Hand-Me-Down Clothing

Last night someone brought us three bags of hand-me-down clothing.  This friend has a daughter about a year older than Emma, and are kind enough to pass down clothing when it has been out grown.  I like to "proof" the clothing before the kids see it, so I can weed out anything I choose. 

Alas, I did not get to it before the kids got up this morning and zero-ed in on the new clothing.

I didn't say anything when Emma left for school in a leopard print shirt, purple knit pants and a plaid frost-free vest (the vest did have some purple in it).  But I made a mental note that I definitely needed to go through those bags while the kids were at school.

So, I did.  I put away about 1 1/2 bags worth of clothing in Emma's drawers, closet or the summer clothing box, and the rest went in the "give-away" pile.  The rest was either too wide (Emma is super skinny), too worn or let's just say it doesn't-fit-my-idea-of-attractive to stay.

Emma skipped inside after school and went looking for the clothes she left all over her bedroom floor.  She soon came back again, asking what happened to a particular pair of pants.

(Before I go on, this older friend of Emma's takes dance classes and some of the things left at our house are clearly dance costumes.)

This specific pair of pants she was looking for were bright turquoise, shiny and had some black mesh over some parts.  They also matched a skirt (turquoise under, black mesh over and trimmed in fuchsia sequins) Maddie had adopted and worn most of the day.  There was also a matching leotard and fingerless black mesh gloves.  The skirt stayed for the dress-up box, but the rest got laid to rest in the give-away pile.

"What?!?!" Emma cried, "How could you?  That was my favorite!  You are so mean!"  Then she ran back to her room in tears.

Ryan looked at me and said, "Are you sure it's not too early?"

"Yes, it's a little bit soon for PMS," I said.  "I think."