The Snowsuit Saga

Remember that cute little coat, hat, and knee high boots that I was wearing in yesterday's blog picture? The following winter my Mother wanted to be sure that I was adequately clothed for winter and for playing in the snow. So she checked out what was available in either the Sears or Montgomery-Ward catalogues and ordered me a new snowsuit that she was sure would be perfect. When she told me that she had ordered me a new one, I was really excited and could not wait for it to arrive. The day it did is etched in my memory. I couldn't wait to see it. But imagine my huge disappointment when my Mother took it out of the parcel post packaging and showed it to me. It was dark brown and had a helmet-like hat. She had ordered me a BOY's snowsuit! I was crushed! I thought it was ugly and I didn't ever want to wear it. But I was told that I would either wear it or not be able to go out in the snow to play. She had thought all the cute little girl snowsuits would not provide me with enough warmth. Notice how cute my friend Annette looks in her very girly snow outfit complete with little flowers on her hat and coat. And she certainly does not look like she is cold at all. I can tell that the grin on my face in this picture was put on because I had been told to smile when the picture was taken. But I did not really feel like smiling. I hated that snowsuit and I hated to have to wear it and to be seen in it. I have always wondered if that suit might have come in another color, like blue. That would not have been so bad. And certainly another more feminine hat could have been bought to go with the ugly brown suit. But, no! And, of course, she bought it a little big so I could wear it for at least two consecutive years. The second year I had to wear it the outfit was slightly mitigated by having received a green knitted hat topped by a pom pom with matching mittens for Christmas. But there was a problem with that, too. Every time I wore that hat my older sister would call me "bullet head."