A new discovery - and a resolution

For Christmas, Freyja and Theo received these wonderful little items from my mum:













They are from Aunty Ollie and are right up my street. I do like a good print.

They cost more than I would normally spend on clothes for my children but they are what I would like to dress my kids in if money were no object. I can't actually bring myself to buy expensive clothes knowing that they will spill things down them and grow out of them at an alarming rate (well Theo does anyway, Freyja seems to fit her clothes for years). But as a gratefully received gift from my mum - or if I find them on sale - these Aunty Ollie clothes are just want I like. And yes, the kids like them too - which little girl wouldn't want to wear a dress covered in ice cream sundaes?

Generally I am a Sainsburys and H&M devotee when it comes to kids clothes. Both do well-priced and not run-of-the-mill clothes and are particularly good for boys. I also tend to go a bit mad in the sales, especially at GAP and all those gorgeous Scandinavian brands (Katvig, Polarn O Pyret, Ej Sikke Lej). And the odd treat from No Added Sugar. And who can resist Monsoon? And the occasional bargain from TX Maxx. Oh, and ASOS now has Little ASOS....the list grows!

My mum buys a lot of my children's clothes for them. She is a demon sales shopper and always manages to get them good stuff. She also buys beautiful floral dresses for Freyja from market stalls and little boutique shops. I used to find them a bit old fashioned but have completely come round to them -on their own or teamed with a pair of bright tights, a T-shirt and a hoodie, they make the perfect, comfortable, easy to wear but pretty outfits all year round.

So, my kids do quite well for clothes. My problem, which extends to my own wardrobe, is that I have a tendancy to 'keep things for best', which actually means they never get worn. Especially with the kids, who just keep on growing. In fact, this particular dress Freyja has never worn, despite now being almost too big for it . I just kept getting it out this summer and deciding it was far too pretty to be worn to the park, or the cafe or to Sainsburys. (By the way, if you read that post, turns out she is not a tomboy).

So my resolution is to make sure these lovely clothes get worn - both my things and the children's.

Here is Freyja in her lovely Oilily dress which I found in TK Maxx:


Okay, so this was taken on her birthday, which is obviously a special occasion. But it's a start.