A Toddler in the Rain: What Do You Do?

Boo(l) in the rain. This is her first time ever stomping a puddle with rain boots.

San Francisco’s rainy season started Friday. You’d think as a former naturalist, someone who hiked for a living, I’d know about using proper gear.

You’d be wrong. I left the house without a waterproof coat or decent hat and wearing my flimsy slip-on shoes. Boo had a knit sweater with, at least, a hood.

Nice job, Doodaddy.

So we went shopping. The trip to Citikids (which I unabashedly plug — they’re sooo nice) marks exactly the third time I have bought clothes for Boo without Working Mom along, and the first intentional “trip” to a store. (The first two were impulse binges.) We have quite a lot of clothing, plus the issue of who buys Boo’s clothes is a little charged, so I usually just avoid it.

Unfortunately, I had no choice. Apart from the annoying dripping, as soon as Boobaby saw her friend G— at the Exploratorium, she wouldn’t stop raving about her boots: “Boots! Boots! Boots!” She likes the ones with eyeballs (“Boots! Eyes!”), so we bought some froggy boots and a raincoat, and left the store to stomp on every puddle in front of every Korean barbecue place down Clement Street.

The moment was won, but I still fear for the long-term. You see, Boobaby likes to go out every single day. Last year, with an 8-month old at the start of rainy season, it was easy to have “at-home days” of play. I really don’t think that’s going to cut it this year. We have a couple of indoor options — the Exploratorium, an aquarium, that sort of thing. But I don’t want to spend the next four months going to overheated warehouses: I want to experience the outdoors!

So… how do you get outdoors with a toddler in the rain? Full baby rain gear and a lot of towels?

in activities,failure,nature,rainy day ·