Using Outgrown Girls Dresses (WFMW)

For lots of great tips and ideas, check out Works for Me Wednesday at Rocks in my Dryer!




I think that I had read this tip a long time ago in a magazine or the like, and apparently filed it away in my brain to be brought back this year. It is one that we are using all the time, and it has been working wonderfully for us.

Molly has outgrown some of her dresses from last year. Many are still fine in how they fit her upper portion, but they are just too short. Heck -- even some of her 2T dresses still fit the top half of her, but just are not acceptable as dresses anymore.

So, with the fashion right now being those flowing maternity style tops, we have begun coupling too short dresses with blue jeans or capri pants (when the weather gets better). This way, a dress that might have been passed along to someone else is still usable by us for an entire season more than it might have been before, except it has changed from sweet dress to fashionable top!

And...as an added bonus -- Molly loves it!

This has worked great with long sleeve cotton dresses from places like Gap and Old Navy when paired up with jeans throughout the cooler weather. And, I just can't wait to match up some of her sleeveless dresses or even a sweet pillow case dress that she has outgrown with some capris or cropped pants for the summer.

This is also a great tip when you receive hand-me-down dresses from other families that are maybe just a bit too short for your modesty comfort. Use them as cute shirts instead!

Saving money (and going green by reusing clothes longer!) and looking fashionable...it works for us!

Modest Clothing: It's Not Just to Save Our Daughters

Modest clothing is a topic that comes up often on the "mommy blogs." And, rightfully so. People should be concerned. Personally, I think society should be concerned when I have to be careful about the clothes I am buying my three year old, because there are lots of options that just aren't very modest...at all.

Seriously -- three years old. What does our society gain from sexualizing three year olds? What does it say about us, as a society as a whole? Because, really, the garment industry is one of supply and demand. Even if we aren't buying these provocative outfits for preschoolers, somebody is. They aren't making these clothes to lose money on them, they are making these clothes because people are buying them.

The "funny" thing about all of this is that often, only our daughters are mentioned when we discuss this modesty issue. I just read this article, which I thought was very excellent. And, Mary Ellen did mention very briefly the one thing that often comes to my mind when modest clothing and actions comes up -- our sons.

It is my belief that we need to encourage modest clothing for the girls of our society not only to save and protect them, but also to save and protect the boys of our society. Just as we can lament what it does to the girls of society when a four year old wears short shorts that have "SEXY" printed across the backside, but we need to lament -- what is this doing to the young boys of our society?

What about the six year old boy just beginning to really be able to read who "learns" that a four year old girl's bottom is "SEXY" because her short shorts say so? What does this constant barrage of images and situations just like this do to that same boy as he grows up? What about when he is 10? 16? 21? Even if we try to teach them differently with our words and actions, what if what he sees out in society is just too much?

Now, I'm not suggesting that girls need to be covered from head to toe, or dress like pioneers. But, there is a big difference between dressing like that and dressing in short shorts and tight tank tops. Somewhere in there, there has to be a middle ground. (And that middle ground is not a bare midriff, I'm sure.)

I learned an interesting thing that I just didn't realize about men (most men, I hate to make the generalization of all men) when I read the book For Women Only: What You Need To Know About The Inner Lives of Men -- even when men don't want to look at all of these things that society is throwing at them, there are often times when they just can't help it. I like how the author of that book made a point. She said, "Don't read this sentence," or something like that. Did you read it? You couldn't help it, could you? It was just there. It was there in your face before you knew that you weren't supposed to read it. Just like some Victoria's Secret commercial that pops up while your husband may be watching a TV show that starts flashing barely dressed women before he could even turn his head to not look.

What happens to our sons in a society like that?

Even in a holy place like church. What happens there as soon as the nice weather rolls around? Our sons and husbands are going to a sacred place only to still not be safe from the pressures of society.

Each summer, our priest reminds parishoners in the bulletin that our church *is* air conditioned, and so even though it is warm outside, they will still be comfortable in the church if they dress appropriately for Mass. I am always glad when he reminds people of this, but it also makes me sad that he needs to remind people that halter tops are just not appropriate for Mass.

I still vividly remember one Mass last summer when Eric just looked disgusted, and was shaking his head. I looked over to see a very lovely young lady -- I would guess around 16 or 17 years old. She was dressed in high heels, a very short skirt, and a top that was a bit more revealing than was appropriate. (Her mother, by the way, was dressed at about the same modesty level as her daughter, sadly.) I realized later that Eric was probably not only disgusted that she was not dressed appropriately, but was also disgusted that, as a man, there is no where to escape these images -- not even at church. How sad.

And, so I have to say again...we need to save our daughters' modesty and self-image. We need to teach them that their bodies are theirs, not something to show off to the world. And, in doing this, I pray that we can save our sons too.

If you haven't signed up before (or need to again)

Moms for Modesty moved, and they lost all of the original 1500 signatures. They are back up to almost 300. If you feel strongly about this topic and want to go sign the petition, just click on the picture above.

2T Blue Jeans and a Size 6 Shirt...

Yes, that is what Molly Katherine is wearing right now. How wrong is that?

And, no, my daughter does not have a freakishly long torso. She is just your average about to be three years old little girl. This combination has more to say about what our society tells us about modesty than it says about an abnormally shaped girl.

You see, we got this cutie shirt as a hand-me-down when Molly was born. I saw it and thought, "Oh -- how cute!" with it's bright pinkness and design of three purses on the front. And, then I saw, "What??? THIS is a size 6? There is NO way this is a size six!" So, I stuck it in with her clothes by the 2T and 3T shirts instead. And, sure enough, that is where it belongs, in my opinion.

Today was the first time she has worn it. I had forgotten about it, but a room re-do meant that I saw some clothes I hadn't seen in a while. It looks too cute on her, and it fits perfectly (as far as I'm concerned). Our Jack wears a size six, and it boggles my mind to imagine what this shirt would fit like on a girl of his size. Blech! (For the record, I would have to imagine it being way too tight, showing off a midriff, and the sleeves that are even short on Molly would be pretty much non-existant, which is probably the reason that they are designed with a slit and then a ribbon on top of the slit.)

Why does society want to strip away at the modesty of children at such a young age? It is just wrong and down right frightening, in my opinion.

And what does that mean for us? We will shop at places with more modest styles. And, if we're receiving hand-me-downs or buying second hand, it just may mean that the occasional size 6 shirt will get worn by a not quite three year old with a size 2T jeans. How sad.