Favorite Rites of Fall One of my favorite rites of fall has arrived. You may consider it a chore, but I love getting my son's closet ready for cooler weather.
Don't get me wrong. I consider the same job in my own closet a complete chore. But when it comes to my little one, I get pure joy out of looking through and sorting out his clothes. It amazes me to see how much he has grown just in the past few months.
Those summer t-shirts that seemed so big on him back in May are now just a little too short, and a little too tight through the shoulders. Those cute dinosaur pajamas for warm summer nights now look like they belong on a much smaller child. And the swim trunks he wore almost daily have long been relegated to the bottom drawer; a steep fall from their typical top-shelf placement in the summer months.
Then there's the thrill of discovering the end-of-the-season items bought on sale last spring. You know, those sweatshirts that were half-off and such a bargain next to the spring and summer arrivals going for full-price? If you're like me, you stood there trying to guess how big your child would be when the cooler weather returned in about six months.
Now, all of those new cool-weather clothes tucked away last spring are ready to come out. It will be fun to see what new shirt-and-pant combinations he comes up with. I can expect to see a few summer t-shirt favorites mixed in. When you're five, Power Rangers never go out of style, regardless of the season.
There is some heart-break in this process. My son's favorite fleece from last winter, a bright orange color with gray trim, is now too small for him. He can't part with it, and insists on wearing it around the house. The sleeves ride way above his wrists and the bottom way too short. I'm hoping a bigger red fleece will soon take its place as a favorite item to wear.
Next March or April, I'll do the same thing in reverse. I'll be getting the warm-weather clothes ready to take their place in the drawer. And I'll be remembering back to this fall, and marvel again at just how much my little one's grown. ¶ 9:50 PM