Fashion Over Function

Dear Lila,

I'm girly (if I had to pick between going shopping and going camping, I'd always pick shopping--in fact, I think I'd pick anything over camping) so I don't totally mind that you are, too, but I do worry that you are becoming a little too girly. Your hair is really long and I clip it up so that it stays out of your face but you always take the clip out and let your hair down because you think you look like a boy when I tie your hair up and that you "don't look like a princess." I told you that Belle wears her hair up but you said you wanted to look like Awowa (Aurora).

Then today, it was warm, so I said you could wear a short-sleeved shirt to school. You then suggested that you wear a dress. I said that wasn't a good idea because you were going to play on the playground at school and if you were wearing a dress, it'd be more cumbersome to go down the slide. I said you should wear pants if you wanted to go down the slide. You then said to me, "Okay, Mama. I won't go down the slide." My daughter would rather wear a dress than play on the playground . . . um, huh.

Love,
Mom