At the end of summer I clean out the girls' closets. They try on every item of clothing, and I decide if it's too short, too tight, or too ripped. The too short and too tight items are handed down to the next girl, and the ripped (always jeans) get hacked into shorts. The kids love this day.
We start in the oldest girl's closet as daughter #2 watches #1 try on clothes and offers commentary. "That's way too tight."
We start in the oldest girl's closet as daughter #2 watches #1 try on clothes and offers commentary. "That's way too tight."
I study the pair of jeans daughter #1 has on from last spring and decide they aren't too snug. They should fit through the first month or two of school, but daughter #2 shakes her head. "Definitely too tight." I look carefully at daughter #2. Her gaze is locked on the cool stitching and rhinestones on the jeans. She wants them. Badly.
When I was a kid, I hated hand-me-downs. My sister was six years older than me, so by the time I got her clothes the fashions were a little wrong. Plus I hated used clothing. My kids love getting the older sisters' clothes. There have been emotional tears in the past when a favorite outfit no longer fits and it is handed down to the next girl. The original owner doesn't care that it no longer fits; she simply doesn't want her younger sister to have it.
This trickle down effect has had a couple of obvious results. The youngest's closet is jam-packed and the oldest's is nearly empty. This year #1 had one pair of snug jeans and a pair of sweat pants that still fit. No skirts, no dresses. So she gets the most new clothes. Daughters #2 and #3 always protest this fact during the shopping trips, but a reminder that the new items will be in their closets in a year or two pacifies them. But I buy them new stuff, too. Girl clothing is just so damned cute I can't resist.
Some of the basics I've learned over the years:
1. Spend the extra money on good brand name socks. The store brand socks suck and the little seam at the toes drives kids crazy when they put on their shoes.
2. Buy more socks then you think you'll need. Yesterday I bought 23 pairs.
3. Kid underwear shrinks. It may look the right size in the store, but once it's washed it fits the next child down, not the intended child.
4. Buy more underwear than you think you'll need.
5. Buy with room to grow!! Especially with shoes and jeans. My mom doesn't get this. She'll buy them clothing that'll fit for a month.
6. Spend the extra money on good brand name tennis shoes. They'll hold together and look nice through two kids. Store brand won't survive through one kid.
7. When feasible, shop with one kid at a time. (snort) When all three kids go, I return home with purchases I hadn't planned on making. I couldn't say no when daughter #2 fell in love with the fuzzy TOL print clogs with inch and a half heels. TOL = touch of leopard. I would've wanted them when I was eight, too. I'm sure her teachers will wonder what in the hell her mom was thinking. This is the same daughter that wanted her sister's rhinestone jeans.
Right now, everyone's closets are well stocked. Fresh school supplies are in the backpacks, ready for the first day. I won't go into the pains of school supply shopping or backpack fashions. (High School Musical vs. Hannah Montana) That is a whole other post. Next Wednesday morning as the bus hauls away all three girls, I'll wave and blow kisses. Then I'll hit Starbucks for a first day of school mini-celebration and then curl up with my laptop for six blissful, uninterrupted hours of work.
When I was a kid, I hated hand-me-downs. My sister was six years older than me, so by the time I got her clothes the fashions were a little wrong. Plus I hated used clothing. My kids love getting the older sisters' clothes. There have been emotional tears in the past when a favorite outfit no longer fits and it is handed down to the next girl. The original owner doesn't care that it no longer fits; she simply doesn't want her younger sister to have it.
This trickle down effect has had a couple of obvious results. The youngest's closet is jam-packed and the oldest's is nearly empty. This year #1 had one pair of snug jeans and a pair of sweat pants that still fit. No skirts, no dresses. So she gets the most new clothes. Daughters #2 and #3 always protest this fact during the shopping trips, but a reminder that the new items will be in their closets in a year or two pacifies them. But I buy them new stuff, too. Girl clothing is just so damned cute I can't resist.
Some of the basics I've learned over the years:
1. Spend the extra money on good brand name socks. The store brand socks suck and the little seam at the toes drives kids crazy when they put on their shoes.
2. Buy more socks then you think you'll need. Yesterday I bought 23 pairs.
3. Kid underwear shrinks. It may look the right size in the store, but once it's washed it fits the next child down, not the intended child.
4. Buy more underwear than you think you'll need.
5. Buy with room to grow!! Especially with shoes and jeans. My mom doesn't get this. She'll buy them clothing that'll fit for a month.
6. Spend the extra money on good brand name tennis shoes. They'll hold together and look nice through two kids. Store brand won't survive through one kid.
7. When feasible, shop with one kid at a time. (snort) When all three kids go, I return home with purchases I hadn't planned on making. I couldn't say no when daughter #2 fell in love with the fuzzy TOL print clogs with inch and a half heels. TOL = touch of leopard. I would've wanted them when I was eight, too. I'm sure her teachers will wonder what in the hell her mom was thinking. This is the same daughter that wanted her sister's rhinestone jeans.
Right now, everyone's closets are well stocked. Fresh school supplies are in the backpacks, ready for the first day. I won't go into the pains of school supply shopping or backpack fashions. (High School Musical vs. Hannah Montana) That is a whole other post. Next Wednesday morning as the bus hauls away all three girls, I'll wave and blow kisses. Then I'll hit Starbucks for a first day of school mini-celebration and then curl up with my laptop for six blissful, uninterrupted hours of work.
5 comments:
Fun blog.
Kendra, at least you have two more daughters to pass things to. It's tough when the next child down from the only daughter is the only son. For some reason, most boys don't find TOL clogs attractive or desirable. Go figure.
My in-laws, on the other hand, used to buy my kids things that would fit in six months or a year. But as the clothes or shoes were new, the children were desperate to wear them. Result -- by the time the items fit, they were stained, torn, a mess.
I do remember fondly those first few days as the kids returned to school. I always found it a little bittersweet as by the end of August we had somehow found a lazy summer time pattern that worked and school was disruptive at first. But not for long! Most household chores can be accomplished in an amazingly short amount of time (when properly motivated) and that leaves hours for writing. Enjoy!
Hahahaha! This is a great post, Kendra. I'm an only child and the part of me that wishes for siblings had a "sigh" moment thinking of closet-clean-out-day.
What a fun blog post, Kendra! Took me back in time a few years.
I had 3 kids, too, but it went girl/boy/girl. There were some hand-me-downs from daughter to daughter, and son got all new. When my oldest first started to school, I made all her clothes. I had so much fun! And I loved applique. Everything she had was adorned with all kinds of fancy appliques I'd invented. Poor child. But she seemed to like them. By the time DD2 was big enough to wear them, the appliques were falling off.
Ah, the first day of school. How I looked forward to it every year. Sigh. Now it's just another day. 8^)
As a child, I was the only girl in my family, but my cousin was a year older than me and every summer a box of her hand me downs would arrive at our house. I had so much fun trying on all the pretty things they sent me. My aunt and uncle had more money than we did and all my clothes were hand made. Which at the time I thought was bad. Now I relish homemade outfits because they were made with the labor of love. But as a child, I thought it showed our poverty.
I remember when the kids were younger, I LOVED getting them back into school. Like you, it meant I had 4 solid hours of writing time.
Fun blog.
Looks like everyone has school clothes memories. My mom used to make a lot of my clothes when I was a kid. I loved the dresses. She'd churn out four at a time, all the same pattern but different fabrics. Now I can pick up a sale dress for a kid for $8.99. I think my mom spent at least that on fabric.
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