Winter is Coming

Well the cool air is starting to set in, fall is offically here, and winter will be close behind. I have spent the last two weeks going through all the kids clothing, sorting into groups.

One group is our fall and winter wear. I had to go through all of the clothes from last year because the girls still fit into some of those sizes. They were really chuncky as babies and wore 24-3T size last winter (with sleeves and pants rolled up because they were too short). Now that they are toddlers they have thinned out and grown taller and still fit into those sizes. So I picked out everything they could wear again this year and got out all the other clothes that we have been collecting for winter. Money saving tip: If you can try and guess what size they will be in during the winter, while it is still spring and summer, you can rack up on some good deals and clearence items. After looking at their “collection” of clothing, the girls seem pretty set except getting some more sweats. Criton, our boy, on the other hand poses a bigger challenge for me. He is really tall and skinny. Waist wise he is closer to an 18 month, and in some cases a large 12 month, but length wise these are too short and needs size 24 month. I have yet to find a pair of jeans that will not fall off. Here is what does work though: sweats and some lightweight cargo pants. So right now, that is his main wardrobe attire. Once he is able to fit into size 24 month pants though he is set (unless he grows too tall for them before his waist catches up). Like the girls, I will need to get more sweats for him and then he will be pretty set for winter.

Shoes have become slightly interesting. They are all in different sizes now! Caitlin still fits great in her size 5’s but Haley has moved up to size 6’s, and Criton is right between a 7-8. Talk about some big feet. I would be very surprised if he does not take after my side of the family where heigth is concerned and be over 6 feet tall. Everyone will probably need new tennis shoes soon, and when the snow hits they will all need boots.

Miche, my teenager, is basically at the point of a whole new wardrobe, which is a scary thought when you consider her taste and how expensive things have gotten. I will probably end up spending as much on clothing for just her, as I will for all three of the triplets combined. For me, that is the hardest part when on a strict budget, finding the money to do all the things that need to be done. Kids of any age are not cheap and you have to really hunt for bargains sometimes so everyone gets what they want/ need.

So after going through everything I have three large, yard size, bags full of clothing that I have to get rid of/ sell. To me that is really overwhelming. I suppose I could do small lots on ebay or craigslist, but that is so time consuming and just another thing to keep up with. My MoMs group will be having a sale in March but I really don’t want to wait that long. If any of my readers have some good suggestions, bring them on! I’m not looking for big money, just a little to help go towards buying new stuff.

Besides clothing some other thoughts have popped into my head concerning winter… When it gets really cold, what will I do with the kids all day? Right now we go to the park at least every other day, we play in the backyard, and they have a ton of toys, but they still get bored easily. It is definitely work to keep them engaged all day and going outside is my lifesaver when they start to revolt. So I am going to have to come up with some really creative ideas soon. Of course I will share them as we do them so hopefully it will help others in the same boat.