Southern Children

Summertime for the Lumos crew means hanging with family, and there is one perk of being in our household that we really love: you’re either an aunt or an uncle to an awesome couple of kids.

Enter Ethan.

Enter Brooke.

As Aunt Wendy, I find I have far more time to look into fun kid stuff than people who are actually trying to raise well-behaved, well-educated children.  For that reason, I’m going to save some of my rockin’ parenting friends some time by letting you in on another one of Columbia’s best businesses to check out: Southern Children.

One afternoon in May, feeling the urge I sometimes get to shop for my favorite spicy kids (thank you to Molly Ledford of Lunch Money for that perfect description), I opened the door to this boutique, started looking, and could not stop.  Lemony-colored sun dresses with matching yellow hats, beach blue play shorts, perfect for a day in the sun, cuddly pastel doudous that could heal a bump on the head with one squeeze – the cuteness was too much!

A little embarrassed to be so drawn in, not having any kids of my own, I explained my mission to the store manager, Amy Broom; I was looking for some versatile outfits for my niece and nephew… and I wanted them to kinda match but not obviously (just for an added challenge).

 Amy is the kind of person who sparkles – she loves the product she provides and has knowledge of all the many clothing lines in the store to boot.  She spun right over to the 4Ts, the hair bows, the little-girl purses, and helped me piece together something perfectly whimsical for Brooke.

I also explained to her that dressing boys was a bit foreign to me since I didn’t have any brothers growing up.  In no time, she had helped me combine cute plaid shorts, a handsome polo shirt, and a mint green vest for Ethan.

According to my sister, these are apparently Ethan’s favorite shorts.  When he picks out his clothes in the morning, he always pulls them out of the drawer, so it stands to reason that they are pretty comfortable in addition to being super snazzy.

Susan Broom, Amy’s mother, has been the owner and operator of Southern Children since 1989.  It was obvious when I spoke with her that she has a passion for providing beautiful and well-made children’s clothing to her customers.  The array of lines in her store is impressive.  I am amazed that in these pictures of Ethan and Brooke alone five different brands are represented: Cotton Kids (Brooke’s white dress), LeTop (her fairy purse), Lou Lou’s and Louie’s (her barrettes), Imp Originals (Ethan’s blue shirt), and E-land (his green vest and plaid shorts).

These kiddos are barefoot, but that’s not for lack of shoe options.  I brought my mother in later to look for a baby shower gift, and she said that Southern Children had the most diverse selection of children’s shoes and sandals she had ever seen (this is from a woman who raised three girls)!

So there you have it.  Go take a field trip to Southern Children!  Not only do their kids’ clothes and accessories take the cake, but Amy and Susan Broom are helpful, warm, knowledgeable, and excited about what they have to offer.  And if someone gets snacky during your outing, you can even purchase a pack of Jelly Belly jelly beans at the register for, you know, the well-behaved little folks who accompany you to the store. ;-)