What should 1-year-old wear in very cold weather?

[kristine_elen]

We will be in Minnesota for two weeks over Christmas, and while I did grow up there and know how to dress myself for the cold, I'm not sure what to do about Jack. He's not walking yet, so I don't think he'll be playing outside. Mainly I just need to dress him to go from the house to the car, which won't always be warmed up first.
Do you think I need to get a snowsuit thing, or just put on his coat and hat and throw a blanket over his legs in the car?
Any other tips? Oh, how do you keep mittens on a child? I put some on him and he immediately used his teeth to yank them off.
Thanks!

[newbelly2002]

Well here in Berlin it's been chilly for a while. We spend a lot of time outside (no car, just a stroller) so I've been dressing Dante in layers. Tights, jeans (sometimes lined if it drops into the negative), shirt, sweater, fleece jacket/snowjacket and hat/hood. If we're just going to and from someplace, I'll ditch the tights (they're a royal pain to take off and too warm when we're inside) and sweater and just toss a blanket over his legs. I'll stick my hand around his shoulder blades to see how warm he feels to judge: more, less, etc...

As for the mittens, that's a toughie. If he's tired, Dante will keep them on. Just be persistent. If he's fighting them, I'll pull the cuffs of his jacket/sweater/fleece over his hands and tuck the whole shabang under the stroller blanket or cover. It concerns me, but I haven't figured out a good solution yet.

Have fun in Minnesota!
Paula
Mama to Dante, 8/1/02