AMERICAN FORK — In the shoe department, the tall black heels that were designed to resemble fishnet stockings weren't doing anything for the two cousins, who called them "hooker shoes."
But the red polka dot ballet flats garnered "oohs" and "ahs."
"I love these," said 15-year-old Amberlee Allred, who was tempted to purchase them — but realized that she doesn't have matching clothes.
"Just get a red shirt," said her cousin, 13-year-old Kaelynn Allred, who fingered a pair of ballet flats with an Asian motif. "I like these."
Amberlee's heart was still attached to the shoes with polka dots: "I might just get them anyway and wear them with whatever."
A week before the start of school, the six children of the Allred family rang up four different clothing purchases totaling $304.29 at Kohl's.
And that's not the entirety of their purchases. Some family members had been shopping before, and two Allred children were not in town to participate in the trip to Kohl's.
Welcome back to school — one of the biggest shopping seasons of the year.
Last August, adults and children spent $7.1 billion at some 25,000 family clothing stores throughout the United States. Only during the November and December holiday season were sales higher, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Sales at the nation's 11,000 bookstores during the same time were $2.1 billion.
The Census Bureau estimated 75.8 million Americans were enrolled in school — from nurseries to college — in October 2005.
More than 300 million people live in the United States.
In the Allred household, the children do chores to earn money for back-to-school shopping.
"It's kind of a market economy," said mother Lynnae Allred.
Lynnae Allred believes the kids have learned smart budgeting skills from purchasing their own clothes, such knowing as the cost of a "name brand" T-shirt is the same as three T-shirts manufactured by a less-known designer.
The family doesn't usually go on shopping sprees.
"We'll go shopping five or six times a year," Lynnae Allred said.
Austen Allred, 17, said he usually gets his clothes from eBay.
He prefers originality over trends and takes pride in quirky T-shirts, such as one showing a balloon and a cactus, with a heart in the middle and the words, "Impossible love."
"I like to be different than everyone else," he said.
Lynnae Allred, a stay-at-home mother who works a few hours a week as a freelance writer, said she usually approves of her children's clothing, but there have been some differences.
She remembers feeling sad when her daughters hung up their dresses and chose to instead wear skirts to church.
Acceptance is key. So is negotiating.
"We've found middle ground," she said.
In addition to differing ideas about style, clothing choices have become difficult as the children have grown — Amberlee to 6 feet 2 inches.
"I can't dry any of my pants," Amberlee said. "I hang dry them."
"My youngest one (9-year-old Jannelyse) is easiest," Lynnae Allred said. "Anything cute you can talk her into."
E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com