What to use for swaddling in the summer?

[gilliesgal]

I'm a first time mom and DS is now 7 weeks. In early May it was cool enough to swaddle him in flannel receiving blankets and the fleece Kiddopotomus velcro swaddler thingy. He is now going through a stage where he flails his arms and legs and startles himself awake during the night when he is in the crib without any sort of swaddling. It is too hot, I think, to use the flannel blankets. What sort of blanket or swaddling material is available to use in the warmer months? He tends to kick off anything I try to use now and I'm assuming it is because it is too warm and I wrap him loosely.

(Also, is this typical behavior at 7 weeks?? I'm at my wits end trying to put him down for naps and nighttime sleeping because he is now so reliant on his pacifier and he is constantly writhing in his crib. The only thing that seems to work is sleeping with him in my arms and that means I don't get good sleep. . . . HELP!)

Thanks!
-Kellie

[goodnightmoon]

I ordered the cotton Miracle Blanket online. It is lightweight and works wonderfully! With the AC on, it isn't too warm right now, but on vacations or on especially hot days, I just swaddle dd with only her diaper on under the Miracle Blanket. If you search you'll find a lot of posts about the MB - it's very popular. :)

Laura
mommy to Eva Marie 2/16/05

[jillc]

Hi Kellie,

Yep, that all sounds like typical behavior for your DS's age. It will get easier. Enjoy your snuggle time. :)

We moved to AZ last summer when DD was about 6 weeks old, and we had the same concerns re: needing to swaddle, but it being so hot even with the a/c running. Even with just a diaper on, swaddling in a flannel blanket seemed too hot. My solution was to take an old white t-shirt (undershirt) of my DH's and cut it right up the front so that it made (basically) one flat "blanket" to swaddle her in. I chose this b/c it was both very thin material and very soft. And it was kind of cozy thinking of DD being all wrapped up in Daddy's shirt. :) They also sell jersey knit material (remember t-shirt sheets?) at jo-ann's, but it's not as thin & soft as a shirt that's good & used.

I hope you get some other suggestions. I'd like to hear them too for future reference. :)

Best,
Jill

[kozachka]

We've use a really thin cotton receiving blanket that my mom brought from Ukraine. I have not seen anything similar in stores but maybe you can get some fabric from the store and have it hemmed. Do you think microfleece would work, it is supposed to breathe? You don't need to do aything with fleece other than cut in squares.

[Karenn]

With ds we had a receiving blanket that was made out of t-shirt material. We swaddled in that with a diaper on hot days. I didn't know about the miracle blanket then, but it probably would have worked. The fabric is also thin like a t-shirt. I used it with my DD and it worked beautifully, but that was winter, so we needed all the warmth we could get!

Sounds like typical 7 week old behavior to me. :) Count your blessings that he'll take a pacifier. DS didn't and it was a much rougher road than with my passy loving DD!

[kaitlinsmommy]

I used the Miracle Blanket with my ds. He's also 7 weeks but doesn't need to be swaddled anymore since he's perfectly happy in just a sleeper. It's HOT here and the MB is very lightweight and worked great with just a onesie. I LOVED it and just gave mine to a friend who is having a baby soon.

[ajrivers]

I love the feel and weight of the receiving blankets from Old Navy. They are a very soft, lightweight t-shirt material...

The only problem is they are somewhat stretchy and my 2 week old who throroughly enjoys flailing can kick his legs straight in it. Luckily he doesn't seem to need to be swaddled to settle down though...it pretty much ticks him off even more if he can't move his legs and arms.

Amy

[pikle]

I double the Miracle Blanket. We used it with DD #2 and they are lightweight. She loved being swaddled in it!!!! I will be using with #3 as well :-)

Hugs!
Nicole