Winter and a Wedding

It's a puzzle I tell you: dressing your children in the cold weather months.  I was determined to get it right this year.  I'm not a rookie.   I wanted to count myself among the prepared.  And so I didn't wait to rummage through the local rummage sales piecing together a warm-enough ensemble.  I ordered the snow bibs from Hanna Andersson and the mittens on a string for both girls.  They both had coats and hats from previous years and previous owners.  We were ready.  

It's safe to say that Naomi has some tactile sensitivities.  What I mean by that is getting a jacket, boots, hats and gloves on her, in no particular order, is a real ordeal.  My "I'm leaving without you" walk out the door is very convincing.  But it's a bit of a downer to have to pull that out every day.  Then a couple things happened.  First, I noticed that there was not a single vacancy in the row of hooks by my front door.  And then one day at Naomi's preschool pick-up I witnessed a rock-star mom getting her daughters dressed for outside.  (She is European and I pay particular attention to mothers that hail from colder climates than our own.)  They were dressed in the full-on all-weather snow-suit -and it wasn't snowing.  "I'm done," she said.  "You will see them in this till March."  "Don't they complain?" I countered.  She looked at me with confusion and her eyes said, "Do you think I care?"  And the winter wardrobe dilemma dissolved right then and there.  The winter coat that isn't water-proof is being given away.  The fleece is being hidden.  Today I drove back to the consignment shop I was just at and bought a similarly legitimate "winter suit" complete with hat and mittens.  This set is almost half the price of the snow-bibs I bought new.  

I feel like I've broken some code.  

But for now that all can wait.  Tomorrow we head a few states south to celebrate a dear friend's wedding.  I'm packing some ribbon and an old handkerchief to wrap her flowers in.  It will be a special time with old friends in the Capitol city which we all shared several years ago.