Here are a few questions for you this weekend:
1) Do you take your kids school clothes shopping, as in an actual shopping trip and wham bam get all the outfits then? (I'd also love to know your kids' ages) I'm a "grazing shopper"... I don't do big shopping sprees, and I tend to buy a little here, a little there and shop when I find good sales (as in.... Children's Place sales + coupon + CP credit card 10% discount all stacked up = SUPER GOOD DEALS!). Porter is starting 1st grade (say it ain't so!!) and while he technically has enough summer stuff to get the year started (it'll still be too warm here to wear fall/winter stuff when school starts, of course!), and I've already bought him jeans and a few winter shirts over the past months I'm wondering if I should do an actual "let's go shopping just mom and Porter for a few new school outfits"?
2) What about shoes? Do your kids get new school shoes? My kids, honestly, have an overflowing amount of shoes (right now many many flip flops and a couple pair of Converse each), and Porter's tennis shoes he got for his birthday in February still fit... so do I "need" to buy him a new pair of friggin $50 tennies just because the school year is starting?
3) Have you ever used a Baltic Amber Teething Necklace for your baby? I met a new mama friend online (heyyyy Melany, if you're reading!) and I noticed her daughter had a necklace on in a lot of her pics. She told me about the Amber Teething Necklace and I'm intrigued. I wonder if it really works/helps? Basically, it is a homeopathic remedy for teething... the amber releases oils that contain succinic acid which is a natural pain reliever. (read here for more information on the benefits of Baltic Amber)
4) If you have a daughter, when did you get her ears pierced and why? Did you do it as a baby, or did you wait until she was older and wanted earrings? Before having Amelia, I always thought if I had a daughter I'd pierce her ears as a baby. I thought it looked cute, and more distinctively "girly". I had my ears pierced as a baby and I just have always had earrings. However, my 2 oldest nieces got their ears pierced recently (at 7 and 8 years old) and they were SOOO excited about it... it was a big deal for them and I looved their excitement. So I'm kind of inbetween.... I love little girls with earrings, but I also think it'd be a fun "privilege" when she gets older. Opinions/thoughts?
1. Lincoln LOVES shopping for school clothes with us, he struts his stuff in the mirror. He loves having a choice in it and looks forward to it. We do a big trip (one and done)...but we also use coupons, discounts and wait for the best deal/scout out places, etc.
ReplyDelete2. We buy 1 pair of tennis shoes, but we do not have tons of shoes here at all.
3. Someone recommended the baltic Amber teething necklace for Mattox b/c teething has been super hard on him. We did not purchase though, (Will thought it was hokey).
4. I remember getting my ears pierced in 2nd grade and I was excited like your nieces. I personally would not get my baby's ears pierced. IMO that's a decision she should be able to choose when she's older. :) But, it can be awfully trendy and cutsie on a baby.
1&2) We do not do a big "school shopping" trip. I buy clothes as I see good deals and save them for when my kids need them. I do, however, buy them each a pair of shoes and a new backpack. I decided I am going to make this a tradition - the day before school starts, I am wrapping up a pair of shoes and their backpack and giving it to them for a "Back to School" present. No, they won't be decked out head to toe in new stuff, but that's OK. They don't really care, and neither do I.
ReplyDelete3) I think the necklaces sound neat! I have never tried amber.
4) We decided not to get Cinderella's ears pierced as a baby. Cute? Maybe to some people, but I just didn't like the idea of putting my baby through unnecessary pain so she could look cute. Personally, I don't really like earrings on babies. I also wanted Cinderella to make the decision to do it on her own. I remember how excited I was when I got my ears pierced. My sister took me, and I got purple and gold studs. I remember it like it was yesterday, and I want her to have an experience like that too. :)
My oldest is just entering kindergarten, so I don't really have any experience with back to school shopping. Generally, though, I've been one to just pick up random clothing items when I see something he needs, or it's on sale for a great deal. He absolutely HATES shopping, so there's no way I'd even attempt a 'big' shopping trip with him. (I recently blogged about taking him to one store to try and buy him clothes.)
ReplyDeleteShoes- I say why buy a brand new pair if the old ones still fit and are in decent condition? They grow out of shoes so quickly anyway, probably the next opportunity to NEED to buy a pair is just around the corner! I bought Ryan new shoes last spring, and since he's been wearing sandals all summer the shoes are still in great condition and still fit, so we're rolling with those!
Teething necklaces- never used them. I've seen a lot of babies with them on. I'm one to lean towards the "that's a bunch of hooey" camp when it comes to stuff like that:)
Earrings- I don't have a daughter, but I think it sounds totally fun to let an older girl experience the special treat of getting her ears pierced when she has a say in the matter.
Good luck with back to school!
I tried to take my girl school shopping just so she could pick out a few of her own clothes (I buy almost everything online and on sale) ... even though she has to wear a uniform. We ended up riding roller coasters and trying on princess dresses because she had no interest in clothes or school supplies. I was OK with that.
ReplyDeleteI don't buy shoes unless they are outgrowing something but I generally have tennis shoes, sandals, boots, rain boots and a couple of pairs of "fun shoes" for each of them at any given time. I like shoes :)
I haven't gotten a teething necklace but it's tempting. I forgot how much fun teething is.
I don't intend on getting Renee's ears pierced until she asks for it ... I figure it's her body and she can decide when she wants holes in it!
i think i'm going to take max shopping, just the two of us. it will be a fun little date and if he doesn't care or lasts 10 minutes, no big deal. i have GREAT memories of school shopping growing up, for us it was a huge tradition... we made an entire family weekend out of it, especially when my sister and i were older - junior high or high school age - but i realize that we were a family with two daughters so things might be a little different for us. max seems to really like shopping/clothes at this age and the other day tom and i were randomly talking about what we'd buy if we won the lottery and max said he'd buy more school clothes for kindergarten. ha. :) so, we're probably going to go this weekend.
ReplyDeletei wouldn't buy new shoes if i had some that still worked, just because school was starting. we have to bring gym shoes to leave at school, so i'm going to let him pick those out and that way he can get whatever weird character shoes he wants and i'll never have to even see them - HA. and i'll pick out his actual "school"/everyday shoes.
so the baby wears the necklace? i have never even heard of this... shows how fast things change in the world of baby gear :)
i'll let vivi get her ears pierced whenever she asks... i figure i'll let her decide and be excited about it. my cousin got her ears pierced when she was a few weeks old and it always kind of creeped me out on such a tiny baby... just one of those things i guess (like very skimpy swimsuits on tiny little babies... just seemed a little too old for her).
OMG yes the character shoes! EEEEK. Porter tried guilting me into Spiderman shoes when he was in preschool... he was all "Why do you hate them so much, mom? Craig's mom lets him wear Spiderman shoes..." HAHAHA!
ReplyDeleteYes... they wear a necklace! Its almost like a choker necklace, but not that tight. It's not "drapey" to where they can get it into their mouth. It looks really cute on too HAHAHA! I might try it out.
Skimpy swimsuits on babies... ick. I agree. I'm also leaning towards not getting her ears pierced. I think it'd be fun/special to do later.
Shoes... uhm... yeah did you see the amount of shoes I dug up to organize for the boys? Ridiculous!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm going to try the necklace. Look up my friend Melany Klink on FB. Her daughter has one. But I've seen little boys wearing them too and they look pretty cute HAHA!
I'm so glad to see that everyone else seems to be on the same page as me as far as not doing a huge shopping trip or buying new shoes specifically for school. (Although.... that could mean the people who don't agree are just not commenting! HAHA!)
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of a back to school gift... but then what do you do with all those backpacks if you get new every year? P's backpack is still in pretty good condition... not toss-worthy by any means. I think I'm going to start the tradition of taking them to shop for a new 1st day of school outfit/lunch. I think next year Porter will definitely be in the market for new tennies at teh beginning of the school year. He did get some new ones before school last year but Ry bought Target brand and the sole ripped up halfway through the year so we bought him Nikes for his b-day in February.
ReplyDeleteYeah. Up until this point, they have needed new backpacks every year, either because they were too small or fell apart. This year, Cinderella needed a new one but Thomas didn't. So I just got them both one. I got nicer ones, so hopefully they will last more than a year. If that's the case, maybe next year they will get lunch bags or something else. Or maybe just shoes and a new outfit. ;)
ReplyDeleteMadelyn is starting preschool this year and I am taking her shopping. She always gets new cables but that is because she wears sandals all summer and she has grown out of last winter shoes. If I had boys who still had shoes that fit and fairly new looking I would wait to bu new ones. You know their feet have to grow at some point so why not wait because it may be next month anyway!
ReplyDeleteAlyssa had her ears pierced at 8 months. I would do it a little sooner if I had to do it again just because she was so wiggly at that age and it was hard to keep her from wanting to grab the gun from the lady's hand! Madelyn had it done at 2 and they've since come out. She resisted my putting it back in and they grew back within 3 days:( oh well. Babies look adorable with or without earrings! My babies are bald until theyre 10 so I'm especially glad I did it:)
Umm shoes not cables...haha
ReplyDeleteNicole,
ReplyDeleteWas reading your blog and comments whether or not to have your dd's ears pierced.
This is a perfect age to pierce her ears! We did our dd at this age too. It is perfectly normal to be a
little nervous about having your dd's ears pierced. I went back and forth too. Babies and little girls
with little pierced ears celebrates their femininity and femaleness.
Believe me all little girls want
their ears pierced, but are so afraid having them done. She'll thank your for doing them now when you can care for them.
As you said, "... I had my ears pierced as a baby and I just have always had earrings...I love little
girls with earrings." I'd say if you thinking about it, then your mommy intuition is telling now is best
plus your own experience having done early.
Our ped gave me some suggestions for moms having their dd's ears pierced as well as for "Care of Newly Pierced Ears." They made it easy for both of us and included some OTC meds to minimize any discomfort.
If you or other moms are thinking about, then write me an e-mail and I'll send our ped's tips for moms having their dd's ears pierced,
Angie
Angietune@hotmail.com
I saved special papers/projects Jocelyn did this last year in KRP, her individual school picture, and her class picture. Then I put it in her backpack and store it. My mom did this for me and my sister. It keeps stuff organized for the dreaded open house collages (LOL) and we always got a kick out of dragging out "the backpacks" and laughing at how ridiculous we were. :)
ReplyDelete1) I ask Jocelyn what she wants clothes wise. She usually tells me 1 specific outfit and pair of shoes then I try to find them for her. She's going to Sharp Park this year so they wear uniforms. But I do go on a big shopping trip but it's not really back to school. It's when my mom gets her 30% off at Kohls trip. Then I buy a whole season of clothes for 4 kids for about $600. LOL
ReplyDelete2) My kids get new shoes when they need them. They each have stupid character shoes, regular nice tennis shoes, boots, cowboy/girl boots, nice sandals and daycare flipflops. They both grew a whole size over the summer so they each just recently got 4 new pair of shoes.
3) I have seen those baltic amber necklaces....on Beverly Hills Nannies. (guilty pleasure) I also wonder if it really helps. Someone needs to test it on their fussy children and let us know. Mine have been popping teeth in like crazy and I never even notice until "Hey Harper has a new tooth!" So they are either not fussy or else I just don't pay attention. It could very possibly be either option.
4) Jocelyn got her ears pierced for her 3rd birthday. I let her decide and we made it a mommy and me date. She was excited about the date but when it came down to the piercing she was ticked. But it only lasted a few minutes. She doesn't wear earrings anymore though because with her being so sensitive (eczema etc) she reacted badly to even the 14k gold studs. :( I don't find anything against getting babies ears pierced. They get shots. It's the same thing. I would pierce Hannah and Harpers ears if they got called boys constantly. But it seems like with twin girls decked out in pink, that has only happened maybe once. I think I'll let them chose when they are 3 like big sis did.