Back-to-school shopping
Every year, in the waning days of summer, I take my kids back-to-school shopping. This is not a mass event where I cram everyone into the Suburban and we wander the mall in a giant gaggle until we have crossed everything off of everyone’s list. No. I take each child out, one at a time, for an afternoon of shopping, chatting, and always, ALWAYS a treat.
This is a tradition my mom started with my brothers and me when we were kids in the 1980s and ‘90s. I vividly remember parking on the upper deck of U-City Mall in Spokane Valley, feeling like anytime you had to go up a parking ramp to get to your destination, you were in the big leagues. My mom and I would wander into the mall, past B. Dalton Booksellers, KB Toys, and the shop that sold personalized, screen-printed t-shirts. I would always pause in wonder as we got close to the Glamour Shots photo studio, wishing more than anything that I would one day be elegant enough to pose for a photo like that, complete with diffused lighting, feathered bangs, blue mascara—all of it.
But the real apex of the whole outing was Mariposa, the clothing store with all the latest trends and styles for teens and tweens of the ‘90s. Vests, high-waisted jeans, leggings, oversize t-shirts; it all added up to one truly unforgettable look.
After shopping for a while, my mom and I would enjoy lunch at the little deli inside the mall, which I believe had some kind of sophisticated French-sounding name. Without fail, I would order an egg salad sandwich, served not on regular bread, but on a croissant. On a croissant, I tell you! To this day, that is my definition of a Truly Classy Lunch. Before we headed home, we would top off our trip with a giant Cinnabon cinnamon roll. It was non-negotiable and basically the food highlight of my whole summer.
When my own kids started coming of age and getting ready to head to school, I decided I wanted to carry on this tradition, and we’ve been going strong with it for twelve years now. This year admittedly feels a little anti-climactic; with school taking place online at our kitchen table, there’s no need for cute outfits or cool shoes. But still, I wanted to take each of my kids out on their once-a-year shopping trip with mom, because I don’t often get one-on-one time with them, and leaving the house and going into an actual store is a rare treat for them right now anyway.
I deliberately started with my younger sons, because they are by far the easiest. About thirty minutes at Old Navy is all it takes, and then, like ten-year-old Henry said as we were heading to the check-out line last week, “All that’s left to do is go to Cinnabon.”
My older three kids are on the docket for this week, and I’m a little more nervous about their shopping trips. Their tastes are much more complex than the gym shorts/t-shirt combo that my little boys have going on. I never quite know what they’re “into” each season. Last year, my oldest daughter wanted nothing more than high-waisted jeans and baggy shirts.
“Are you sure you don’t just want to go home and look in my closet to see if I saved anything from the ‘90s that you’d be interested in?” I asked, only half joking. “You laugh at my old school pictures, but I’m telling you right now that you’re trying on almost an exact replica of an outfit I wore in 1993.”
After we got home, I dug out my old senior portraits to show her. Pointing to one shot of me in “mom jeans”, a braided belt, and a denim jacket, I said, “This is your back-to-school outfit next year. Mark my words.”
She protested, but I think it scared her enough that she backed off the ‘90s wear a little bit. If Mariposa and U-City Mall were still around, I’m pretty sure she would be in wardrobe heaven. And I wouldn’t hesitate for a second to finally get my Glamour Shot.