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CHOOSE YOUR ADVENTURE

Writer's pictureThe Outdoors Mum

How to dress your kids in the rain to keep them warm and dry?

Updated: Aug 17, 2021

This is one of my most asked questions.

How do I keep Daisy and Marlie dry? What do you buy? Where is that from? What’s your top purchases? So after a year I’m finally writing it!

So, if you want to know how to dress your kids in the rain to keep them warm and dry, keep reading.

If you dress your children appropriately then they can have a blast in all weathers. And don’t get me wrong, I’ve learnt this the hard way, trial and error. There is nothing worse than feeling cold and wet when all we want to do is have fun outdoors.

Marlie 8 months old. A lot of how I dress Marlie has been learnt from my mistakes with Daisy so I feel like Marlie’s been all geared up from the get go.


Newborns and car safe warmth

When Marlie was younger and she used to sleep a lot, I found it annoying having to put her in the car seat in something safe, ie thin clothing and then getting her out and having to put her in something suitable for the outdoors.


To get around this I had a fleece all in one with hood from Tesco and a Next fleece zipped baby grow. These are perfect to be worn in the car seat and out and about once you’ve reached your outside destination. I put Marlie in a baby grow underneath and then all you’ve got to think about then is a cosy hat.



Hats

For hats right up to age 3 and older if you can find them, I love buying ones that tie under the chin and with side patches to cover there ears. The reason I like to do this is, they tend to come lower down the back of the head and cover more of the neck and side of the head than your normal bobble hats. They also stay on better! Anything for extra warmth I am all for.


I'll link some here that I think are great.


Face

To protect babies and children’s face from the outside elements such as cold and wind I love to use a weather balm by Weleda. It’s under £6 from Boots and it’s a gorgeous balm that’s perfect for sensitive skins.


Legs

To keep Marlies legs warm if she’s wearing a jumper or a coat I love the extra thick leggings by JoJo Maman Bebe.

They’re super thick and keep their fit and shape after being washed. They have gone slightly bobbly from being washed but it’s minimal. They’re very stretchy and she wears age 6-12 months so I expect to get lots of wear from them.


To gain 15% off for JoJo Maman Bebe you can use my referral link.


You could always put thick tights under leggings as well.


Feet

I often see babies not wearing socks in baby carriers and I know why! The babies legs rub on your body and the socks eventually rub so much they slip down and fall off. I’m sure any baby wearing Mumma will have had this happen. But fear not, if you want to keep your babies thick socks on, then purchase some sock ons. They’re a game changer and if your child likes pulling at their socks, well they’ll have a hard job getting their socks off with these.

Once baby is old enough to sit on the grass outside I suggest waterproof footies which are great. They’re fleece lined and fully waterproof. I’ve recently purchased these so Marlie can crawl on the ground and not get her feet wet or cold. They come high above the ankle and they’ll keep her going until she’s walking. Linked here. (Photo below)


Full body waterproofs

Toddlers are easy to dress but babies and pre walkers I’ve found it more difficult. Everything’s too big or far too expensive.

Marlie’s been crawling for a few months and she’s dying to get stuck in outside like her big sister. I had to find something she could sit and crawl around on the forest floor or on open grass and absolutely stay dry. I didn’t want her being damp, cold or remotely wet. This absolutely can’t happen. How awful would I feel especially as she can’t tell me!


So, after looking for ages I found a fully waterproof, not water resistant, not splash proof, actually waterproof puddle suit it's from Muddly Puddles. I am very pleased and managed to really put it to the test this week during the rainy weather.

It’s age 6-12 months so it has growing room. It comes with fold over hands and detachable feet. The feet I didn’t find very useful because there were gaps created by attaching with only 2 poppers so I have been using her waterproof shoes as above. I’ve either tucked her trousers inside or worn over top of her trousers. This worked very well. And I’m very happy with the purchase even if at first I did think it was a little expensive.


The fleece lined Puddle Suit was £50 but If you use mg referral cide you will gain 20% off. This will give you £10 off!

THEOUTDOORSMUM


Daisy 3.5 years

Shoes

I get asked a lot about wellies. For me, I’ve never bought expensive wellies and I don’t see the point? I don’t think they’re any better than cheaper ones. Daisys always had small feet and age 1-2 she had size 3 feet. The only wellies I could find to fit were from Primark. Her current ones are Disney Frozen from John Lewis, they all do the trick.


Daisy had snow boots from Decathlon last year which I’ll buy again. They have a waterproof toe but have the warmth for her feet and ankles. These aren’t that good for stomping in puddles but if you’re out and about in wet grass or taking a winter walk these are fab. They have no left or right foot which is odd but genius at the same time. Took me ages to realise that!


Coats

If you’re after a super duper warm coat but isn’t waterproof then Gap is amazing. I got Daisy one last year and sometimes it was too warm! But in a good way as it kept her cosy on winter days. Tip for Gap, never pay full price! They have sales every other week it seems!

Daisys had a few waterproof coats and the best were Rubber Rain Coat by Joules and Regatta Bibiana Waterproof Coat. For me, a waterproof coat is important. It’s horrible getting wet but also waterproof coats are usually fairly thin which are great for layering with jumpers and hoodies, I also love a polo neck top.


Waterproof gear

The best waterproof trousers I’ve had have been Jojo Maman Bebe pack away trousers or Lidl waterproof dungarees. The Lidl waterproof gear is amazing but its hard to get your hands on. It sells out fast and is only out once or twice a year.


To gain 15% off for JoJo Maman Bebe you can use my referral link.


The trick is to get waterproof trousers or dungarees that have an elastic stirrup. This is to go OVER the wellie and under the foot. It makes sense but so many people tuck the trousers in. I get it as I’ve done it (you'll see in the photos) but if you think about it, It’s silly. The water then has a gap to go over the wellie into the shoe. If you tuck the trouser over then the wellie then it has an extra layer of protection covering the opening over the ankle/leg!

I promise, unless they’re wading through flooded water like Daisy today, they will stay dry and free of mud! Genius.


Just remember to stay away from anything that says, splash proof or water resistant. That is not the same as waterproof and your child will get wet underneath! And you can’t stop a child from having a good puddle splash can you! So equip them properly and they’ll have a blast.


Hats and Neck

Snoods are amazing. I found a great one in Zara Baby last year. I hope it will fit Daisy this year but if not, you can find snoods on the internet. As Daisys older any hat will do for her.

She knows to keep it on and knows it will keep her warm so I’ll let her crack on with a regular woolly hat, that said, if I spot one that covers her ears and ties under the chin I will always choose that.



Gloves and mittens

I've only ever found one pair of mittens that fit Daisys small hands and they're from JoJo Maman Bebe. If your child has bigger hands magic gloves are good. They sell them in Chemists, Markets and places like that. I've always had hand on kids who like to touch or explore so it's never been something that they have wanted to keep on.


I think I’ve covered it all. I hope I’ve shown you don’t need to spend a bomb and that keeping kids dry and warm prevails fashion in my opinion. I love Daisy and Marlie in cute clothes but miserable fashionable children doesn’t work for us!

Happy shopping and any questions feel free to ask away! I’m very active on Instagram. But you can contact me on Facebook or email.


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