A baby registry for a summer baby

A baby arrives in the last week of June, in the middle of a heatwave, and the registry the parents built in January is full of fleece sleeping bags and knitted hats. Half of it goes back in the cupboard until October. A baby cannot regulate its own temperature the way you can, so a summer baby needs a different list from a winter one.

Clothes that let air through

Bodysuits and rompers in cotton, bamboo or muslin are the ones you reach for every morning. They let air move and pull sweat away from the skin. Short sleeves cover most days and sleeveless bodysuits the hottest ones. Keep three or four thin long-sleeved pieces for the supermarket, where the air conditioning is set for the staff, and for evenings by the sea.

Put two sun hats with a wide brim and a chin strap on the list, because one is always in the wash or under the pram. Thin cotton socks still belong on a summer list too, since a hot terrace tile is no place for bare baby feet.

Keeping the room and the pram cool

A nursery fan built for babies moves air around the room without blowing straight at the cot. Look for one with enclosed blades and a night mode that does not hum.

A cooling mat for the cot or the pram, gel-filled or breathable mesh, helps in a heatwave. Buy one made for infants and follow the instructions that come with it; a mat meant for a dog bed is a different thing.

Blackout curtains are the cheapest item on the list and possibly the most useful. They keep the sun off the nursery wall during the afternoon nap, and the room stays two or three degrees cooler.

Skin, baths and sunscreen

Summer babies get bathed more often. A fragrance-free baby wash cleans without drying the skin, and lukewarm water cools the baby down without a shock. Sweat and extra washing wear the skin barrier down, so a plain moisturiser with a short ingredient list helps keep it intact.

Sunscreen is for after six months. Before that, shade and clothing do the job. Once you do start, use a mineral sunscreen made for babies, SPF 30 or higher, and remember the places everyone forgets: ears, the tops of the feet and the backs of the hands.

Feeding when it is 30 degrees

If you are breastfeeding, the water bottle is for you. A one-litre insulated bottle deserves a place on the registry next to the muslins, because you will be thirsty and sitting down a lot.

For bottle feeding, the question is how to keep formula safe on a day out. An insulated bottle bag with a cool pack does it. A couple of spare bottles help too, since babies drink smaller amounts more often when it is hot.

By the following summer, when solids are well under way, add more bibs than you think you need and things that rinse under a garden tap. You will be eating outside at 28 degrees with a bowl of mashed peach most weeks.

Getting out of the house

A light pram with a big canopy, decent ventilation and a seat that lies fully flat lets the baby sleep in the shade while you keep walking. A clip-on fan with a bendy neck, fixed to the handlebar, puts the air exactly where the baby is and costs very little.

A changing bag with an insulated pocket is worth the money. You will carry spare outfits (summer babies go through two or three a day), water for yourself and whatever cooling mat or fan you are using that day.

Put the summer version of the list together early, before the fleece arrives from the grandparents. You can create a baby registry and share it with everyone who wants to help, so the sun hats turn up and the knitted cardigans can wait until October.