At least I’m not making everyone march to dinner

It occurred to me a couple of days ago that Easter is this coming Sunday. I mean I knew that. There are giant bags of candy hidden in my closet. (I’m on top of the really important things.) But I kind of forgot about the whole Easter dress thing. Which is kind of a big, humongo deal at our house. In case you missed this basic fact, I love to dress my kids alike. There has not been a Christmas, Easter or family portrait in the last 14 years that has not featured matching clothes*. I realized this week that I simply do not have the wherewithal to track down a bevy of coordinating outfits. Especially when I now have to shop for India and York in the grown-up departments. No longer can I swing by the Children’s Place or Hartstrings and buy everything I need in 20 minutes.

So I tried making my peace with our motley assortment of church clothes (nobody even has anything new, let alone matchy). But I could not. I tried to tell myself that the days of matching clothes are over. However, I found myself wandering the aisles of the fabric store this morning. Surely I could whip up at least a few skirts. And then I could maybe make something for the boys**. Right?

Right! I got out the sewing machine and serger and went to town. I made three skirts for the girls this afternoon. The Fates smiled on me: I bought enough fabric. I had the right thread and elastic. I didn’t even sew any pieces together wrong. There were perfectly matching shirts at Target ($5 each!) and only one child threatened not to wear her ensemble (India, of course. Like I care what she thinks. So what if she’s fifteen?)

Tomorrow I’ll attempt to make neckties. I’ve never made them before but how hard can it be? (famous last words!) I even asked York if he’d wear a tie made of the really bright pink and green floral fabric I used for Arabella’s skirt and he was like, “yeah, whatever.” (I love easygoing children! They are the best ever!)

*I don’t know why I love matching clothes so much. One too many viewings of the von Trapps, I suppose. Which might also explain my large family. Whatever the reason, people give you major props if your kids are dressed alike. They believe–erroneously–that matching children indicate superior parenting skills. Chumps! But I’m not about to tell them that.

**It’s pretty much because of my obsession with dressing my children that I became good at sewing. My mom taught me how as a teenager, but it wasn’t until I tried to find coordinating brother-sister clothes that I buckled down and really figured it out. So it hasn’t all been pointlessly superficial.

| Filed under Kids, Stuff to Wear

6 thoughts on “At least I’m not making everyone march to dinner

  1. I saw this Faux Tie Tutorial a couple of weeks ago and had to give it a try. It actually turned out quite nicely. I figured I'd share two things that I learned just to save you some trouble. 1) Don't try it with crepe-backed satin – use a stiffer cotton/poly type fabric. 2) It works better if you sew it by hand as instructed; using a machine doesn't make it go faster.

    The closest I've come to dressing our kids alike was the year Grandma made matching pajamas for Christmas and then their wedding days, so I'm impressed with anyone willing to make the effort. It's hard work. And that's evidence of superior parenting skills in and of itself!

  2. I KNEW you couldn't do it. It's hardwired in you.
    Good luck with the ties, and you dang well better post pics.

    The question is, at what age will they finally, officially, revolt? (Or will their spouses be complaining about their overbearing mother-in-law who INSISTS the ENTIRE family dress alike for pictures…??)

    If your kids have gone along so far, you may actually have the latter scenario. 🙂

  3. Ties can be a monster or quite simple. But there ARE important things to know that will help you avoid suicide. Phone your mother.

  4. Due to my mother making us dress matching until I was old enough to be WAY past humiliated, I gave up on it when my oldest was about 9. Now we go for coordinating. This year it is purple and gray.

    Of course I forgot until yesterday that I would need to buy them all Easter clothes. Luckily we found what we needed quickly and only missed on the right size with one of them!

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