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Winter hasn't even officially started yet and already it is getting hard to find children's snowsuits in the stores. It hadn't occurred to me to shop for snowsuits until last week-- when we had our first snowfall in our area. I dutifully pulled last years suits out of storage, only to find out that my children had outgrown them.

My daughter was upset. She wanted to go out and play in the snow-- and she wanted to do it now. So we made due with the too-short suit, but the next day I packed it away for Goodwill and began my search for new, proper-fitting snowsuits for my children.
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I went to my favorite local discount stores first, but the selection was very hit and miss. I checked online at some of my favorite stores (The Children's Place always has really cute outerwear), but unfortunately they were sold out of the sizes I needed. I decided to check my catchall for all things retail-- eBay -- and yes, there were loads of suits listed in my children's sizes. But I kept getting outbid. When an ultra-cute silver colored Osh Kosh B'Gosh snowsuit in my daughter's size exceeded 60 dollars in bids, I knew I had to scrap that idea.

As I researched further, I found myself on sporting good and cold weather gear websites. Yes, they did have toddler size snowsuits in stock, but they were pricey. I was resigned to just shelling out the big bucks for high quality suits, when I decided to check one more local store.

Bingo. They were having a huge sale on all children's coats and outerwear-- everything was 50 percent off. They had a pair of snow pants in my son's size, so I snatched them up right away. They didn't have my daughter's size, but they had the next size up, so I bought a pink leopard print snow jacket and pink coveralls for under 20 dollars total. The snow pants are a little long for my daughter, so we just rolled the bottoms of the pants up so they would fit. The best part is, this snowsuit will definitely still fit my daughter next year-- which means I won't have to go through this again!

Tips for Snowsuit Hunting:

-- If you're looking for snowsuits for your kids, shop early-- the best items sell out quickly and most stores won't have any more in stock for the rest of the season.

-- If you check eBay for snowsuits, make sure you know what you want. If you only want new, unused snowsuits, make sure to type "NWT" (new with tags) or the word "New" in the search bar. But be careful, some sellers will label their item "Like New", which really just means used, but in excellent shape. Also, to avoid bidding wars (and especially if you're in a rush to get the suit), look for items that have a Buy It Now price, which means you can snag the item on the spot, without waiting for the auction to end.

When buying from online retailers, make sure you check the size charts before selecting your child's size. Also, try to order before the holiday rush, or you may find yourself waiting a few extra days for the snowsuit to arrive.