The quest for the perfect dress

By Michelle

The other day, I watched my 19-month-old daughter playing with shoes. She picked up a pair of her father's tennis shoes and giggled while clomping around the kitchen.  Lately, she's taken to wearing my shoes (sadly, the Payless variety and not Manolo Blahniks). Though I admire people with those trendy, kicky little shoes that accentuate an outfit, I'm afraid I go for comfort and shoes that don't cost a semester's worth of college.

But if I see a darling pair of black patent leather Mary Janes, and a red velvet Christmas dress, my VISA whips out faster than you can say Jingle Bells. Yes, I am a self-professed sucker for baby dresses. I love the velvets, the embroidery, and the satin bows. Though I know my daughter will more likely eat the baby headband and rip out the barrettes, I can't help myself. It's an addiction.

"She'll only wear it once," my wallet will argue at the checkout line. "You could probably find a perfectly good dress at a secondhand store."

"But it's her first REAL Christmas," I'll insist. "Last year she was a little baby blob who drooled on my shoulder. This year she'll experience Santa Claus for the first time and make gingerbread men with sloppy decorations and hear Christmas carols while snow falls outside. She HAS to have a Christmas dress! And little white tights with lace." This year, I can't wait to cruise the store aisles, in the quest for my Holy Grail: The Christmas dress.

Last year, my baby only wore her Christmas dress once, as expected. During Christmas Eve Mass, I snuggled her in my lap, watching her angel face drift into slumber. She wore red brocade with black velvet, and all was right with the world.

What impulse buys have you made for your children?

Michelle lives with her husband and children in southeastern Virginia, where she teaches sixth-graders and also write historical romances.

Comments

[Jess]

My downfall is shoes! Ah my daughter is 6 yrs old and has more shoes than I care to mention.Like Nicola I also search ebay for deals on shoes but I am a member of the boutique comunity on ebay so I can make her just about any clothing,now if only I were a cobbler....

[Nicola]

What impulse buys have I not made for my son would be an easier question to answer! I have always been incredibly frugal, good with my money, not a shopper at all. And then along came Kellan. Now I can't enter a store without visiting and purchasing items from the children's clothing and toy sections. I spend a fortune on adorable board books that he just has to have every time I walk into Barnes & Noble. Ebay has become a close friend and associate when looking for those special hard to find items (that he honestly doesn't need). Even my husband, more frugal than any person I know, routinely comes home from the store with new toys for Kellan. Goodbye budget, hello Kellan!

Hey, at least we don't have to do the Christmas dress thing...

[francine]

Sad but true. I have walked around the last year in a look that can be gently described as disheveled and yet my daughter's socks match her sweater that also goes with her jeans that pairs marvelously with her onesie...you get the picture.

[Pink]

Ah, the hunt for the Christmas dress. I tried to be a little more practical but this is also Miss P's first "real" Christmas. I found a discounted dress at Gymboree that's a little more simple, but still I doubt she'll wear it past Christmas. But, I did splurge on a faux fur cape and muff to wear to church on Christmas Eve--after all, a little princess can't wear a parka!

[Goldberry]

I swore that I would NEVER buy a dress that my daughters can't wear more than once. Each year, the Christmas outfits have been something that can be worn to preschool, or out shopping. Last year, my daughter wore a beautiful cream colored cordoroy dress with embroidered snowflakes along the bottom. It was beautiful and multi-functional.

This year was much more difficult, but I finaly found a red dress at Old Navy that she can wear on Christmas and then to school after the holidays.

I grew up wearing the frilly outfits and refuse to put my children in them. A personal choice. My daughter's will soon be old enough to choose their own outfits and I will suck it up when that time comes.