Girly stuff

I am not the girliest of girls. I never owned a Barbie or a Cabbage Patch doll, haven't really felt the need to wear dresses, don't wear makeup much, and stick with hairstyles that require 5 minutes or less. I am much more at home riding a four-wheeler in the mud than dressing up and wearing heels.

So when pettiskirts, the latest fashion for girls, hit the news, I thought it was quite silly. More ruffles and fluff than you can shake a stick at, and people are paying upwards of $70 for these things? Heck no. It doesn't look like you can run in them, they're not very practical for playing outside, and you sure can't ride a bike in one. I'm happy with the fact that my girls aren't afraid to get dirty; we're a fairly active family, and the kids love to ride bikes and play outside. A local moms' group put together a co-op to order pettiskirts, and I watched with slight bemusement as they oohed and aahed over each of the frilly things. I just didn't get it. I thought about ordering one just to see what magical powers it had, but really didn't want to shell out that kind of cash just to follow along with everyone else who was ordering one.

Aspen, who is as tough as any 4-year-old boy I know, has decided she's a princess. That's all she's played lately. She dresses Levi up as her prince and leads him all over the house, with a running commentary on what they're doing and what their castle life is like. After seeing a Martha Stewart show on how to make pettiskirts, she gasped and said "Those are so beeeeeyoutiful!" Of course, what mother doesn't want to make her little girl smile? My kids aren't spoiled by any stretch, but every once in a while I don't mind a splurge.....

So, last week, someone on the moms' website posted a "For Sale" message with a pettiskirt in Aspen's size. It's lavendar and aqua, not exactly my favorite color combination, but since I'm buying secondhand I couldn't be too picky. I figured if Aspen thought it was as silly as I did, I could eBay it or put it on craigslist. I sent her a message with my address, and she mailed me the skirt.

It came yesterday. Opened it up, and this thing is voluminously fluffy. Huge! I had second thoughts of "WHY did I buy this?" But a minute later, Aspen walked into the room. I think her intake of breath could be heard three rooms away! "Mama! Is that for me?" Her eyes were huge with amazement, and when I said yes she threw herself against me and said "Oh, thank you, mother! (Yes, she really talks like that.) It's the bestest thing I didn't know I wanted!"

Any doubts I had evaporated when we went outside. This is what she did for half an hour:



How did I end up with such a girly girl?