As I was signing Luke into his preschool yesterday, I overheard one mom (dragging in two boys) saying to another mom (accompanied by a precious blond girl) It must be fun to dress little girls, to which the mom replied enthusiastically, Yes, it is!

Ahhh, I remember those days! We didn't find out the sex of our first baby until the moment she popped out...and although it wasn't the first thing on my mind, it didn't take long for the excitement of dressing a little girl to build. We had packed only unisex things for the hospital and had received mostly unisex items at the showers (I say mostly because a couple people bought "girl" because they had a feeling!) but within hours of her birth, gifts of pink began pouring in. I believe Rhonda, (see two posts down), takes the prize for Lily's first dress, dainty pale pink with matching bonnet, accompanied by her first baby doll, all while we were still in the hospital. In her first few months, I would often change her clothes 3-4 times a day just to get use out of all the adorable outfits she was quickly outgrowing. Not only was she fun to dress, she was fun to buy for...pink and frilly or denim and trendy, either way, I, like many moms, took great pleasure in dressing my daughter. I knew a week in advance what she would wear to church. I knew months in advance what she would wear on a holiday: Easter, Christmas, Mother's Day. Oh, how I wish it was like that today!

Lily allowed me to pick out her clothes until this school year began. I don't know exactly what happened when, but she has stopped letting me use her as my life-size doll. The nerve! Today, as I dropped her off for school, I just shook my head to watch my mismatched daughter head into the building...fuchsia tights with a black shirt, not too bad. Add to that white socks, brown shoes, a turquoise hoodie, pink gloves and suddenly, I no longer want to take credit for her attire. She's always had a flair for the mismatched...when left to choose her own clothes she would put different prints together and snow boots would complete the ensemble. But she has always let me pick the "important" stuff...you know, the out-in-public wardrobe. This school year started off on the right foot. Mimi took all the grandkids school shopping and Lily picked out cargo capris, embellished denim, cute tops. Weeks one and two of school she wore each outfit, selected daily by mom, with no fuss. Then week three rolled around, fatigue was setting in, and I think she just decided enough was enough...she was dressing her way, take it or leave it. And "soft clothes" became the new phrase in our home. Soft clothes: cotton leggings, elastic waistbands, roomy shirts. A couple Hanes legging outfits from Walmart, a few hand-me downs from Gymboree, some Old Navy fleece that still fits from last year...we're making this "soft clothes" thing work. I'm hanging on to the embellished denim and cargo pants hoping she'll add those back in soon but in the mean time, we're piecing together outfits that don't itch or bind...some days successfully, other days, not so much.

But here's my confession, as much as it makes me want to bash my head into the wall, I'm also really proud of her! Kindergarten is not too young for peer pressure and you don't hear many kids at school saying "soft clothes are the coolest" nor do you see Hannah Montana sporting Hanes on stage, so despite our current trends and role models, Lily is choosing comfort. And I'm just trying to help her balance comfort with style.

We've got a long road ahead of us...tween years, teen years. It's actually funny to think that the same things (outfits, clothing, shopping) that bring mommies such joy in the early months and years will bring such strife as our daughters grow.