Monday, September 28, 2009

Party dresses

One of the highlights of my daughter's morning is our walk out to the mailbox. She loves to open the door & see what came for her. Usually the answer to that question is nothing. But on occasion she receives postcards from her grandparents or from traveling friends.

Typically I hand her all of the toy & kids' clothing catalogs that come to the house since she loves to look at them while I fix lunch. Usually her interest in the catalogs is relatively short lived. She looks at them once or maybe twice & then moves on to a different activity.

This pattern was changed about two weeks ago when we received a catalog from The Wooden Soldier. I handed K the catalog before I even looked at it & she was immediately hooked. She poured over it the entire day. She even brought it to her brother's soccer practice that evening so she could look at it some more.

It's two weeks later and she has been carrying that catalog around with her almost ever since. It was getting really ratty, but thankfully we received another catalog from the same company at the end of last week. This is really good since most days she wants the two of us to look at the catalog instead of reading stories before her nap time.

She has already picked out her two favorite dresses.

She has told me that I should buy her this first dress for her 4th birthday that is coming up in October. According to her "It's a beautiful party dress"...







She's right about that, but I think it might be a little dressy for the "Puppy Party" theme she has picked out. The vibrant red corduroy would make a really pretty Christmas dress. I can already envision how cute she'll look in the holiday family picture. And the best part is that it is only $92.00! Umm...what?! Wait a second here... I don't think I've spent that kind of money on a dress since I purchased my wedding dress 12 years ago.

It is a pretty dress, but seriously I cannot part with that kind of cash for a something that will be worn at a birthday party for a 4 year old where everyone will be wearing dog ears & running relay races with plastic bones (honestly I couldn't spend that much on a dress for a 4 year old even if the theme were Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous. No sir, I'm sorry but I just can't do it.)

Ok, on to the next. Maybe she just happened to pick out the one pricey dress in the catalog. What's your next favorite K?


Oooh. Good pick. Very pretty & the ivory satin is so practical (for sitting and staring off into space with your clean hands folded neatly on your lap). The price of this number is a mere $119.00. Holy Guacamole! What's going on here Wooden Soldier? You are killing me.

Now I'm not saying that these dresses aren't beautiful, because they are. And I'm not saying that this company is a little nuts for selling dresses at this price point, because I am sure that there are a couple people lots of people who think that $119.00 is a perfectly reasonable price to pay for a dress for a 4 year old. All I am saying is that none of these people happen to live in my house or anywhere in my neighborhood.

It should come as no surprise to anyone (except for K - who at 3 has no concept of the value of money) that she will not be getting a dress from the Wooden Soldier for her birthday this year. Instead, I'll be trolling through Target & Ebay to see if I can find an acceptable substitute for about a quarter of the price. Wish me luck.

I'm a little nervous about the fact she's not even 4 yet & her taste levels are running toward dresses that cost over $100.00. I can't wait to see what she's going to want to wear when she's ten. I'm picturing diamond studded jackets and platinum shoes.

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