Back-To-School Styling With MyBrownBaby & Cherokee Plus A $100 Target Giveaway

This contest is now closed. Congratulations to Tracey Lewis-Giggetts, whose number, 59, was chosen via Random.org. Thank you to all of you who participated in this fantastic giveaway!

My love of children’s clothing is epic an affinity for pretty little things that began the very day I found out my first baby, Mari, was a girl. I promise you, I’d barely wiped the sonogram goop off my belly before I’d made my way to this adorable boutique on the Lower East Side in New York City, where I promptly dropped a paycheck’s worth of cash on flowered dresses and Mary Jane shoes and sweet little striped overalls and onesies with cute little ditties like, That’s It, I’m Going To Grandma’s! By the time that kid made it into this world on that cool June morning, she had more clothes and shoes in her closet than I’d accumulated in my entire lifetime. I’m not kidding.

Each piece was meticulously curated from a mixture of boutiques and department and big box stores picked for quality, style, originality and the ability to make my daughter look like a funky, hip little kid. My heart literally would flutter when I’d dress her and her sister, Lila, then stand them at arm’s length to get a good look at their little outfits; there’s just something so juicy about a well-dressed child.

I’ve kept pretty much every outfit Mari and Lila ever wore each piece stored by size and season in bins that make it easy for me to find special pieces for Lila (who inherits Mari’s awesome wardrobe) and some of my more special mom friends with little girls. I joke with my girls that I visit their outfits every once in a while and that I can remember what they wore to every special event ever. Of course, Easter, Christmas and birthday outfits are big around here. Sunday dresses huge. Any event that might turn into a photo op? My girls are dressed to the nines.

But nothing is more special than my ladies’ first day of school outfits. They just, like, set the tone for the teacher, the principal, the new fellow students; for me, every dress, every shirt, every shoe, every hair ribbon sent the message that these little girls are well cared for treasured. Loved. In their younger grades, I would send my girls to school looking fresh to death argyle sweaters tied over crisp white collared shirts, paired with adorable print skirts; tailored jean jackets with graphic tees and leggings; French pinafores paired with burgundy, mock crocodile mary janes. They looked delicious.

Of course, as they’ve grown, Mari and Lila got their own ideas about how they should look on the first day of school. Neither could give a rat’s patootie about dresses and shiny shoes they’re all about the funky, bedazzled hoodies, comfortable jeans, Converse. Which is fine, I guess; we live in a small town in Georgia where children’s clothing boutiques are hard to come by. Plus, with all the running around they do with school and gym and extracurricular activities, pinafores and tailored outfits aren’t necessarily practical. Don’t get it twisted they still have plenty of this in their wardrobes. But you’re more likely to see them more comfortable than runway ready.

But we never, ever sacrifice style.

Today is Lila’s first day back to school, and she practically strutted down to the bus stop in her new outfit. It’s got the comfort and color and graphic element she craves (sneakers, the color blue and horses are a must-have for my baby girl) the print skirt, delicate flower headband and crisp tee give the style, funkiness and girly elements I love.

I got this outfit (and a few more for her first week at school) from the Cherokee USA brand an adorable, affordable line available at Target that gives my daughters the style both they and I love and the quality I absolutely must have at a price that makes me downright giddy. There’s no sacrifice on cuteness, quality or my wallet, which means everybody wins. Bonus: unlike when my daughters were little and we lived in New York City, down here in Georgia, there’s a Target on practically every block, which means I can satisfy my cute Cherokee USA children’s clothing jones whenever I please. Score!

Want your cutie pie to be fly on the first day of school? No sweat you know I got you covered. *In my Oprah voice* MyBrownBaby is giving away one $100 gift card, courtesy of Cherokee USA, for your back-to-school shopping!

Want to win it? Of course you do! Here’s how:

MANDATORY: 

Like the Cherokee’s FaceBook page and tell them what you love about their clothing line, then come back to MyBrownBaby and leave a comment telling me what you wrote.

FOR EXTRA ENTRIES:

{You must leave a separate comment here on MyBrownBaby for each extra entry}

1. Enter Cherokee USA’s First Day Of School Photo Contest on the Cherokee USA FB page. The prize package includes a $1000 shopping spree from Cherokee and $300 smart phone from Cozi, a free online calendar that allows busy families to coordinate and access from any computer or mobile device appointments, lists, and schedules. {Way better than random scraps of paper on the refrigerator. Just sayin’.}
2. Sign up for Cozi.com.
3. Tweet this: “I want @MyBrownBaby & @Cherokee_USA 2 hook up my kid’s back-2-school gear w/ this $100 gift card giveaway! http://mybrownbaby.com/?p=1740″ You can tweet once a day, up to a total of four times; you must leave a separate comment here on MyBrownBaby for each tweet.
4. Like MyBrownBaby’s FaceBook fan page.

This contest is open to MyBrownBaby readers in the U.S. only. The MyBrownBaby contest ends Sunday, August 14, 2011 at 11:59 p.m. The winner will be chosen by Random.org and announced at the top of this post.

Good luck and happy {stylin’} first day of school!

{So You Know: MyBrownBaby partnered with Cherokee USA to write about my love of childrenswear and back-to-school shopping. Yes, I’m getting a check for this. No, they’re not paying me to say nice things about their product. In fact, Lila’s back-to-school outfit was purchased weeks before Cherokee USA and MyBrownBaby started talking shop. As always, my experiences, opinions (and clothing choices) are my own.}