Orange Slices

I don't put very much thought into the outfits I dress my boys in every morning. I cover the basics, no stripes with plaids, no peddle pushers and as long as they are wearing matching socks, we're good. Yesterday, my gloomy feelings due to the weather we've been having seeped subconsciously into my kids clothes.

I got Noah ready first. I picked out his orange shirt that Steve and I got him in Virginia at the Great Wolf Lodge. It's got cartoon characters on it and is especially cute when you lift him up and his belly hangs out. Next was Lucas. I let him help me decide what he should wear and we settled on his raccoon shirt, which just so happened to be orange. It wasn't until I had them both ready to head out the door that I realized what I had done. Ever see those kids in the mall or at the zoo with matching shirts and while at one time you think, cute, at the same moment you're thinking, come on parents- lame. The latter of those two thoughts hit me, but I figured since Lucas' shirt was more of a burnt orange and Noah's was bright orange, it was OK.

At lunch time I decided to treat the boys to Mickey D's. Remember birthday parties when you were younger when all the boys wore variations of the same shirt, probably Transformers or GI Joe, and the girls all had pink on? Entering McDonald's yesterday made me turn in circles looking for my party hat and gift bag.

McDonald's was flooded with orange shirts. Two boys, roughly a year or two apart in age had the same shirt on (cute or lame- your decision), bright orange, another little boy was wearing a dark orange like Lucas, and his name, unbelievably, was Lucas. My eyes kept darting from orange shirt to orange shirt, I couldn't help it. It was an epidemic. Then, the icing on the cake, a man who clearly was on a lunch break came in wearing orange also. I'm not sure why, but suddenly I felt nervous and hunched down in my booth lest I be seen with the boys in orange.

From my crouched position I noticed others were checking out all the orange as well. It was then that I realized that the rest of New England was feeling about the same as I did, sick and tired of the dreary days, rain, overcast skies- to hell with it all. Why else would there be five kids and one adult wearing bright orange shirts?