Wardrobe Crisis for an Almost-Five Year Old! - Nada Manley

Since Lola was a baby, I have always shopped ahead for the next age, the next year. Maybe it’s because at one point, no matter what age she has been, I’ve realized that her bulging closets and overstuffed dresser couldn’t accommodate a single additional item in her current size, so I’ve been forced to limit my shopping to future sizes. So when she was 2, I started buying size 3T items whenever I found them ; on sale or not, online or out and about, and as I acquired new pieces, I would toss them in a big plastic storage bin in a closet until she turned 3, when I would open up the bin(s) and slowly rediscover a treasure trove of items I didn’t even remember buying. It was like Christmas. And each year I was amazed by the sheer quantity of items that I had managed to buy. For her fourth birthday, the bins were so stuffed and the number of items so staggering that I actually felt a little buyer’s remorse. Of course I quickly got over it. But since then, I’ve been so overhwhelmed by managing her existing wardrobe that I have completely neglected to shop ahead. This has been compounded by the fact that next year, both girls will be in private school, and Lola will be wearing a uniform five days a week. The sense of urgency just wasn’t there. Until a few days ago, when I looked up at the shelf in the closet where I store their off-season and future clothes, and realized I didn’t even have a size 5 bin. I only have a handful of items in a size five!!!! To add to the urgency, much of the size 3 stuff that I thought she could wear for a little while longer is now too short and has been transferred straight to Eva’s closet. Lola has had a real growth spurt, and even some of her size 4 pants are getting too short, something that hasn’t happened before. So, clearly, I am in serious trouble. Fortunately, I am used to shopping under stress, and have become quite proficient at it. I have four months to stock up on size 5 items, and I intend to enjoy every second of the process! Here are items that I’ve either just bought or that are currently in various online shopping cars: