My 13-yr old daughter just bought tickets to the opera – she’s going with some teachers and friends from her middle school. She’s very excited about the occasion, and she asked if I’d take her shopping for some new dress clothes. Rule is: I’ll replace your clothes that have worn out or gotten too small. If you’ve got something to wear, but want something new, you buy it yourself with your babysitting money. Same thing applies to the opera tickets. If it’s a family affair and we’re all going, I’ll pay. If it’s something extra that you would like to go to on your own, you pay. We still pay for the extra-curricular activities like sports leagues, because we want to support her physical fitness (and the cost is high compared to her income!). Anyway, this isn’t so much a post about economic negotiations with my teenager (surprise!), but it IS a rant about our little shopping trip today.
My daughter really had her hopes on buying a nice dress. Funny thing is, most of the “dresses” we found seemed, in fact, to just be large pieces of fabric, with a bit of gathering at the top and then again where it appeared the waist should be. No buttons, no zippers, no straps, no sashes, no nothing. Like a dressy version of a tube top. I kid you not. What we did find that had straps did not have sleeves, and the necklines were so low she would have had to wear a tank top underneath along with a sweater to cover her shoulders. If we did happen to find a higher neckline and something that passed for sleeves, then the hemline was abover her knees. Argh!
Oh, yeah, I suppose I could say we’re strict on clothes. We just have high standards. I want sleeves (even cap sleeves will do…just attempt to cover the shoulders!). I don’t want plunging necklines. I do like hemlines below the knew. I’m not saying she needs to be covered wrist to neck to ankles in fabric – I would just like her to be modest. This daughter of mine has…now don’t be creeped out by my saying this, please…a rockin’ body. It’s almost sickening. I tell her all the time, “Girl, I NEVER, NEVER in my whole darned life had a body like yours” (to which she just giggles). But while other girls in her boat would be donning some pretty adult clothing – and why not, they’re all over the store racks!! – we need to sometimes look long and hard for something that works for us.
In the end, we found a very cute peasant skirt that she’s in love with. We’ll work with some blouses that she already has to make a “new” outfit for her. She was such a trooper in the stores, and I’m grateful that she understands our standards for dress. Now I just wish more of the major stores did!!!
Filed under: Family Time, Motherhood
