I'm not really a big shopper. Don't get me wrong; I like to shop for clothes and I love shopping for the babies. My issue is that shopping is an all-day endeavor for me. Plus, I will need to arrange for a babysitter in advance. So my previous pastime that used to be so spontaneous and free is now a rare and organized process involving the alignment of the moon and stars. I have taken the babies shopping several times.
Trust me--it's better to window shop. Scope the scene for later.
The stroller will not fit in between all of the racks. I have taken the time to move each rack, but by the time I shop one store, I feel like I have been to 20. I feel like I'm rearranging the whole store and I might not even find anything I want. People stare with a look of pity; some even offer to help. Shopping is already over-whelming enough with the whole endless sea of racks with individually hung articles. I slide them across the bar one by one: squeak, squeak, squeak. But now I'm also moving each rack one foot to the left. The babies reach out and pull things down. My diaper bag knocks things off. Forget it. I'm going home.
When I was pregnant and teaching summer school, I was amazed when one couple (and former students) contacted me and wanted to give me boxes and boxes of clothes. Really? Wow! Thanks! Should I accept? How can I refuse? They could've easily given all of those clothes to someone in their family or someone they were closer to, but they went out of their way to give them to me, to my babies. We arranged a time and met at my car in the parking lot.
Throughout my pregnancy and after their birth, people have been giving me things that they no longer need. It seems like people come forward one by one, like angel visitors.
I'm finding myself with tons of clothes for which I have not spent a penny. I have to admit that I had one big garage sale after my first wave of blessings were outgrown. We used the money to buy the next stage of things the babies needed. But from then on, I have passed on this act of kindness to other new moms who might appreciate some hand-me-down magic. Yes, it is in fact an act of kindness, but isn't it at least a little true that these clothes pile up rather quickly and the kids grow out of them even more quickly? We mothers find ourselves with an overload of useless clothing...and that garage sale was a lot of work. It is a lot easier to look over your shoulder to another mother with children a little younger than yours and bless her with a shopless score.
Remember, babies, you must enjoy these clothes while they last! Wear these clothes before the strike of your next size or they might just turn into pumpkins!
Bippity boppity boo! You're welcome and thank you!
