Suzanne's eminently practical use for old socks:

Before you throw out your kids' old, dingy socks, let them use them one more time — in those indoor, McDonald's-type playland places. I keep a bag of old socks in my trunk specifically for this purpose. If we're at a play place and my kids don't have socks with them (like in the summer, when they're wearing sandals), or if I don't want them to dirty up their good socks, I bring a pair from the bag and put them on. You can even put them on over their good socks. When they're done playing, just throw them away.