Hand Me Downs

As a kid I did not care for hand me downs in fact I probably dreaded them.  But now with my son I adore them.  It is not just because we save money or we are too cheap to buy B clothes but I love the story behind them. 

He got tons of hand me downs from a 2nd cousin but we are not close with them so those are more appreciated than adored.  But the ones from his friends just make me smile as I dress him in them.  Knowing that little boys who are his friends some of whom he looks up to wore them and wore them well.  I love thinking about the adventures they had in them.

I have a shirt from one of our good friends that I always refer to as C's shirt.  Although we have had it for a long while it will always and forever be C's shirt.  I tend to take too many picts of B wearing it and send them to C's Mommy or post them in social media for her to see.  I am surprised she does not think I am nuts. 

Beyond hand me downs I am adoring vintage.  I mean really who does not want to see their children in clothing that has stood the test of time.  That has experienced in some cases more than we have seen in our lifetime. 

Last night I put B in a pair of pj's that were of course given to us and just to think of the sweet dreams, lullabies and blankie cuddling those jammies saw well before B was wearing them makes my heart burst.  I love some of the new clothes I purchased but when there is no story to them I just think oh he looks cute or handsome I don't dwell on where they have been or where they are going.

To some people it may just be used clothing but to me it ties my son to his peers, friends and even the past.  I like that I get to see my son be himself in the clothing while some other little boy did his thing in them.  I am sure no two nights were the same between both boys in those jammies.

As B gets older I hope he sees the fondness I have for not only all the clothes but other things we have been given along the way.  We couldn't be more grateful for being part of the story that makes up the tapestry of those little jammies, jeans and many other items.

I have even found myself lately wanting vintage, hand me downs, used or whatever you want to call them.  I want to be part of the bigger picture I want to walk in someone elses shoes and leave my trail in them.

I know that when I take items to Goodwill or where ever I never look back but I think I will start to take a minute to appreciate the story of where my clothes or shoes or pillows for that matter have been and then wish them well on their next adventure.

It is not all about upcycling or reusing items it is about the story of that silly item.  Whether big or small if something was owned prior to you it has some type of story.  From a shirt that was bought but never worn and lived in the closet to a little boys pair of pants that are worn and faded.  They all have a story when you look at the racks of the thrift store or in the box at the garage sale.

I will continue to smile and swoon each time I put B into a hand me down and I will continue to make an effort to incorporate them into my wardrobe , why?  Because I am a person who likes to not only know the story but who likes to be part of it.