help! ive never been skiing before...taking dd (18mo) in 5 weeks and have no idea what to buy for her and myself

[upsyandiggle]

I am going skiing in Feb, with a couple of other families, all of which have been skiing before. I will not be skiing but looking after dd. so far i have bought a few thermal vests/bottoms for her but that?s it. Please help me and suggest some essential/not essential but helpful items i need to buy. I cannot find a ski suit small enough she is currently in 9-12 months clothes sometimes 12-18, she has also just started to walk but i cannot find any snow boots small enough (currently a 3). Also as i won?t be skiing but will be out and about in the snow what do i need. I am really starting to panic now.

Thanks in advance.

diddy snow boots here or try tkmaxx. I'd recommend lace-up ones as a better fit if you can find them. Layer up with cotton poloneck body suits(Gap), fleece, tights and snow suit, not forgetting hat and good gloves, preferably with long cuffs.

all-in-one suit not vital - dd (also 18m) has salopettes + jacket which are good too, esp as you can slip off the jacket when you go inside but don;t need to undress her totally.

Muddy Puddles is a good place to start for baby snow stuff but aren't cheap - Lidl, Aldi, Tchibo and TKMaxx are all worth a look

you need a ski jacket (from above suppliers) and layers to go underneath, also waterproof boots with decent grip. You should get away without ski trous though. Ski socks are lovely and warm even if you aren't skiing.

I would hire it all or as much as you can- then if you decide you like it you can buy next time!

Basically you will BOTH need

Hat
Waterproof Gloves (pref breathable)
Trousers/Jacket or all in one snow suits
scarf
thermal top and bottoms
Long and short sleeve tops from your wardrobe (Lots of thin layers if v. cold)
thick socks
snow boots (need to grip in snow and ice)
Sunglasses (baby banz are good for LO)- not too dark at this time of year (yellow tint is good)
factor 50 sun lotion

HIRE a toboggan for LO once you are there if there is snow on the ground

small pink boots!

Most years I would say you can buy stuff when you get there but this year go kitted up.

FYM list is excellent - a couple of additions:
I would recommend taking spare gloves as there is nothing nastier than putting on cold wet gloves that have got snow inside them.
And lip balm. Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream is great if you are not on a budget, it does seem to have magical qualities, but any old stuff works.

have a trawl around ebay - you can probably find most things for a better price

Take a look on Ebay for ski clothes - most of the smaller sizes will only have been worn for one holiday. Here's one. DD had a 12-18 month set last winter and it was a bit long but fine as the elasticated legs can rest on the boots. Her's was a blue/boy's one as we couldn't find a 'girly one' small enough!

Tesco have small fleece jumpers for a couple of ££s - DD (2.5) is still wearing her 9-12 month one so they are very generous.

DD was 17 months when we went and had been walking for a few months but it wasn't particluarly easy getting boots to fit. She was a 3 or 4 and I ended up getting size 5 with furry insides with plenty of room for extra, thick socks. Boots that open up and fastened with velcro would be best as the first pair I tried for DD which had just a sort of 'bellows' opening were too tight to get her foot in and I couldn't get her to flex her foot enough to push it in. Ours came from muddypuddles.co.uk but we tried raindrops.co.uk too (they do tiny thermals as well)

Where are you going skiing? We took DS1 when he was around 15 months old to a french resort and bought his boots there. They had a much better range and were cheaper.

thanks so much for your advice. i am off shopping over the weekend. will buy the boots and snow suit from the internet. Do you think i need to buy a size bigger for the extra layers underneath for dd, will do this with the snow boots but not sure about the suit as she really is diddy.

going to austria, flying to saltzburg not sure of the resort but it has stuff for us to do like a swimming pool, hoping to take her to the park and get a toboggan.

Buy 18m, you can roll up sleeves and legs if too long.

thanks everyone, been to a ski shop today bought an 18m trousers and top. also buying those small pink boots off the internet, got her to try them on in the shop and seem perfect but much cheeper where you found them LIZS. on with getting hat scarfs etc.. from ebay. Got a lot for dh and me from matalan and aldi.

Feel much happier now.