A few months ago I was digging through the toddler pants at Target, looking for something tall and thin and stretchy for my daughter. I noticed that the spring flower girl dresses had arrived: pink and girly with layers and layers of tulle. "Ha, ha," I thought to myself, "Mary would love a dress like that for Easter. Too bad I'll never buy one for her: definitely too girly and princess-y and pink and tulled for any daughter of mine!"
And then I panicked. What was wrong with me?? Hadn't I learned that girls grow out of the pink princess stage? They move on to aquamarine and rock stars. My sister-in-law was the first point it out to me. And my niece was living proof, having exchanged her princesses and tiaras for an iPod and funky nail colors, just as she should. I also haven't helped but notice that the girls in David's first grade class wouldn't touch a princess with a ten foot pole, and many of them shun the color pink. They are only two years older than Mary.
In all likelihood Mary is just around the corner from outgrowing her little girl pink phase. Mary is almost no longer a little girl! Yes, I panicked. I realized this may be my LAST CHANCE to dress a daughter in a super floofy Easter dress. A little princess-loving girly girl is not always going to be a part of our family. She is most likely going to grow and mature beyond all that. I felt stupid for all of the time and energy I had wasted on groaning about pink and fretting about tiaras. Why did I spend her years of little girlhood worrying about the hyper-commercialization of gender roles, instead of just going with the flow and enjoying my daughter's interests? Depending on how Mary's tastes evolve (and depending, of course, on the fertility gods) this really truly could be my last chance to dress a daughter in a darling explosion of pink and tulle. Why had I been so anxious for her to grow up?
I bought the dress then and there. It was January. I paid full price.
Mary loves it.
(And you know what? I do too.)
Oh my. Don't you love this sweet little face?
I do! I do!
(Tulle or no.)
