Hello Mommies!!! My husband & I are planning on a South Lake Tahoe vacation and have a 1 yr old. We were wondering where to buy or rent her gear for cheap, since we will only use it once.
Thank all you wonderful mom's for your responses. I tried 99% of them, Target, Goodwill, Salvation Army, friends, and family. My cousin had a 24 month snow suit but was to big. Mel Cottons had some on sale for $50.00 but didn't rent them that small. We did buy a pair of snow boots for $20 and a pair of gloves for $10.
I want to give a BIG THANKS to Katarina for recommending The Kidz Shoppe in the Cambrian Park Plaza, San Jose. We found a 12 month suit for $20.00 great condition :0) but we decided to rent one for $15.00 for a week. We also left with an Elmo phone, Dora backpack, new long sleeve onsie, and a beautiful jacket. This is a great store and I highly recommend it as well. Note: They also had the boots & gloves
If you go to www.onestepahead.com they have winter gear on clearance.. my daughter is only 2 months but we got a snow outfit on there for 12-18month size that was half price.
if you want to buy it I would try resale shope. There is one in Danville, Small Fry Shop, that has snow gear. If you want to rent, try calling some of the rental shops in the area you are going and ask if they carry gear that small.
We've found some inexpensive gear at Target or at the Gap in the past. Also, we once got a whole snow suit at Osh Kosh outlet for $25. Also, the local stores in South Lake have gear as well. Try the smaller, less commercial shops, or even the local grocery stores. You can also try borrowing from friends if you're involved in a mom's group or other group with parents. Another place to try might be local second hand baby shops. Also, here are a couple of good articles from trekaroo.com (which my wife wrote) on snow and sledding with kids:
winter fun for less than a lift ticket
http://tinyurl.com/dg7fje
where to go sledding and tubing in Lake Tahoe
http://tinyurl.com/azodb8
Hi T.-
If I were you I'd either borrow from friends or go to thrift town in pinole-they have tons of ki snowgear so cheap like uner 5$ an you can just give it away or sell it, onate back-whatever way cheaper tha rei or even renting stuff-have fun-snow families are the best! L.
Ask around first- friends often have what u need. Also try thrift stores. Once upon a Child is a good store in Folsom that has great pre-owned baby and toddler stuff. That's on the way up to Tahoe. Good luck! Stay warm!
Hi T.,
ebay is great for this sort of thing. There is an LL Bean snowsuit going in 3 hours for $3.30 and there are always loads of this sort of thing listed. They are usually in great shape because, like you, they only get used a couple of times (if that) before baby grows out of them.
Happy Bidding and have a lovely time in Tahoe.
D.
Go to a consignment store and pick something up. I reccomend "A Wee Change" in Pleasant Hill. It is in the shopping mall where Lenardis is. They have a website also. My daughter works there and they have really high end nice stuff for very very reasonable prices. I wouldn't buy new for a 12 month old. You might even find other clothes for your little one. :)
Hi good morning. I dont know how you feel about going to a second hand store, but my mother-in-law just got snow bibs for my 2 yr old there. They were brand new, with the tags still on them....never worn, for $2! I suggest you look there. You never know what you will find! Also, most of the stores are getting their spring lines in so all the winter jackets, gloves, etc are on sale. For my boys, rather than buy snow boots, we had them use their rain boots. They work just the same and you can tuck their pants inside them easily! Good luck!
Hi T.!
How fun! I would first try Goodwill, Once Upon A Child, or any other second hand children's store for your "snow supplies". I never get lucky enough to buy them there, but it's always worth a shot! Otherwise, Walmart & Target are usually pretty cheap for that stuff.
In my opinion, the most important thing I would buy is either new or used snow bib. Buy it larger though, so hopefully you can use it for more than one year. If you buy a "bib style" you can get away with doing this, because of the suspender's.
We take an annual snow trip to Tahoe, I have always bought my boys "gear" 2-3 sizes larger in pants, and now even jackets. My family and I keep all of our snow gear, and share it for this 1 trip :o) It makes alot easier because continue to outgrow things so fast.
When kids are so little, like age 1, they walk around for a little bit, but really they get too tired. You will end up either carrying your daughter, or pulling her around on a sled :O) If she has "decent" shoes/boots she'll be ok. Mittens are a must, and even a hat probably won't be too necessary unless the weather turns too windy.`
My boot trick.....if my kids' boots were ever NOT waterproof, then I simply put a baggie on their feet before I put their shoe/boot on them. This way their shoe could get wet, but not their feet. You will need to bring more than 1 pair of shoes, though.
My final bit of advice is that even if you think you are done with snow gear for a few years, DO NOT get rid of it! Hold onto it for along time. Just get a nice big plastic box and begin to store your gear in there.
Have so much fun!
~N.
You can rent or purchase everything you need at Mel Cotton's on San Carlos in San Jose. This store has been there "forever" and has a fabulous selection year round.
Have fun!
eBay!! I outfitted both of my kids for under $15 each. (Including ski bibs and snow boots - they already had jackets.) I bought the stuff a little big and they wore it 2 years in a row - not a bad deal! Happy shopping!
Outrageous Outgrowns, the largest one of its kind is coming up at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds. All kinds of childrens clothing, toys, furniture, etc are available for sale. They are sold by individuals and are in excellent condition. That would be a good resouce. Also, try online and put a WANTED ad. Someone probably has something that would fit and hasn't bothered to sell it. Have fun and don't forget a bucket and shovel for snow play, little ones love it !
Try Any Mountain. If you reserve the skis online for your kids you get 20% off. It comes up to around $14.99/day. It's a great deal.
I went tot Mother Goose consignment for the same thing and it worked out great. The snow bibs and boots are a must in the snow if you want to keep the kids warm. Mittens were not easy to keep on or to keep hands warm, so hopefully someone gives you good advice about that. I also borrowed a few items.
Some of the other baby stuff, like pack in plays can also be borrowed from the place you are staying.....just in case you didn't want to cart it there.
Doodlebug is a second-hand clothing store off BlueOaks--off 65 in Roseville. They have very reasonable prices.
I know from experience that you can easily rent them there. Tahoe has great places and they are cheap. Have fun !!
Hi T.,
I have four kids and really don't want to have to spend a lot of money when we go to the snow. I always go to Goodwill and kids consignment shops or craigslist. You can always find snow bibs at the Goodwill. But be careful in consignment shops you can sometimes end up paying close to or just as much for new. If you wanted to buy new you can always resell at craigslist or take to consignment. I hope this helps!
G. Diamond
Hi are you in the napa solano county area, i know in vallejo they have a place called tell rentals and you can rent baby snow gear. Its like $14 bucks or something. Hope this helps.
D.
You should check out "Once Upon A Child", they should have stuff for both of the kids for a reasonable price. Have a fun trip!
HI T.~ Not sure if you already found some gear for your little girl. I have a few snow outfits that I'd sell you for super cheap...got them for my little one last year and never used them...not doing me any good and I was going to seel them on Craigslist. Let me know if you still need stuff. :0)
M.
You don't say where you live, but I've always gotten my girls' gear at thrift stores. Savers in West San Jose, has a 99c sale every Monday. Because it doesn't snow here very often, there are often gently used snow clothes/boots for a good price.
You can rent or buy a gear in Kidz Shoppe, located on Camden Plaza in San Jose (off Union Ave.). They have great prices and selection. Highly recommended!
I live in S Lake Tahoe and I recommend getting in touch with Amy Thompson (owner & mom) at
In addition to a great indoor play gym, she has a consignment shop with all sorts of gear/clothing for reasonable prices. She will also be able to connect you to any other baby services in the area. There used to be a local service that would deliver winter gear to your hotel, but I can't remember their website.... She also has access to some babysitters.
I also highly recommend Bright Beginnings Daycare ###-###-####. They accept drop-ins and provide very high quality care. My son has been going there since 14 mos (now 21 mos) and I love them. They have an infant class (3 - 18 mos). The teachers are all certified and have CPR training. Like everyone in town, they could use some business, so it may be possible to negotiate your price.
You could try your local freecyle group to see if anyone has gear to give away or loan. Apparently, target does an inexpensive range of cold weather clothing.
E.
My friend gets all her kids winter stuff off EBay and Craiglist. She usually gets the stuff before winter hits, so pickings may be slim.
Best of luck and enjoy your trip. I LOVE Tahoe
