In some ways, I question why I'm worrying so much about waterproof gloves, warm boots and snowpants. I know we're in Erie, but last winter's snowpants and boots still sit in the closet with the tags on them. It always seemed to snow during the week and by the time the weekend came, it all melted. All Autumn ever needed was a warm coat, hat and some handmade mittens.
This year I'm optimistic that there will be time to go sledriding or build snowpeople. So, despite the snowsuit and boots sitting in the closet, I decided we needed to go on a coat hunt. We found the coat and the matching snowpants at Kohls. It's great. A few weeks later, we found some lovely Carters boots on sale, too. But the mittens -- oh, the mittens -- that proved to be a bit harder.
Even when you do find mittens for toddlers, they're often fleece. Fleece is fine for basic warmth, but when you're talking snowballs and sledrides, you need something waterproof.
Another woman I work with, who has a 2-year-old son, also found difficulty in finding waterproof boots. After sharing our woes, I ordered a pair of gloves from LL Bean. J said she found some in the One Step Ahead catalog. Later, she said she found a pair at Target as well, which is the only store I've heard of so far where we could get toddler waterproof mittens.
If anyone knows anyplace else that doesn't require a Web site and shipping, feel free to share...