At the end of last summer, my (then) 4-year-old decided that she didn’t like waistbands.

“I’m anti-waistband, Mama!” It’s true. She said those words. I guess I should have been pleased that she was taking a stand for something she believed in?

So, I did what any other parent would do. I invested in dresses. Many, many dresses. Any time I stumbled upon an inexpensive dress, I immediately snatched one up in every color and pattern. I am a battle-picker by nature, and this was one that I was just too plum tired to fight. She cried every time I tried to put pants or shorts or skirts on her. It just wasn’t worth it. So, it was a dress a day for many many many months.

But the problem, you see, is that this child grows like one of my backyard weeds—rapidly. And now, each dress in her collection is appearing shorter and shorter and shorter. And because it is still cold in Toronto, I really don’t have the desire or the expendable income to replace her entire long-sleeved dress wardrobe. So yes, it seems that we had a big problem at our house. Isabella wanted to wear dresses every single day, but I was seeing more and more of her legs with each passing day. I couldn’t send her off to school in these dresses that were bearing a strong resemblance to—gulp—shirts.

Thankfully, I have a ten-year-old who solved this little problem for us. She introduced her younger sister to beauty that is LEGGINGS. And now? Her dresses have become tunics. She can get a little bit of extra wear out of her fall and winter dresses while the weather is still chilly, and I can feel comfortable with her bending over and using the playground equipment at school every day.

What’s your best tip for extending the life of your kids’ clothes?

—Ali, Senior Associate Editor of Cf.ca