit. The fleece provides a warmth layer while the snowsuit helps keep out any wind.

Hands, feet, and legs: All of these extremities are places where the body loses heat fast. For babies, use snowsuits and fleece coveralls that have coverings instead of openings for the hands and feet. Under the one-piece, use extra mittens, socks, tights, or long underwear in cold weather. You'll typically want something wind- and waterproof as the outermost layer, and remember that whatever you use, little boots aren't always warm and often come off easily.

Little legs: You and older children may feel great in a warm jacket, but babies and toddlers need extra layers on their legs since they don't move at all, or, in the case of toddlers, they don't move very fast. Don't forget to have extra layers on their legs, such as snowsuits, fleece, or wind pants. As part of the inner layering thick leotards or tights can help keep legs warm. Periodically check for any places where air might get to your baby, such as the face or hand or shoe openings of coats and pants. Make sure skin stays covered on cold days. Also keep track of runny noses, which can add to cold-weather discomfort.

Avoid the glare: Remember to protect your baby's eyes. Glare can be especially bad on snow, so consider a pair of sunglasses or UV-protective goggles for your tot.

Front packs: Front packs provide more of your own body heat and natural protection to your child than do backpacks. When using a front pack, it's easier to keep a baby's face protected from the wind, since he's facing you. Another advantage to using front packs is that you can actually see your child. If you do use a backpack it will be helpful to have another person present to check that your child is happy and warm.

Testing: It can often be tough. You can't ask a baby, after all, and you can't always depend on signals. Crying is helpful, of course, but cold babies don't always cry. Your child may even be sleeping through the cold. Periodically test your baby's warmth by touching his nose, cheeks, or fingers. Of course, to thoroughly check your child you sometimes need to expose him to the elements. How can you safely check on your child's foot or fingers for warmth if they're already well bundled up? You have to be very quick with your testing and minimize exposure, particularly if it's really cold or windy.

Always stay in familiar territory: The last thing you want to do is get lost with your infant on a cold day. And if your baby is fussy, turn back. This isn't the time to tough things out.

Keep outings short: The more you venture out and test layers in various temperatures, the better sense you'll have of your baby's cold-weather needs.

At the end of each adventure, as you unbundle your child in indoors warmth, immediately test his hands and feet, particularly to see if he's been dry and warm. This is the test of whether your outing has been successful and will give you clues to what may be needed on your next winter trip.

Taking Outdoor Pictures

I'm currently taking an outdoor photography class. When I'm finished I will be posting some tips and tricks that I've learned throughout this multi-week course. So keep an eye out for a new post in April on this subject!

Klimbing Kiddos

One of my favorite things about having kids is finding fun outdoor equipment for them. A camel back is cool for adults but when you find a miniature sized one for kids it's...."Ah cute!" We bought a kids climbing harness about the time when our oldest turned three. I think I like it more than he does. It stabilizes their bodies in an upright position, preventing them from flipping upside down.
I just get so stinking excited when I can have our kids participate in the activities that my husband and I love to do. The people who make these things are genius in my book. What better way to bring a family together!

We set up a top rope climb (the rope is anchored to the top of the climb so if you fall you're not going anywhere) and let the kids have some fun. We usually don't need to use a belay device for our youngest because he's so light. We just do a hip belay (rap the rope around my big bootie). The kids really like the overhang climbs. It allows them to swing more!

We've tried to teach them the correct lingo for safety reasons: On belay, climbing, slack, tension, rock! and etc.
Eventually they usually end up saying their own climbing lingo though, things like..."I want to do spinners" or "Where's the spiderman chalk?"

We've taught them the basic rules for safety too:
Mom or Dad must double check harness before you climb
Don't use your knees

Don't step on the rope
Don't put your fingers in the lead climbing bolts
wear a helmet
use your legs (they're stronger than your arms)

*The key thing I've learned while climbing with my kids is not to force them to do anything they don't want to do. Our oldest began crying on one particular climb because he got up as far as he wanted to go and didn't want to go any further. We were encouraging him to go a little further because he was so close to the top, but he was definitely scared and ready to come down. We let him know that we just wanted him to have fun and he didn't have to do anything he didn't want to. He quickly calmed down and was eager to do it again the next time we went. I think it easily could have turned into a negative situation for him.

*We take small toys with us on our climbing trips. That way whoever isn't climbing can play with trucks in the dirt or whatever.

*Our second child is 3. He doesn't necessarily like to climb up but he likes to swing on the rope. He pushes off the rock with his feet and spins and hangs upside down and traverses across the rock wall. As long as he's having fun that's fine with me.

Tent Camping With Babies

This week I had a friend, who is preparing to have her second child, ask about helpful hints on camping with new infants and small children. Her and her husband already have a camping trip planned and their baby isn't even born yet...high five from across the U.S. Sadie!
This got my wheels turning in my rusty cobweb filled head and I had to refer to my journal for reminding...
September 13, 2004 - This is an entry I wrote when Corbin was almost 3 months old.
"Corbin slept through the night for the first time on Friday. The funny thing is we were camping out.

(Valley of Fire 2005)

All four of us squished inside our tiny tent. But it was fun. He slept 8 hours straight. It was so nice."
*What I do remember from this trip, besides my first restfull night as a new mom, is what he slept in that night. I got Corbin's car seat and put it in the tent and lined it with warm blankets. I had him sleep in his normal pajamas and then put a fleece bunting over the top. I then topped it off with a little beanie on his head. Once I laid him in the car seat I just put a couple more layers of blankets over him. Fleece and synthetic down materials work best, I think. Because he was raised a little from the ground inside the car seat I knew I wouldn't roll over on top of him. It allowed me to sleep better because we were pretty crammed...but warm!
April 28, 2002 - This entry was written when Cru was almost 3 months old.
"We're on our way home from City of Rocks right now. We had a blast! I wasn't too excited to go because the forecast said it would be rainy and cold; and it was, but not too bad. Cru was great. It was his first camping experience. We made the tent nice and cozy so we could all sleep in it. The first night was kind of rough but last night we stayed really warm and Cru slept all night. The climbing was rad!"
*I totally remember what made the difference between

(Bear Lake 2002)

the first night and the second night. We learned a new trick that we still use to this day. When we set up our tent, and know it's going to be cold and wet, we put a tarp under it. then we lay a fleece blanket over the top of the tent, where our air vents are. Then we put the fly on over that. It works extremely well. The heat stays in better but so does the stale air. Gets kinda stinky in there with three boys!

PART II

Sleeping Pads - Children can pretty much sleep anywhere because of their rubber bones but it's still important to make their outdoor sleeping arrangements as comfortable as possible. I had a sleeping mat I bought in college called a Therma-Rest Z-Lite. It's a foam material that folds up accordion style. (you can see a portion of it in the picture above) For my 3 year old we fold it in half and let him sleep on that. It's fairly inexpensive, compared to an inflatable Therm-a-Rest, and doesn't take up a lot of room like those huge inflatable mattresses or the fat foam mats you have to roll up. Putting a sleeping pad under your childs sleeping bag also gives them an extra insulation level. It can get cold sleeping directly on the ground.

Sleeping Bags - When we first started camping with our kids we came to find out that there weren't many options, as far as sleeping bags went, for them. We started off with bags we found at Walmart, consisting

(Maple Canyon 2007)

mostly of nylon material and a thin layer of batting. Not ideal, but they worked with some help from layered blankets. This summer we're looking into purchasing children's bags that are higher quality. Amazon.com has some good options. When you're buying a sleeping bag keep in mind what kind of weather you'll be in. If you don't plan on camping in cold weather you probably have no need for a bag that is less than 30 degrees. Otherwise I would go for a 0 degree bag. They tend to cost more but can be used through all seasons (Three cheers for snow caves!) Also, if your kids are like ours they wiggle from one side of their bed to the other at night. Purchase a bag that will keep them in one spot and covered throughout the night. Bags that help with that are contoured to the body and have a hood and drawstring that goes over their shoulders, otherwise known as mummy style.

Sleeping Arrangement - When you lay out your sleeping bags in the tent try to keep the kids away from the outer edges. Lay the bags towards the middle. Otherwise they may get a little damp if it rains. Even the morning dew and precipitation can make the walls of the tent damp.

Odds and Ends - If you're in an area that is known to have more wildlife roaming around, be sure to take dirty diapers out of the tent and away from camp. It's disgusting, but something like that will tempt bears just as much as a steak dinner.
The only other word of advice I have is...WIPES! Baby wipes are the miracle camping tool! Little rug rats can play in the outdoors all day and you don't have to worry about them getting all dirty. Just wipe them down and put them in clean clothes and they're ready for a good night's rest and another fun filled day.

Leave a comment about any tips you've learned while camping with your family!

Balance In All Things

Okay, so I re-read my last post and I totally sound like a tree hugger. I hope I didn't scare any of you off! I think I should clarify. "Tree Hugger" is not in the dictionary but I don't think the definition would fit me even if it were. I am however slightly granolaish. That's at least how my family describes me. I press flowers, eat soy beans, recycle plastic bags, conserve energy, practice yoga, climb rocks but most of all shave my pits and legs...during the summer at least. ;) I'm not an extreme environmentalist but cringe at the sight of litter and graffiti (unless it's artfully done with permission). Our family is like any other, and that's who I'm trying to reach out too in this blog...your average hot dog, marshmallow eating family. I'm not going to encourage you to take your small children on survival trips allowing them only to eat berries and nuts. My kids come home from hikes with pockets full of rocks and pinecones just like any other. So I think what I'm trying to say is I believe there is a balance in all things. Even in outdoor etiquette.

Learning Outdoor Etiquette

I've been trying to ingrain into my children’s brains that everything in our home has a specific spot it belongs. It seems I spend my days saying things like, "your coat doesn't belong on the floor," and "why is your underwear on the table?" But this lesson they are continually learning goes beyond just our house. While we were out for a walk the other day my 3-year-old son threw his sucker stick on the ground, stepped on it and kept on walking. Bright lights, bells and whistles went off in my head and I realized it was a teaching moment.

"Corbin garbage doesn't belong on the ground. It belongs in the garbage can," I said. He shrugged his shoulders and picked it up without a fight. Lesson learned, right? Well today I decided to take it a bit further. My kids and I went for a walk with our gloves on and garbage sack in hand. We picked up garbage as we went. I think this drove the idea in a little further. As we walked we talked about the idea of leaving no trace and the responsibilities that come along with playing outside. (I condensed it to the 6 and 3-year-old version mind you)

Here are some subjects we hit on:

Stay on marked trails
Pack out what you pack in
Leave what you find
Be careful with fire
Don't bother the wildlife

Overall it's just a matter of leaving things how you found them, by trying to have a minimal impact on your surroundings. That way others that come along the trail later can find it in the exact beautiful state that you did. By not picking that dark purple leopard lily just off the trail someone else can witness it's popping color and point it out to their travel companion.


Fun Activity: Last Spring I took my Cub Scout group and my kids up a trail just above our little town. We took plaster of paris and poured it into animal footprints we found. Then we hiked up the trail. By the time we returned the plaster was dry and we took the molds of the footprints out. The kids loved it, and seemed to enjoy taking a bit of nature home with them without actually taking something.

Recommendations: REI and the Leave No Trace foundation combined to create the PEAK program (Promoting Environmental Awareness in Kids) I've looked into it and want to get the teaching materials and lessons that they've created for kids. I've sent off an email to see how I can get my hands on it and I'll let you all know when I do.

Comments:
Some of my experiences concerning the leave no trace concept are listed below. Please leave a comment about an experience you've had or why you think it's important to "leave only footprints and take only pictures".

*While snowboarding on a nice powdery day this winter I spotted an empty Mountain Dew bottle that someone had thrown from the chair lift. That bold green stood out in all that white powder. My eyes were drawn right to it. Unfortunately it was going to take a lot more than the name of the pop to let it blend in with the outdoor environment.

*While backpacking in the White Cloud Mountains in Idaho a friend and I came upon a fire ring that had mounds of aluminum foil in it. It wasn't the end of the world but it took a slice of my nature experience away from me. Seeing that mound of foil reminded me of the people and the things that I live with at home. The exact thing I was escaping from by heading into the backcountry that week.
*We've been exploring the petroglyphs and pictographs of southeast Utah and it's frustrating to see something like "Josh was here” or "Mandy loves Roberto" scratched into the rock near an ancient painting that's thousands of years old. What's up with that? Write it in your journal not on historical landmarks.