Gender Neutral

Four kids produce a staggering amount of laundry. Tessa alone could keep me busy, as she has entered the three-outfits-a-day stage of infancy. I feel like I do very well keeping on top of the dirty clothes and they get washed in what I consider a timely manner. That hasn't always been true. But now that I'm not forced to rely upon the quarter chugging machinery in an always busy apartment laundry room (HALLELUJAH!), I get tripped up on another stage. Our laundry room gets really clogged with the clean clothes that need to be sorted, folded, and put away. I seriously hate that part and I put it off for as long as I can (by writing chatty blog posts with plenty of asides, for instance). I wish the sight of children excavating a mountain of laundry for clean underwear weren't a reality in this house, but it is.

Anyway, I can always tell when I haven't done laundry in a while because Tessa ends up sporting our collection of "gender neutral" baby clothes. If the shirt has red, blue, or yellow, well, you know that I haven't gotten around to the massive pile of clean clothes chillin' in the laundry basket in the basement. Take a look at these shots from the last couple of days:




Yeah, time to sort and fold!

Why, you might be asking yourself, does a family of four girls even HAVE unisex baby clothes? Well, that's easy. I didn't know we'd end up being a family of four girls until just recently. Hindsight is always 20/20. After I had Chloe and the pink started to pile up, I felt like one out of every ten purchases should be something a little boy could wear without needing years of intensive psychotherapy. I work the hand-me-downs hard and haven't gotten a whole lot since investing massively in Chloe's baby wardrobe. But looking back over purchases for Piper and Sadie, I can see this one in ten principle at work in Tessa's closet: pink, pink, lavender, pink, pink, aqua, pink, purple, pink, RED! But you'd think now that I've played my cards, cashed in my chips, and walked away from the table (in a manner of speaking), unisex purchases would be a thing of the past. You'd be wrong, though.

I just made what is arguably the largest baby purchase of my career as a mother. Pound for pound, dime for dime, this was HUGE. I pulled the trigger and bought a double jogging stroller. In the past, I have scoffed at people who spend tons on strollers. And, like a fool, I have been forced to buy a new one every year because our cheapie one breaks (it really hurts because cheapie ones aren't that cheap). I avoided the whole jogging genre of stroller simply because it represents a huge jump in price (nevermind the fact that I'm not big on jogging, either). I, of course, have to go for a double of whatever I buy because I have at least two that need a ride. Double jogging strollers just seemed unattainable. But then I tried a jogger. And I fell in love. I can't describe in words how much easier it is to push and navigate. It's something you just have to experience. And, since yet another cheapie broke on me at exactly the same time, I was in need of a replacement (because I'm pretty sure I'll need a stroller for at least three more years). I did exhaustive research and analyzed all the features of available models. I am certain I analyzed this purchase more than I did the minivan we were forced to buy two years ago. Anyway, I found one that fit the bill:


I'm going to let you go ahead and figure out what kind it is so that it will take you longer to Google what I spent on it (yes, I'm still horrified I'm now one of those people who spends a mint on baby gear even though deep down I know--from painful experience--it's a smart buy and one I should have made years ago). But I just couldn't find the features I needed on the less pricey models. Like individually adjusting sun canopies (you'd think this a silly, unnecessary feature if you had never walked 15 blocks with two kids arguing over whether the sole sun canopy should be up or down. But I have and I know it's vital!) or an adjustable handle (ah, to walk without hunching over the strollers designed for moms who are 4'10''). Also, it holds up to 95 pounds. This is a boon to us because we have some underweight children who are so lazy that they will certainly expect to be pushed until they are 14 (ahem, Piper!). Folks, this is the last stroller I will ever buy (for myself--when I'm a grandma, jogging strollers for everybody!!!!). And I'm thrilled. I even managed to score one at 25% off the suggested retail by sniping one during the last 15 seconds of an eBay auction. (I shall have to expound on my immersion in eBay culture that this purchase required in a future post.) I'm counting the seconds until it arrives onTuesday afternoon.

What does this have to do with unisex colors? Well, I could have easily purchased the pink version, but as you can see I opted for the blue and green. Now you're asking yourself, why did she do that? The pink stroller was pretty much designed specifically for her family. All of her personal electronic devices are pink. As is her wardrobe and that of her daughters. Most of her house looks like it comes straight out of Barbie's Dream House.

It's a fair question. But what you have to know is that I didn't just consider the gender of my progeny. This purchase was SO big, I considered the gender of my siblings' future children in case I pass it on to them. Heck, I even went beyond that. I considered the gender of the children of potential consignment store shoppers. And something told me a shocking pink stroller wouldn't go over as well as this one.