Back to School Shopping, Part 1

Over the last week or so, I've managed to finish the first part of back-to-school shopping. Once upon a time, I used to buy each kid a "nice" outfit for the start of school. A pretty dress for B (not a frilly one, but a play dress), and a nice shirt and slacks for M. Now that they are both preteens, the concept of "nice" clothes has gone out the window. This year, B got a pair of embroidered jeans (Lands' End) and a T-shirt (Target), while M got two black T-shirts (Lands' End) and a black sweatshirt (Target). (M already has plenty of jeans, thanks to my mom).

Then there were the new ballet clothes. B's ballet school, like many others, has a different color of leotard for each level. Since she moved up this year, we had to buy a periwinkle leotard for her, plus two pairs of new tights. She is such a tall kid that we ended up buying "petite adult" for her, which, of course, costs more than the kids' stuff. In addition, B is going to be a teaching assistant for one of the pre-ballet classes on Saturday mornings, so we bought a second leotard (I insisted she pick one out from the bargain bin, and she did), then splurged on a matching skirt.

Part 2 will be the school supplies, but you won't hear about those until next week, since we don't get our lists until the start of school.