I’ve really been making an effort to get outside – no matter the weather – with my little one. A little while ago I started pushing myself and realized how much we’ve both been missing out on by not taking advantage of the great outdoor world.
Getting outside in the sweet summer sunshine is always much easier than deciding to head out when cats and dogs are falling all over your lawn, but there is a ton of fun to be had splashing around in the wet, too. You just have to prepare properly with the right rain gear.
These are the items we’ve been using lately to enjoy the puddles and rainy days.
For the body, arms and legs we use a Splashy suit. It goes over top of everything. On a cold day I even put it over her snuggly suit (I have no better words for it… it’s a big outfit for babes that encloses them completely, aside from their face/sometimes hands in warm, thick and cozy material). Since the arm and leg holes are elastic it serves as a pretty decent barrier when put over boots and mittens. As the always-helpful owner of Salt Spring’s Hen & Chicks showed me, it’s no problem to buy large to get more wear out of one, too. The sleeves and pant-legs easily roll up without becoming too bulky.
For the tiny, little hands and fingers I wanted something waterproof. We have a few pairs of mittens her size that either I’ve knitted or we’ve been given, but their materials don’t give much in the way of water-protection. Actually the opposite, they soak it up, like the “snuggly suits”, leading to the whole soggy baby problem that cuts into outdoor fun. These fabric mittens are better saved for dry days and stroller rides.
The pair of SnowStoppers mittens I found at my local shop that is waterproof, yet it breathes to let out moisture and keep hands from getting too warm. The size I got for my little munchkin (1-year old) doesn’t have a thumb-hole to frustratingly search around for in hopes of connecting the fidgety digit with the impossibly small-sized sheath. There is grip on the palms of the mittens to help little ones hold on to rails and carry toys and tools. Best feature: the stretchy, warm knit wrist material goes up to the elbows to actually keep these fantastic little contraptions on wee hands.
They truly are the perfect mitten for cold and wet.
For the feet and toes we looked around all over the place for waterproof boots that came in a small enough size. Hopefully they’d be light and sleek enough to not be crazily cumbersome bricks strapped to my newly-walking toddler’s feet. These MyMayu boots – made by a local Vancouver mom – are perfect. The “leach sock” concept for the tops of the boots (reminiscent of a similar legging we wore in a jungle in Thailand to keep from picking up leaches) is perfect for keeping the little boots lightweight, easy to wear, easy to travel with, and is great for keeping water from getting in them.
Happy outdoor adventuring!