About outdoor wear - Insulation

Most outdoor children's wear, that's intended for backyard play and to and from school use, combines the insulation with the outer layer.

When you hike or cross-country ski (or do some other aerobic activity) your body generates a lot of heat so you wear less insulation. When you stop at the top of the mountain (in either winter or summer) or downhill ski or some other less aerobic activity, you are not generating the same heat so you need to add insulation.

Our insulation layers include:

Fleece hoodie. The hoodie part is important since it adds an extra layer for your head. For many years we made do with hood-less fleece. We made it work. We wear this in all four seasons.
 

Puffy jacket. Fall, winter, and spring hiking and summer backpacking (for keeping warm in camp).
 

Fleece pants or puffy pants. Fall, winter and early spring hiking and summer backpacking (for keeping warm in camp). As our kids get older, and can fit into xs women's pants, we are transitioning them to puffy pants instead of fleece. They are lighter weight. For basic hiking and outdoor activities though fleece pants are sufficient. The awesome thing about puffy pants is they go on overtop the hiking pants. For kids, we prefer polyester fill vs. down puffy layers.