Mommy Mondays: When the Rain Comes

Today was another yucky rainy Monday. They're getting a bit old, to be honest. Autumn needs to be cold, but dry. That's the key here. Crisp, slightly cloudy days with bright - if weak - sunshine. The sort of days that make you want to rake a pile of leaves to jump in, or pick a pumpkin, or take a cycle ride through some nature.

There's no picture of my outfit today because I just threw on a t-shirt, my Gap hoodie, and my wellies from Joules and ran out the door with Ethan under his raincover in the pushchair. When he's outside in the rain, he's either going to and from the car or he's in his pushchair, so for wet weather gear, E is pretty well set at the moment. When he's older, he has a pair of wellies of his own to splash about in and I'll get him a raincoat when I think he's big enough to stand half an hour of mucking about in the wet and cold. I, on the other hand, am a different matter. I need a raincoat. Seriously. How I have lived in England for about 3 years now without owning a raincoat is a feat of bad planning I can't even wrap my mind around. I have two pairs of wellies, yes, and a couple of brollies, but no raincoat. And being a mum, with all the lack of free hands to hold a brollie that such entails, I'd really like a waterproof covering that I don't have to hold in place, thank you very much. Which brings me to this morning's Google search...

 Nike Women's Vapor Jacket via, Runner's Need

Poncho via, Joules

Dakota 3-in-1, via Joules

Jacket, via H&M

1969 Oversized Pocket Jacket, via Gap

No, the last two aren't even waterproof, let alone equipped with hoods, but I thought they were cute, so they managed to sneak into the list anyway.

There seem to be quite slim pickings when it comes to cute, hooded rain gear. Why is that? Surely not everyone can sport an umbrella? And even if you can, weather in England sort of necessitates a large umbrella. Any of those pop-out, fit-in-your-purse, only-costs-£5 deals are always far too flimsy to withstand more than the lightest breath of breeze. There's a reason my red polka dot folding brolly from H&M never really made it more than one season: folding brollies are rubbish. For any decent longevity and protection from the elements, you need a full-no walking stick-length golf umbrella...and those aren't terribly cheap. Or compact. And you feel like a prize idiot when you leave it in the cupboard at work and then only remember it once you no longer work at that particular museum any more. True story.

So far, I'm leaning towards the Dakota, but I'd like something a bit more tailored, maybe. Something cinched in at the waist, neutral enough to go with anything, possibly with a tuck-away hood, definitely light enough to wear year-round. Is that too much to ask? It had better not be, because after lunch and a bit of Gilmore Girls, the search is back on. I refuse to spend another winter without decent wet weather gear.