on being a girl

anyone that knows me well, knows i was never much of a girly girl.  my love for pedicures and my hate for spiders is about the extent of it.  i cannot relate to wanting to be a princess or dreaming of my wedding day ... as far as i can remember, i have always hated pink but loved climbing trees and making mud pies. 

when we found out henry was a boy i was relieved.  mostly i was relieved because it terrified me to have to teach a person, much less a girl, about how to deal with the world and now i get to do just that.  i get to talk with "sister" about what people will expect of her and what she should expect of herself.  i get to explain how to not care what others think while at the same time, taking pride in yourself ...oh, but dont be vain.  these things can be very difficult to navigate for anyone, especially a young girl.

im sure you have all seen the always commercial about "like a girl" being used a an insult.  i think its great that the media is grabbing onto these ideas and making people aware even though im not sure it can ever undo what the rest of the media puts out there.  that will have to be done at home.  i hope i remember how important it is to have these conversations when my children get old enough.  i want to explain to henry that he doesnt always have to suck it up and "be a man" and i want sister to know that "like a girl" is not an insult.