Two Days For Recovery

Last week, we had picture day at school. Obviously, this required a new outfit.

Well, to be honest, we just went looking for a new shirt. Once again, Kiera has outgrown clothes. Apparently, this happens to children.

Anyways, it started out fairly well. Aaron had to work overtime so he didn’t have to sit in the truck while Kiera and I shopped. Kiera was actually open to the idea of looking at clothes. It was a win-win situation. Right?

Sigh. We began looking at rack after rack of shirts. Eh, I started looking at rack after rack of shirts. Kiera became distracted with the hair accessories, toys, purses and other items.

“Mom! I could totally wear this in my hair for pictures tomorrow!” She exclaimed holding a metal headband with sparkling cat ears on the top.

“Umm… that is cute.” I said trying to not squash her idea. “But… well… I don’t know that you would be comfortable in that.”

She held it to her temple to put it on. As soon as the metal touched her skin, she immediately drew it back. “Nope. You’re right. Not this.” She responded, turning and putting it back on the shelf.

I inwardly sighed. “What about this shirt?” I asked holding up a short sleeve shirt.

Kiera turned and eyed the shirt critically. “Hmm… No. I don’t think I like that one.” She stated.

I put the shirt back on the rack, moving on to another one. “What about this one?”

“No. That’s really not my style.” She replied.

And so it continued. I would hold up a shirt, she would tell me what was wrong with it.

Finally, after 30 minutes of digging, I managed to produce three shirts that made the first cut. These shirts would then be taken on to the next round, the trying on round. Insert dramatic music here.

We walked in a dressing room and I placed her clothes on a wall hanger. “Mom.” Kiera said, “I think I can do this by myself if you want to stand outside.”

Ok. I was just kicked out of the dressing room. Trying not to show emotion, I replied, “Sure, baby. Just make sure you come out and show the shirts to me, please.”

She nodded in agreement before closing the door. As she was trying on her first shirt, Aaron texted me to let me know that he was in the store. I walked outside the dressing room door, still able to see her door but able to talk to Aaron.

“What have y’all found so far?” Aaron asked, not realizing the magnitude of the question.

Exhausted, I slumped against the nearest clothes rack. “Nothing. We have been looking through shirts since we got here and she has a total of three shirts to try on.”

I’ll save you the next 30-45 minutes of clothes trying on, plus going back to the clothes to find other shirts that might fit better… and just let you know that we did find a shirt. Well, two shirts. But, that is a whole other story and trust me, we don’t have time for that.

Now, I need to set a day to take her clothes shopping for summer clothes. I don’t know. I’m thinking I may have to schedule vacation time… one day for shirts… one day for shorts… one day for shoes and then two days for recovery.

Oh, I love my child.

Rowonna McNeely works as the Communications Manager for the Brownwood Area Chamber of Commerce. She and her husband, Aaron are regular volunteers in the community, and have their hands full with their daughter, Kiera, along with three dogs and one cat.

Thank you for sharing in our weekly journeys. If you have missed any of our past stories, check out our blog page at www.lifea2k.net or drop us a line at lifea2k@yahoo.com.