How I get my kids excited for summer shopping
By Assa Cisse, My Curves and Curls
Updated Nov 21, 2018
Do you ever feel like every time you blink, your kids grow an inch? My boys—Iby, 10, and Fadio, 7—have already outgrown the pants and shorts I bought for them at the beginning of the school year. With our vacation coming up, along with lots of family excursions to the museum, beach and amusement parks, I thought it was time to head to Marshalls to pick up a few trendy pieces for the boys that would mix and match well with their wardrobe staples. The goal was to create cute and comfortable looks that would work for all the summer adventures ahead of us. While I don’t believe in spending a fortune on kids’ clothing (they grow up so fast!), I do love to freshen up their looks every season. Marshalls is one of the best places to do that, because it has new inventory every week and you can shop on a budget.
Over the years, I have watched them develop their own styles. There is nothing more satisfying than seeing my kids pick out their clothes every morning and making them work. Iby has a relaxed style. He loves graphic tees, sweatpants, jogger shorts, hoodies and sneakers. Fadio’s look is a bit on the preppy side, just like his dad. Most days you’ll find him rocking a dress shirt layered over a cool graphic tee, a pair of jeans and a fedora. I must admit that sometimes their outfit choices are questionable, but I don’t think it’s a big deal, as long as they are comfortable.
After a quick inventory of their closets—I took out everything that no longer fit, or had holes or stains—we headed to Marshalls, one of my favourite one-stop shops.
Getting the boys’ attention for a full day of shopping at the mall requires a lot of work. Let’s not forget that they are young boys, and shopping may not always their thing. But when we hit Marshalls, their attitudes are a little different, because they know that once we’re done picking everything, we’re heading back home. With the promise of extra game-play time and ice cream, they run to the car faster than Usain Bolt. As for myself, I thoroughly enjoy shopping for my boys—whoever says shopping for girls is more fun definitely needs to go to Marshalls. Not only does it have a wide selection of cute kids’ clothes and accessories, but the prices are unbeatable.
Once we got to the store, I tasked the boys with finding a couple of summer outfits they could see themselves wearing. I helped them a bit by giving some guidelines and getting them to think of items that would work in the summer, like shorts, bright colours and palm tree prints.
The results were well beyond what I expected! Both boys made good choices, stayed within the budget of $75 each and got pieces they loved. Both boys chose to go with motto-style jogger shorts. I was surprised, to say the least, because they usually do not go for the same types of clothing. The motto joggers they picked are super trendy and comfortable. Iby’s designer joggers were $30; his printed tee, $13; hat, $9, and shoes, $20. Fadio made an even better deal. His joggers were $15; the brightly coloured button-down shirt went for $10 and the shoes for $30—for a grand total of $55!
All of a sudden, our shopping trip wasn’t a chorus of “when are we leaving?” asked in different whiny voices, but rather a mini adventure, where they got to think about their style and use Marshalls to realize their respective visions. It turned out to be a much more enjoyable time at the store and, more importantly, I got to teach the kids some basic planning skills. Come on summer, we’re ready for you!
Disclosure: This content was created in partnership with Marshalls and Today’s Parent. While compensation was provided, all opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not necessarily indicative of the opinions of Marshalls or Today’s Parent.