Spaghetti Shirts

The kids painting in their "spaghetti shirts."

Not so many years ago I used to have all my kids wear "spaghetti shirts" to the dinner table when I served spaghetti. I had a stash of large shirts t-shirts that would completely cover their outfit (kind of like a dress) so they could eat their spaghetti and I didn't have to worry if they spilled on their clothes. It was a blessed arrangement that made dinner much less stressful for me.  When we were done eating I could hose the shirts off in the sink and then wash them for the next use.

The "spaghetti shirts" also got pulled out anytime we did painting or any other messy thing. Sometimes I would let them wear them to go splash in puddles when it rained in the spring or summertime. We would also don the "spaghetti shirts" when we were dying Easter eggs when the kids were small.  I have some very fond memories of our "spaghetti shirts."

The great thing about spaghetti shirts was that it didn't matter if the kids got them dirty or stained because that is exactly what they were for...to get dirty and stained.  Not too many months ago I pulled out the basket of "spaghetti shirts" from my closet.  I smiled as I thought of the fun memories associated with that bunch of stained shirts that didn't fit any of my kids anymore.  Like many other things, they have outgrown their "spaghetti shirts." It made me kind of sad to realize that we were done with that phase of their lives.  How is it that kids grow up so fast?  So today I will celebrate stained shirts and happy memories!