I Have To Buy Clothes

​It’s true, I HAVE to buy clothes next week – BUT NOT FOR ME! 
 
My daughter is starting 9th grade soon and like every other parent in America right now, I’m off to buy her overpriced, low quality, back-to-school clothes so that she can “fit in.”  Sigh….
 
I’m pretty lucky as a parent though because my daughter hates to shop and doesn’t like most of the current trends that are “so basic” (her words).  My daughter would love it if she could wear the same pair of leggings and fandom t-shirt every day of the year, but even she knows that she’s being judged on her wardrobe, and she feels the pressure of “dress to impress.”
 
So, I’m stuck in this ongoing mental dilemma of wanting to teach my daughter that clothes aren’t the most important thing, but I still want her to feel confident at school.  As much as I want to tell her that clothes don’t define us, I know they do. 
 
The person we are on the inside is expressed in how we accessorize the outside.
 
My daughter is artistic and smart and, at the age of thirteen, already knows she doesn’t want to shop at Abercrombie & Fitch.  She has no interest in Ugg boots or North Face jackets.  All she wants to do is order fandom t-shirts from Hot Topic and wear black leggings. 
 
And who am I to tell her no? 
 
Not buying clothes this year is a personal decision of mine, something I felt I needed to do to change my perceptive and to get my own priorities straight.  I haven’t purchased any clothes in eight months, but I still have a closet full of items that help me express my own style and personality. 
 
So, even though my daughter has clothes that still fit from last school year, I’m going to take her shopping and I’m going to let her pick out multiple outfits.  I’m going to let her buy fandom t-shirts and dark blue hoodies because they make her feel comfortable.  I’ll spend too much money on a pair of Converse sneakers because she really wants them and they express her own person style.
 
And I’m 100% ok with it.