The day had come. It was time to take two children (luckily mum was available to have the third), school uniform shopping.
Envisaging images of elbows and long queues i mentally prepared myself for this trip and arranged to go with my cousin Sian (you will see her name pop up alot. We are usually always together, cousins that have a bond like sisters, etc) and her eldest child Hollie who like Katie, will be starting Reception in September at the same school that mine go to.
So we set off and reached our shopping destination. Not too bad, i marvelled once we had parked, got out of the car, forgotten a child, gone back to the car to fetch Hollie who was trying not to cry, giggled at our bad parenting to no one in particular, put a £1 in for the trolley and got through the doors of a well known supermarket chain.
Where were the usual crowds, people squeezing past each other and the endless queues at the tills?
This was a strange and alien world i had entered. Still, not one to complain about such a miracle we started to investigate the huge school clothing section on offer at the back of the store.
This year i was shopping for two children. Katie needed new everything. The nursery she attended before hand had its own style of jumper and t-shirt so she didnt already have the school uniform. Its also very hard to judge what will fit now, and what has room to grow/what she'll grow out of quickly when you have sizes 4-5 and 5-6 years in front of you. Katie turns 5 in November. I didnt want to get things that would be enormous on her but didnt want her to outgrow them all within 2 months either.
Holding things up to her body and using my eyes to judge as best i could, (and yes, all mothers do this!) i managed to get just about everything she needed in a mix of 4-5 and 5-6 year sizes.
The only semi problem with going shopping with Sian and Hollie though, was that Katie and Hollie have ended up with the same everything. Same PE trainers, same grey skirt, same polo shirts, and so on. Although i suppose if they get them muddled up, it wont matter so much as we are family who live about 100 yards or so from each other and can easily swap them back over.
Luckily Tayla (my 7 year old) didnt need half as much. She still has items of clothing that fit her from last term so again by holding clothing up to body judging, i got her the things that needed replacing and made my way to the checkout.
£83 lighter and we made our way back to my house where my mum was looking after Sophie and Sian's youngest Lacie.
Part one of the Back To School Shopping was complete!
Tomorrow comes Part two: School shoes, 1 grey pinafore for Katie, White socks for Tayla, Lunch boxes for all 3 children, PE bags x 2 and 1 backpack for Tayla.
Whose idea was it to have kids again??
