Do you still go out for walks in this weather?

So, it's not FREEZING per se here, but it is cold....in the high 30's, low 40's. I think it actually got into the high 40's today; but my girls have been shot from all the holiday fanfare, that I don't want to push their already tired immune systems (plus, we're flying transatlantic in 2 weeks and I don't want to tempt fate).

But we're having some cabin fever here. I really don't want to just plop them in the car and take them to another store....they're shopped out from all the Christmas shopping. I can tell they miss their walks but I'm kind of nervous to take them out. They just turned one year old. (I'm not normally a nervous person, but my friend's nephew is in the hospital with RSV.)

If you do take your kids out, do you use one of those plastic rain covers or do you just bundle them up real well? I don't know if mine would put up with all the bundling for long and I can see myself picking up blankets and mittens and hats and whatever else all along the way that they toss over the side.

Any ideas?

 

we have stopped walking here. it is in the 40s and thirties. we now go to the library for children's story time and sometimes we go to the mall right when they open and just walk around. not really shopping just walking around the mall and looking at the fountains and stuff. could you do anything like that?

 

I do still go out for walks with them...but instead of 4-5 times a week like we used to it's more like once a week (if that).

Really the reason we're not going for as many walks in the stroller is because they'd rather be playing in the backyard. When they were barely one they were still unsteady walkers (in fact we didn't start walking until nearly 14m), so a trip in the stroller was a great distraction/activity for them.

Now that they're 21m I do the hats/mittens thing and go in the backyard where we have a small climber, ball pit, Cozy Coupe, ride-ons, and other random outdoor toys. Honestly, their favorite thing to do is roam the yard touching trees and bushes, picking up rocks/leaves and puting them in buckets.

We also do the indoor mall roaming thing...I recommend going before the mall opens b/c there is still plenty to look at without all the crazy people and it gives my boys more freedom (and me less hassle: 'no, we're not going in THAT store either)


ETA: BTW, we're in Seattle, but it is consistently in the high 30s/low 40s.

 

I would think with RSV season they are better on a walk then a germy mall/store. I took my boys on waks when they were that age. I would but them in a snowsuit or winter jacket and then a big blanket over the 2 of them. I never really did mittens for them at that age. They hated them and I couldn't be bothered. So I just tried to keep the hands under the blanket. It is good for them to get some fresh air. As long as the wind wasn't blowing hard and it was in the 30s we would go outside.

 

Ahhhh! The mall before it opens! I forgot about that. When I was younger and I worked in the mall, we used to watch all the "mall walkers" go by at their steady clips. (We also used to sing "I'm a mall walker" to the tune of "I'm a girl watcher"). And they could get some practice walking somewhere else but the confines of their little play area.

Oh, what I would give for a yard! The image of your babies walking around touching trees and putting leaves in buckets makes my heart melt....

And my SIL bought them snowsuits for their birthdays! I forgot about those too! I haven't even tried them on yet and I thought they would never get to use them.

See, this is why I come here!

 

We took ours out their very first winter when they were 6 weeks old! I just bundled them up. Last winter, when they were 1, we still went out nearly every weekend day unless the snow was too deep to get the Mountain Buggy through. They wore fleece coveralls, fleece hats, and we pulled their sleeves down over their hands. For days when it's actually precipitating, or really cold (below 35, say), we use the plastic cover for the MB. They're so well-protected in there, their hands even seem to stay warm if they pull their mittens off.

You get RSV (and other germs) from people, not from being cold, so being outside is probably actually safer than going to the library or something.

 

My girls are a little older than yours. We had similar weather today and I definitely would have taken them out for a walk but there is so much ice, slush and snow all around that there is no where for us to walk! So my answer is yes, I definitely would have bundled them up and taken them out if I could have.

 

At that age, I would occasionally bundle them up and pull them on a sled or in a wagon.

 

We had a little play area in the mall that we went to before the Mall opened. By the time others showed up, we were ready to leave and head home for naps. We did do walks in the stroller or the wagon (unless it was raining). Not only did they need out, but I think I needed out more. I would rather be outside, then inside w/others that may not know they are sick yet, or came out anyway.

 

I try to get them out at least 15 minutes a day. Our walks are very long in the summer and very short in the winter...I love the fresh air.

 

QUOTE(Minette @ Dec 28 2007, 06:06 PM) [snapback]549269[/snapback]
We took ours out their very first winter when they were 6 weeks old! I just bundled them up. Last winter, when they were 1, we still went out nearly every weekend day unless the snow was too deep to get the Mountain Buggy through. They wore fleece coveralls, fleece hats, and we pulled their sleeves down over their hands. For days when it's actually precipitating, or really cold (below 35, say), we use the plastic cover for the MB. They're so well-protected in there, their hands even seem to stay warm if they pull their mittens off.

I took them out more, I think, last year. We had the Bundle Me and they just layed so still, that it was easier to keep them warm. We also lived in a different area where the sidewalk were more pedestrian-friendly. We temporarily live in an area now where in many sections there are no sidewalks and people drive like nuts. So, I kind of walk them on the same block back and forth, but whatever.

And I need the fresh air too....just as much as they do. Thanks for all the input!

 

It's definitely more dangerous in a store than going out for a walk. If they like strolling I'd definitely go for it.

 

I would do it when the weather was at it's high (afternoon) and bundle well. I say better outside than in an enclosed, germy, store.

 

I agree that you are better off taking them outside in the fresh air than a germy indoor play area/store. Mine go out in their sled, mainly because in my neighborhood they rarely plow the streets. If the snow melts and it is clear, I'll take them in their stroller, but the sled works better with the snow.

I put their snow pants, coat, waterproof mittens, hat, and boots on them. They love getting outside to play, despite the cold. It's mommy who hates the cold the most.