Lately I've heard a lot of people wonder, "Why do our girls all seem to talk and act so much older than we were at that age?"
I'll tell you why: It's our own fault our daughters seem to be growing up too fast. We're glamming up our little girls too soon—and it just might be ruining them.
I wasn't allowed to get my ears pierced until I was 14. I also wasn't allowed to wear nail polish, pantyhose or heels that were taller than 1.5 inches before the age of 13. Lipgloss and blush came at 13 too. And don't even ask me about the arguments around shaving my legs.
So, I'm completely flabbergasted with how many little girls, ages 3 to not even 10, are seemingly getting used to being booked for manicures, blowouts, spa-like birthday parties and a handful of other activities meant for grown women.
What are we doing, moms?
Once we bust open that sparkly gate of "do this, wear that, put this on," I'm guessing it gets really hard to try and slow it down during those pre-teen years. Instead of being excited about getting a first "official" manicure for sixth grade graduation, she might instead want a 90-minute massage because manicures are "so 4 years old." We can't put toothpaste back in the tube once we squeeze it out.
Let's take a step back from the pamper-me-pretty play dates and teach our mini-mes what real beauty means before the age of 10. No blowouts required.
Then, when the inevitable preteen beauty curiosity/hijack happens, everyone can have fun throwing on glitz in small spurts because they're emotionally old enough to understand that, even though it's gorgeous, the Kiss Me, I'm Brazilian pink slathered across their fingernails is merely just frosting.
