Spinoff....spring baby mom's....tell me your trials and tribulations.

[miaclear]

The Winter baby thread made me start thinking of the pros and cons of having a spring baby. What did you spring baby mothers have to deal with, or not deal with? One thing I feel blessed with is not having to be so big and pg in the Texas summer.

[catmom]

I posted in the winter babies thread, but I'll post here, too. My DD was born in mid-March, and I really liked it a lot. It was just as spring began, so we were never cooped up in the house with cold weather, and I never had to be PG in the hot summer. I guess going to all those millions of prenatal visits in Jan and Feb when the weather was bad was not so much fun, but better than worrying I would go into labor in the middle of an ice storm. We also didn't have to deal with cold/flu season with DD until she was a hefty 9 month old, which was nice. The only downside (and it's pretty silly) is that you aren't really supposed to use sunscreen on a very young baby, plus they don't handle the heat well, so the pool/beach didn't work out so well that summer. The other downside I *could* see is that if you had older kids, you would have more time to be alone with the baby before summer vacation started if you had the baby in the fall or winter.

[kimthebride]

My son was born on June 3rd, so not really spring yet not really summer.

PROS
I loved it not being too hot yet when I was big & preggo, yet nice enough out to take a newborn wherever I wanted to go.
I was so happy not to have to deal with any extreme weather late in my pregnancy: neither blazing heat nor winter storms/icy walking.
I was sane enough to manage travelling for Thanksgiving & Christmas. I couldn't imagine missing it because I was too pg to travel (both families live out of state) or travelling with a very new baby.
Tons of other new moms were out & about and you could easily meet new people, make new friends.

CONS
Baby weight & bathing suits don't mix well. ;)
You can't put sunblock on a brand new baby, so can't hang outside too much.

[Scooter]

My DD was due at the end of April, born in May.

I liked the fact that the weather was nice enough at the end that I could go on walks to induce labor. ;) I like the fact that I don't have to layer the baby in tons of clothes to keep her warm. It's nice to have it be sunny when I'm home with a newborn--we can go outside and sit on the grass when I've got cabin fever, or go on a walk with the stroller. It's not fun to nurse in the heat, but at least I don't have winter clothes on that I have to get through to be able to nurse.

I didn't like that I had to buy lots of maternity clothes for wintertime--I think it would be cheaper to be pg in the summer because you don't have to buy as many layers! (But then I don't like to spend money...) I didn't like that it was so wet & rainy when I was pg, because it was scary to go outside pregnant in that weather. I was always worried about slipping and falling. I don't like that it gets so hot that the baby gets really upset & fussy--if I had A/C it wouldn't a problem.

[Jane&Andy]

My DS was due in early April and born in mid-March. I thought it was almost perfect timing. It was chilly when he was born but not freezing cold. So when we did go out, which wasn't very much, I didn't have to worry too much about bundling him up. And now that he's a little older its nice and warm and I don't have to worry at all. My pediatrician ok'd using sunblock when he was 2 months old, just said to test it out on a small patch of skin first. But I haven't used it yet aside from the test spot. Its been too hot lately so we've been staying in anyway (I'm not a fan of super hot weather).

I didn't have to be pregnant during the summer but I did miss getting to use my electric blanket in the winter.

It would have been nice if he'd been born a little later. It'll be too cold in mid-March to make use of the outside for birthday parties.

[Sevilla]

I *loved loved loved* being a spring mom. Honestly, i can't think of any drawbacks. My maternity clothes were all one season, i didn't experience swelling, my coat hid my pregnancy until the end so i didn't get rude stranger comments, and when the baby was born it was starting to get warm out and cold/flu/RSV season was over so i didn't worry about bringing the baby out in public.

I would love to have all my babies in the spring if that is what God has for us!

ETA: I did think of one drawback. When you hit April the stores no longer sell warm baby clothes so its hard to find things to dress them in besides sleep n plays when it's cooler out!

[petdoc08]

My DD was born in early may.

Pros: I loved being pregnant in the cooler months. I wore alot of bulky sweatshirts of DH's and saved $ on maternity clothes that way. I am a student though so I don't need a ton of professional clothes.
It was great to walk outside at the end of my pregnancy.
We didn't have to worry about bringing DD home in the cold and were able to get out and about very early with her. We didnt have cold or flu season to worry about



Cons:

It is 95 degrees today with a heat index of 115 and 85% humidity. We are both sweating just sitting in our house. The a/c can't keep up. Neither one of us want to be touched as it is far to sticky to cuddle. Nursing is NOT fun when you stick together. It is way to hot to even walk outside to the mailbox. We tried to run errands today and poor DD about melted in her carseat. Those rear facing buckets get really warm even with the ac on in the car.

Sunblock has also been an issue. I have to keep DD covered all the time when outside and that just adds to the warmth factor.

We got a ton of heavy footed sleepers at our DD that she will never ever use at our shower. She sleeps in a diaper and miracle blanket, thats it! I must add that it did get hot here very early this year and it has stayed hot so on a typical year this may have not been such an issue.

I also have to deal with the "great sock debate" as my mother and I like to call it. She insists babys have socks on at all times. I think if I am wearing flip flops, DD does not need to be wearing socks. Both DD and I are hot boxes so the less clothing the better. (too bad my pp body is less than stellar so currently more clothing is MUCH better ;) )

[moderngal]

I loved it, too.
DS was due early May and born mid May. I was able to get away with bigger sweaters instead of maternity ones for much of the winter, except that I was always so hot that I really just wore long or 3/4 sleeve t-shirts all the time. It was sunny and warm, so it was nice to be able to get out and walk around the neighborhood everyday- that did wonders for my PP emotional state.

[Pookie]

I agree with the other posters. Having a spring baby is perfect. The only problem I had was that when I started to develop pre-e during February (our 1 cold month) it was hard to be out in the cold with only flip-flops to wear. My feet wouldn't fit into anything else. On the other hand, I live in AZ so our winters are pretty mild. We're hoping #2 will also be a March baby.

[kristin9903]

DS was due and born in April.

Being in Texas, I don't think there were any cons to being spring mama. My first trimester included the hottest September on record...so that and m/s didn't mix well. But I would WAY rather be in the early stages of pg versus the latter during the Texas summers.

Definite pros:
Like petdoc08 mentioned, I barely spent anything on maternity clothes. I just wore big sweatshirts for the winter months...half the time it wasn't even cold enough for that.

When I brought DS home from the hospital, it was in the 70's. Dressing him has been really easy...since it's just gone from warm to hot around here.

I'm still in school, so a big bonus was that I only had to take 1 semester off for the pregnancy and then had the whole summer to be a SAHM before going back.

Since he was born in the late spring, a lot of people were able to take off work/travel more easily to see him, as well. That could be a con, too, I suppose. ;)

[tgray99]

I loved being a spring mama. DD was born May 9.

Pros
I knew the gender in time for a big announcement at Thanksgiving and for gender-specific presents at Christmas time (she had a bigger pile than DH and I did and she wasn't even born yet!)

I wasn't huge when it was the heat of the Texas summer.

When she starts school her birthday will always signal the beginning of the last month of school (I know, I'm a May baby too!) and we can have outside or swimming parties.

Her birthday is still during school so she isn't forgotten like most summer birthday kids are.

When she's in college her birthday will be around the time of finals so she can celebrate either right before or after (again, speaking from experience).

Her body already knew how to regulate its own temperature by the time it was cold.

I rarely ever had to wear a coat in the winter time because I carried around my own little space heater in my belly.

We didn't have to deal with cold and flu season until she was much older and had a better immune system.

My MIL, a teacher, could come see her shortly after her birth and spend a month with her.

Cons
When she was first born and a few (probably 4-5) months thereafter, it was WAY too hot to take her outside and we couldn't put any sunscreen on her so we never went outside.

She'll always be among the youngest in her class...well, not sure if that's a pro or a con.

I loved having a spring baby...I'd like another...maybe a March baby next time!

[madmartian]

A lot of my pros and cons were already mentioned except for one:

Con - Allergy season started soon after DD was born. I wanted to spend time outside enjoying the weather but my runny nose, itchy eyes, and sneezing were killing me. I couldn't even take anything for it because I was breastfeeding. By the time my allergies were over it was way to hot to be outside past 8am or before 7pm. We spent most of springtime and summertime indoors, but we more than made up for it in the fall and winter.

[psusna]

DS born May 3

I echo a lot of what the PP's have said -- especially the parts about not being in the middle of cold/flu season so I wasn't as scared to take him to the Ped for his regular schedule of visits (the waiting rooms weren't teeming with sneezing tykes), but it was way too hot to go out for walks from July on. I also loved being off from work in the summer (I took 4 months total off from the job) as I didn't feel so confined. My mood is majorly impacted by the weater so I think that helped with some PP issues as well.

I also liked being preggo during the winter -- I'm not sure why, but I can't picture myself preggo during the summer. It felt more like nesting during the winter, preparing for the new spring arrival.

[Sarah]

Why would a May baby be the youngest? Usually the cut off is August or September, right? It is here.

[jmvan74]

My son was born on June 3rd, so not really spring yet not really summer.

PROS
I loved it not being too hot yet when I was big & preggo, yet nice enough out to take a newborn wherever I wanted to go.
I was so happy not to have to deal with any extreme weather late in my pregnancy: neither blazing heat nor winter storms/icy walking.
I was sane enough to manage travelling for Thanksgiving & Christmas. I couldn't imagine missing it because I was too pg to travel (both families live out of state) or travelling with a very new baby.
Tons of other new moms were out & about and you could easily meet new people, make new friends.

CONS
Baby weight & bathing suits don't mix well. ;)
You can't put sunblock on a brand new baby, so can't hang outside too much.

Couldn't have said it better! One more con: sickness in the winter for you. I ended up in the ER b/c I was too nervous to take anything and spent many a morning coughing myslef in to the dry heaves.

However, I am now due with #2 in January and even though I'm only 3 months along, the heat is KILLING ME! So I think being pg with a spring baby is a bit less taxing. IMO.

[kimthebride]

Oh, one other thing:

We were 12 weeks along when Thanksgiving was around so it was PERFECT timing to announce it to the families. :)

[DisneyGirl]

LOVE LOVE LOVED being a spring mama also!! If i were ever to have another child I would Def. try to have the baby in the Spring.

I loved the fact like most said not being preggo in the dead of summer, being able to take baby out for walks ect. Not having to worry about you newborn getting to cold in the dead of winter.

[Tenny]

DS was born April 21st and by the time I felt comfortable going out of the house it was too darn hot to go for walks and stuff. He was still too little for sunscreen and the poor boy got my fair skin. He was also really sensitive to heat and broke out in a heat rash if we stayed out too long. So I spend most of the summer in the house.

Also I made the mistake of getting an infant carrier that had a black shade, wasn't really thinking when we registered for that!

But know that he is almost 15 months it is great this summer! He is at the age where he is learning so much every day and enjoys going to the pool and running around outside.

[cocopop]

It's weird because I've always wanted a baby in the springtime because I didn't want to deal with the heat in the summer or the holiday's in the winter. Also, there is nothing going on in the spring (for us, anyway) so I've always considered it a "boring" time of year. Now we always have DD's b-day to look forward to!

[aprilshowers]

My baby's a little earlier than spring (end of Feb) but a lot of the pros posted above still apply. The one negative we've been dealing with is that it has been difficult to get her to sleep on time since it is so light out late. Difficult for me to catch up on sleep by going to bed early for the same reason!