Clothes - Why do I bother?

Okay... so part of being a mom is dealing with clothes... buying clothes, making sure clothes fit, cleaning them, etc.

Sometimes I wonder why we bother dressing children.

Seriously, I mean, what's the point? They get dirty if you just look at them and they only want to wear maybe one outfit, which they have to wear all the time, or they refuse to be dressed so you pick your battles and only make them be dressed outside or when you leave to go somewhere because it's not worth it.

Doodle is one who really makes me wonder. Okay... this boy has NOT wanted to wear underwear. I couldn't figure out why. Well, today I finally got to the bottom of it... he's outgrown all his underwear and never said a word. His shorts and pants are getting tight, too. This boy will wear clothes until they are ready to explode off of his body and never complain about it. I just don't get this. Sometimes I don't know if it's the Aspergers or just him.... since some kids on the Autistic Spectrum are so fussy about their clothes.

Of course, he hates the idea of having to get new clothes. He finds some pieces in what I buy him that he likes (and we stick to the styles he prefers, which are t-shirts with no collars, no buttons, etc., and jeans (he hates khakis). He's so my son... I was the same way... I liked t-shirts, sweatshirts, and jeans... that was it.

So I have to buy him more underwear... but I'll still have to make sure he actually wears it... ugh.

He would be happy if I just let him wear the same outfit every day and just washed him in his clothes to get the grime off once a month. He hates being bathed, hates changing his clothes, and he hates being naked.

He does, however, love his shoes. Sure, he's picky, but when he picks out shoes, he'll wear them till they're outgrown and he'll tell ya soon enough about it and pretty much wear them out in the process. He gets excited when you tell him which shoes he gets to wear. I'll tell him, put on your sneakers... I don't have to tell him anymore that he must wear socks... he just says... "yay!" and gets them. I'll tell him to put on play shoes (canvas loafers at our house) and he'll ask me.... "do I need socks?"... cause that depends on the weather.

Sandals he is iffy about these days, though. He doesn't like his foot exposed so much... but when it gets hot enough... he's the first to be thrilled and grab them.


Then, we have The Bird. This child... he attracts dirt and grime the way honey attracts flies. It cakes on him. And he hates being dirty. Not only that, but he's still wetting the bed at night, so he has to change when he wakes up sometimes. The Bird is obsessed with clothes... they must be just so, his hair must be just so, and his shoes must be just so. But this child hates socks. He's reached the age where he wants to do it all himself and socks are posing hazardous.

He's also the child who will, on a whim,change his outfit just because he wants to. So, in a day, I may easily go through 3-4 shirts and 2-3 bottoms for him. He loves underwear. THere was no thrill like it when he found out he was able to wear boxer briefs just like big guys do (I require poop training for such undies... for reasons I will spare you.).

Now Roo is my nudist. She started taking her clothes off around 1yr old and didn't stop. Now she's sort of growing out of it. However, if she soils herself and you don't change her and redress her immediately, you will have a child who deposits her clothes in the dirty clothes and then is hard to get redressed.

There are times when she will get on clothes to go outside or to go somewhere and the moment you bring her back in the house, she strips.


So... wouldn't it just be easier to let the children run naked and take out the hose when they need cleaning? Probably would be.

And yet, I continue to buy clothes, force the children to wear them, and then, when they are dirty, wash them.

Oh the insanity!

I could never be a single mom

I totally admire single moms... why??? Because I could never do it.

This statement is coming because my husband (who I love to bits... he's my big sexy bear) has left to go to ozzfest and so, for the next 2 days, I'm like a single parent. UGH. No one to just pass the kids off to when I need that "going nuts from hearing them fight off and on all day" break or getting backup when I have to really put my foot down and one of the kids is being stubborn and another one is getting into trouble.

My mother was a single parent and I really admire her for that, despite all the problems I have with her and my complete dislike of her and all parts of her. She did the best she could given her situation and generation and for that, I do admire her.

However, my childhood (the bad parts that I swear I will post about one of these days) was one reason I vowed that I would not get married until I was sure I was ready to be really and truly committed and put in the work to make it last. My husband is from a family where divorce just doesn't happen. The first person to do so has been my youngest brother in law and that was because he just made a really bad choice in wife. I got very lucky in that I was able to not only find someone that I love with all my heart, but who knows first hand that marriage is tons of work. He's had infinite patience as I've gone through my bipolar mess and gotten on meds. He has taught me so much about what a real partner is and what it is like to have someone by your side who truly won't back out when the going gets tough.



Anyway...

So day 1 of me on my own with the kids with no husband coming home tonight (miss him so bad) involves the dishwasher breaking (the thing is old, so probably now is dead).

Doodle is sick with a cold and so thereby will not sit on a piece of furniture correctly (why this happens when he gets sick I'll never know) so I'm battling to keep my sofa together.

The Bird is only tolerable today when on a computer playing games or reading comics because otherwise he is trying to be the boss of his brother and sister.

And Roo has found the halloween buckets from last year and is prancing around in her brother's ninja turtle shirt and her pink shorts chirping "trick-y-treat!"

He owes me big time for letting him go to Ozzfest. However, I still owe him for just being him. A wonderful husband and father who is why I am not a single mom.

Fall (not Spring) Cleaning

Okay... I've noticed something about being a mom (henceforth I'm now posting about cleaning today instead of continuing with my backstory).

When you become a mom, a lot of things change. Spring Cleaning is a big thing... most people do a big clean-out of things when Spring comes. Well, I do, too, but I also do Fall Cleaning. I go through all the shoes, the clothes, whatever is in our attic, and we clean the house top to bottom.

I just have to do this because otherwise my kids (who grow like weeds) would completely overwhelm the storage and the rest of the house with their outgrown clothes, shoes, broken toys, toys they no longer play with, and GOD only knows what else.

So... today... I spent 4 hrs doing this... and OMG... felt good. my front closet is cleaned out of shoes (only the new school shoes/sneakers (school shoes if you go to school/sneakers if you don't), their sandals, and their play shoes (used when sandals are not practical) are in there.

I have a ton of stuff to list on craigslist, ebay, and to pass down to my niece's daughters.

It feels good to have so much done.

And yet, it creates more work.

I find I have to do this to get the house ready for the start of school. Just as, in Spring, I'm preparing for the onslaught of children being released... the big times the weather starts to change, basically.

Tomorrow I have to bring everything out of the attic (clothes for the kids to grow into) and see what size pants Doodle is actually wearing. I also have to add more items I bought for Roo for winter and stuff... so it's more of an update to my attic.

But I am feeling almost where I can just breathe easy and know that we're ready for school to start and not worry about clothes or anything for awhile.