I think we can agree that males have it pretty easy when it comes to shopping for clothing of any sort. Basically, theirwardrobe, as my friend would say, is Garanimals easy. There a few pieces and all you have to do is make sure the colors match.
Swimsuits are no exceptions. From the time boys pop out of the womb they have one choice, 2 if you are daring, in the swimsuit arena, trunks. Most times a swim diaper will do in a pinch and they are still wearing diapers. Some will argue that the same goes for little girl babies. Just put a swim diaper on them and go, but I think that mostly people, meaning mothers, like their little girls to look like little girls. And this means dressing them in bright dainty colors and frills, even when swimming. But what happens when those little girls start growing up and are subjected to images of Victoria’s Secret models and a society that believes sex can sell anything.
Have you looked at the state of little girl swimsuits, lately? There are some that leave very little to the imagination, which for little girls is scary, and then there are some that look innocent enough, but then you notice that add little splash of sexy, which have you shrieking from the store.
Since Amber was a wee little baby I have tried to dress her in swimsuits that I feel are appropriate of her status as little girl and not hot sex kitten in training. I have passed over the string bikinis, triangle tops and cut out swimsuits. I stuck mainly to one pieces that look sport inspired or tankinis with rectangle tops and ample cover bottoms. However, a question has been raised in my mind. Would I prefer my little girl in some of the more skimpier versions of swimsuit or my future teen daughter? Then I have a heart attack and rushed to the hospital never to be heard from again. Just thinking of my teenage daughter walking around with men, and younger boys, gawking at her just kills me.
I would like to think that if I steer her in the right direction, now, then I will have a better chance later in life. The problem is that is delusional thinking, because as she grows she will have way more influences then her father and I. And those influences will weigh much heavier than her old and out of touch parents. Hell, it is already happening.
First, I would like to blame myself, a little. As my grandmother did before me, I put magazines in the bathroom for, ahem, reading materials. I mean sometimes you find yourself in there a little longer than you would like and it helps with a little something to keep you busy. While my grandmother had Ladies’ Home Journal and Goodhousekeeping, I have the millions of catalogs that are sent to my home every month. Well in that bunch a few Victoria’s Secrets will fall. One day, I found the swimsuit sale catalog opened and thrown back in the basket. At first, I rolled my eyes and thought, Geesh! does the hubs have to look at swimsuits on the pot? Then I realized in my horror that my daughter might have been the one. This was later confirmed when she bounced out of the bathroom announcing that she was looking at it and how pretty all those “girls” looked. So step number one, destroy Victoria’s Secret or, at the very least, throw away the catalogs. There is nothing in there that is appropriate for me at this stage of the game, anyway. The rest of the blame I will heap on society and the little girls at school teaching my daughter about being sexy. MY! GOD! What is going on in some of these homes?
We looked through the Target selection of girls’ swimsuits and I chose 5 that I thought were acceptable and Amber agreed were “cuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuute”! I was surprised at how many triangle bikinis with prints on the chest area I had to pass up. I mean I agree that a swimsuit should be cute, but I think function is a little more important at this age. I can’t tell you how many little girls I have seen jumping into the pool, while wearing their bikinis, only to come up without a top or the top pushed up to their neck. Granted these little girls have nothing really to hide, but that can’t be comfortable. Anyway, we tried on the swimsuits and I collasped on the floor with my daughter’s comments.
We choose one that had the sides cut out. I hesitated about choosing it, but it was cute and when it comes down to it, I would rather her sides be shown then other parts. It passed the other tests, meaning it covered the other areas find and it fit her remarkably well. Amber maybe be 6 yrs old, but swimsuits seem to be huge on her, especially in the waist area. What bothered me the most was when Amber squealed with delight when she realized that the side cut outs maybe her look skinnier, her words not mine. I chose to ignore it and tell her that the suit was one of the better ones and put it in the maybe pile. I am of the camp of not making a big deal out of some of the things Amber says, because she tends to focus on them, ALOT. I would rather have her not dwell too much on skinny or not skinny at her age, considering the girl is 6 years old and her size 4Ts sag at the waist. The next suit was more sports inspired and will be worn during PE at school, when school starts.
I think if I had to answer the question now or later for the more “sexier” of the little girls’ suits, I would answer never, but I know that is not reality. I would rather my child not be sexualized at her young age and I definitely want no part in it. However, I would be of the mind to completely cover her when she starts puberty and lock her in her room. Again, not reality, but something I am sure most parents think of from time to time. It is a double edged sword when dressing our girls. We want them to express themselves, but we would rather they not try to rush things. It is as old as time, when it was all new and exciting we wanted to dress up and flaunt what our mothers gave us, once we got hitched we hung up our heels and decided tennis shoes were better. I guess in the end either way you look at men lose on all counts. 🙂
If you think swimsuits are the only thing you have to worry about when dressing your little girls, how about getting them use to wearing heels at the tender age of infancy.
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