Why I Finally Gave In To Disney Princesses

Cinderella & Her Mouse

I was never opposed to Disney Princesses... but I did make a conscious effort not to push my daughter towards them. I wanted her to figure out on her own what she liked, with as little influence as possible from culture's preconceived notions on what a little girl should  like. I wanted to see what she was drawn to, whether it was cars, trucks and trains, dinosaurs, pirates, Curious George... or Princesses. And for the first 3 years of my daughter's life, she happened to steer clear of Princesses. She would see them from time to time, but she never clung to the idea like I saw so many girls doing. And that made me happy - not because I thought there was anything wrong with the other little girls dressing up in Princess dresses or wearing little tiaras, but because I liked the idea that Paige was making up her own mind. I patted myself on the back for officially bypassing the Disney marketing machine.

That is until one day this summer... I picked my daughter up from my gym's child care area and she was just beaming - "Mommy! I played princesses and it was so much fun! I love princesses now!" The next morning as we were getting dressed to head to the gym, Paige picked out the most ruffley and pink dress she owned "so my friend will want to play princess with me again - I want to look pretty like a princess!" My heart sank a little - 1. she already thought she had to dress a certain way for kids to play with her : ( and 2. she only thought she was pretty if she dressed like a princess. I held my tongue and smiled and told her what I always do - "You are pretty inside and out. Your kind heart is your prettiest part!" Well - things didn't go as expected at the gym for my little Princess. Ends up her new "friend" was in a bad mood and didn't want to play Princesses or anything or that matter with my daughter. Paige was heartbroken - she had dressed the part... was she not a good enough Princess? That was 4 months ago, and Paige has still never worn that dress again.

And even though that friendship didn't stick, her new fascination with Princesses did. I couldn't fight it anymore. BUT - I could influence her mindset towards Princesses. Yes, they were pretty with long flowing hair, big eyes, skinny waists and always lived "Happily Ever After". However, they had more to offer my little, impressionable 3 year old daughter. Because I'm not going to tell my daughter she can't play with princesses or watch princess movies - just like I wouldn't tell her she couldn't play with trucks or read dinosaur books. So I started talking to her about how Princesses are BRAVE, KIND, STRONG-MINDED & INDEPENDENT. How they love to SING & DANCE. How they MAKE MISTAKES & ASK FOR FORGIVENESS. How they often have HUGE HEARTS & LOVE UNCONDITIONALLY. And - thankfully - it is starting to stick. Yes, she still wants to dress up in fancy Princess costumes (definitely not the shunned pink ruffely dress though!), but she climbs tot he top of the sofa and jumps off while dressed in them - "Just like a Princess does, Mommy!" And that makes my girl-power heart happy.

Healthy Halloween? See Which Sweet Treats Are A Smarter Choice (But Still Make Your Kids Smile)

Have you seen the hilarious video that shows what happens when Crest replaced typical Halloween treats with "veggie fruit chews" and "tofu ghost-mellows"? The kids' reactions are PRICELESS! It's Halloween - give the kids their candy!

Visit Doc Wellbee Dental Plans Today!

Did you know there are *better* candy options for your teeth? When it comes to Halloween candy, Doc Whitney Troope, Atlanta-based dentist and founding partner of the innovative Doc Wellbee dental plan - a new dental plan that rewards members for smarter oral care -  offers tips on Halloween candies to avoid this October, as well as Halloween candies that will make your dentist (and kids!) smile.

 

Scariest Candy Choices

 

• Sour Candies (i.e. WarHeads, Sour Patch Kids): Sour candies are highly acidic and can break down tooth enamel quickly.


• Sticky & Chewy Candies (Laffy Taffy, Air Heads, Sugar Daddies, Dots, etc): Sticky and chewy candies get stuck in the grooves and pits of teeth. Saliva has a hard time washing the gooey mess away, so these candies sit on your teeth, acting as a feeding frenzy for bacteria and decay.


• Hard Candies (Lollipops, Jawbreakers, Lifesavers): Hard candies don’t stick to your teeth per se, but they take a while to dissolve. The longer a food stays in your mouth, the more acidic your mouth becomes, which can wear down a tooth’s enamel.

 Smarter Candy Choices

• Sugar-Free Gum or Sugar-Free Lollipops: Go for candies sweetened with Xylitol, a substance that occurs naturally in many fruits and vegetables. This sweetener actually protects your child’s teeth by reducing the acids produced by bacteria and increasing the salivary fluids that rinse away excess sugars and acids. Plus, chewing gum can actually prevent cavities, not only because it helps to dislodge food particles from the teeth, but also because it increases saliva.


• Powdery Candy (i.e. Pixie Stix and Fun Dip):  Pour the sugar directly on the tongue, so it avoids touching your teeth – this leaves nothing for the cavity causing bacteria to feed on. Powdery candy also dissolves quickly and doesn’t stay around to cause cavities.

• Chocolate: Chocolate contains cocoa which inhibits the growth of the bacteria that is responsible for the creation of plaque. An added bonus: dark chocolate contains heart-healthy antioxidants!

Haunted Mouth? SPOOKY Dental Bills?

 

Doc Wellbee is a new kind of dental plan that  not only reduces dental bills up to 60%, but also rewards its members for regular dental visits. After every six month cleaning, members receive an annual subscription to their choice of popular consumer magazine.  Additional reward options, like health and beauty products will be added soon.

Doc Wellbee members pay a yearly membership fee for access to deeply discounted rates from hundreds of Georgia  dentists and specialists. Virtually all procedures are covered – even cosmetic and orthodontics.  Members pay dentists directly – no claim hassles, no annual limits and no waiting periods.  

 

Visit Doc Wellbee today to begin earning rewards for going to the dentist! Plans start at $12 per month for individuals, $18 per month for families. Click here to find aDoc Wellbee dentist near you

Bi-racial Baby Dolls - The Loch Ness Monster of the Doll World

The Loch Ness Monster. Big Foot. Aliens. And Bi-Racial Baby Dolls. What do these things have in common? No matter how hard you try, you can't find them. People claim they exist. Someone, somewhere has a fuzzy picture of one. But try and see one for yourself? Good luck.

My hunt for a mainstream bi-racial baby doll began when Paige was born. It was 2009... mixed race children were one of the fastest growing racial groups. There must be at least a few bi-racial baby doll options available. WRONG! No Barbies. No Cabbage Patch Dolls. No American Girl. NADA. All the available dolls were one of two extremes - blonde hair, blue eyed, pale white skin or jet black hair, black eyes and dark brown skin. And a few brunette white dolls thrown in. But nothing that even could pass as mixed-race. So what did I get Paige? A Dora the Explorer doll - because it was the closest thing I could find.

Fast forward nearly 4 years and my hunt continues for the elusive bi-racial baby doll. Even my go-to source of wisdom - Google - has trouble finding any. Here's what my Google friends came up with when I searched "bi-racial baby doll" - brace yourself for it...

 SERIOUSLY?! This is all you've got?!

A few months ago, Paige found a blonde haired Barbie doll that she started to play with. I don't mind if she plays with dolls that don't look like her, but I think every little girl wants/needs to feel like she is "normal" - and that means seeing herself reflected back to some extent in at least ONE of her dolls. So I headed to Target to find something a little bit closer to her reality. Think I could find something? NOPE! I came home with an African-American Barbie doll with a little bit lighter skin, hazel eyes and straight black hair. They didn't even have a Hispanic Barbie, my go-to baby doll race when all else fails. Mattel - I beg you - PLEASE get with the times and make a few different bi-racial Barbie dolls. Medium skin, tan skin, lighter hair, curly hair - SOMETHING. ANYTHING! I can't even imagine what Asian or Indian families go through. At least I can buy a Hispanic doll (although they are pretty elusive too). What do other races go with?!

And then there is the Fisher Price play house families. They sell a Black family (black mommy, black daddy, black baby) and a White family (white mommy, white daddy, white baby). And nothing between. The least they could do is sell each part of the "family" separately so we can mix and match as needed.


I feel like what I'm saying is common sense - cookie cutter families are a thing of the past. Paige is still too young to realize, but in the very near future, she is going to start asking questions. Maybe - just maybe - some of the major toy companies (not expensive specialty!) can offer a solution soon. Although maybe it's like the flesh colored BandAids that have been around forever - unless you are white, they aren't really "flesh" now are they? Daniel and I laugh about that all the time - yes, you can buy specialty, off-brand band-aids. But why hasn't Johnson & Johnson figured it out? Seems pretty simple to offer flesh-toned Band-Aids in multiple flesh tones.

By Christmas 2014 (a full 12+ months from now), I want to be able to buy my daughter - who will be turning 5 at that point and significantly more aware - a baby doll that looks like her. A Barbie. A Cabbage Patch. A Fisher Price Family. Heck, I'd even buy a store brand. So who's going to step up to the plate? Bueller? Bueller? I don't think it's going to happen. But I'd love someone to prove me wrong - please, prove me wrong!