A sense of style

Lady has cared about how she looks for a long time. Since she was a toddler she has chosen most of her outfits though often when she was younger, she'd mix it up in clashing colours that had me rolling my eyes and envying her nice, neat, pristine and coordinated friends. But I usually let her make that decision, knowing there were plenty of other battles that I had to win. As she's grown, she has developed a cool and easy style and always looks good. She's so different from myself at her age, when I had no confidence about clothes and hated shopping, worrying about what my friends might think about what I wore, and just having no idea what looked good on me.

Thomas too likes to dress to impress, and gave me shopping instructions for the Big Family Christmas Party we're going to on Sunday; black trousers and a button down shirt. He's not gone too far into junior meterosexual territory yet, hasn't asked for hair gel or anything, but he makes an effort now and then.

So far, Duncan has only worried about clothes when he's been dressing up. Then he'd pull together a look using stuff from his dressing up box, but also the drawers and wardrobes of all the family, if he thought it fit the part.

But when we were in Florida, I was buying tops for the children, and he picked a couple that he wanted. One was a Spiderman shirt printed with a picture of a rippling chest, which looks so funny on his skinny frame. But hey, he wanted that one. He also chose a bright Disney shirt and has worn it often since we got home.

I've usually laid an outfit out for him each morning, but more often than not he wears what he wants. Recently there was another new development. We were in the supermarket, home to dough-nuts, sweets, crisps, DVDs and toys and so full of temptations for a boy like Duncan. He looked at these in turn, chose a packet of gum, examined as usual the case of the much wanted but at the same time feared Dinosaur DVD, then said, "go see boy's things" and walked off to the clothes section! I wasn't expecting that. He liked the look of shirt/waistcoat combo, saying it was a "Lord of the Rings top." (Lady's just explained why; he's seen clips of the Hobbits on YouTube.) But he opted instead for a stripped and very handsome looking shirt, and a Superman T-shirt. Now he has a special outfit for the party too.

I just need to think about what I'll be wearing now. I can't let my fashionable children down.