By Jenna Morton
Shopping can be fun, it can also be a chore if you're constantly having to pick up items for you and your kids. A great approach is to schedule two major shopping days each year, one at the start of Spring, the other in early Fall. With an organized list and a large-scale consignment sale, it's possible to condense your shopping and stick to a budget.
Mark the date of the consignment sale; in Moncton, the largest sale is hosted by the Moncton Multiples non-profit group and takes place Saturday, April 11, at the Coliseum. Be sure to enter our contest to win early shopping privledges; you could beat the lines and the crowds!
A day or two before, go through your kids' closets and any bins of clothes you've saved for the upcoming season. Find out what fits.
Measure your child – inseam, sleeve length, shoe size, even head circumference. Check their sizes against the general size charts, so you know what to look for – maybe they fit into a 2T but are near the end of the size range; in that case, you want to plan ahead for a mid-season spurt and buy some smaller 3T items.
Make a list of what your child would wear in a week, then add in two play outfits and one dress outfit. (See our Spring/Summer shopping list below for inspiration.)
Hit up the consignment sale (or consignment/second-hand store – Moncton is full of great shopping options, including the well-kept racks at Lollipops and Gumdrops!) with list and size information in hand.
Shop, shop, shop!
Review the list and spend the afternoon picking up whatever you didn't find in the sale racks – new shoes, a fun beach towel, underwear, or whatever else is still on the list.
Finish the day confident you shouldn't have to go clothes shopping for several more months.
Here's our Kids' Clothing List for Spring/Summer. Consider this a minimal list, though not a minimalist's list: you might want to add a few more of certain items, based on your family's preferences and routines (warmer PJs for camping, soccer gear, sundresses, etc).