Snowsuits? What's really necessary?

I scooped up second-hand cute little reversible winter coats at our fall MoM's sale for $10 each. A stellar deal! Or so I thought at the time. Maybe now I'm over thinking it.

It's been getting progressively colder here in Omaha, but we have yet to get any measurable snow. The girls have been going stir crazy inside so any time it's been 45 degrees or warmer outside I leave them in their nice toasty fleece PJ's, add on another hooded fleece jacket, and take them outside to play in the grass for 10-15 minutes. I've found it's really a necessity. They are SO much happier when they come back inside and they nap more soundly and for longer. Totally worth it for 10-15 minutes of chilly outdoor time.

Over the last couple of weeks I started thinking about exactly what my plan would be once it would snow. Would the girls still get to go out and play? What all would we need to make sure they would be warm enough, even for only 10-15 minutes?

This is what I came up with:
1. Winter Coat
2. Snow Pants
3. Stocking Hat
4. Mittens/Gloves
5. Boots

So far I had the winter coats, and one pair of mittens that I had bought at clearance time last year. That meant I still had A TON left on my list to pick up for the girls before they would be "snow ready". One ongoing problem that we have encountered with the girlies is that they have a major problem with shoes. And they don't discriminate. It can be any type of shoes. Tennis shoes, dress shoes, sandals, it doesn't matter. They get placed on their feet and the girls scream and scream and scream and make it their mission to get said shoes off. They refuse to stand up or walk in their shoes and will sit in the middle of the floor and just scream for an hour until they get them off (I kid you not - I have left them on assuming it would pass and they would get over it...nope). I have no idea if this is normal, but it doesn't seem normal to me. Anyway...

I started thinking about my list of necessities to be snow ready, and it occurred to me that it may actually be more expensive to buy each of these items individually than it would be to buy them as a set. I found snow pants at Target for $15 each, and I found boots at Target for $12.99 each. Hats would run around $10 each, and mittens/gloves probably about $5 each more. That's $42 more, per girl, shopping at Target! And that's with me already having the coats! Kids really are expensive!

I looked around at Baby Gap, Carters, and online at JCP and came to the conclusion that I would buy each girl a one-piece snowsuit from Baby Gap during their Black Friday Sale (40% off + and additional 20% off when ordering online - sweet!). They were relatively pricey to start with but the discounts definitely helped a ton! Plus, they came with an attached hat/hood, mittens that snap into the snowsuit, AND little bootie covers that also snap into the snowsuit (so the girls won't absolutely have to wear boots with it!). I think I covered all of my bases with these suits and hopefully won't have to purchase any additional items.

Now my question for the group is, was the snowsuit purchase really necessary? I mean, could we have gotten by with what we had already? Could I have put them in multiple layers of pants and socks and such to let them play outside for 10 minutes? Was this a good purchase or a bad one?

I had the girls outside today while Si was trying to perfect our Christmas lights in the daylight and I put them in their winter coats. They were absolutely HILARIOUS! It was like they had lost all of their balancing skills! And once they teetered over, they couldn't get back up! HA! Here's a picture of the girls trying to maneuver around the front yard....
Livvy

Bri

And, Gramz and Grandpa were down this weekend (YAY) so we snapped a quick picture of Gramz with both girls. They love her SOOOOO much and it's so precious! Their eyes just light up every time they see her or hear her voice...such a special special bond =).

Hope you all had a wonderful extended weekend/Thanksgiving holiday with your family and friends! Did you stay as busy as I did?!

Until next time
Megan