Brave Parents Conversations #004: When your daughter wants to buy clothing that you REALLY don’t like

Brave Parents Conversations #004: What’s the best thing to do when your daughter wants to buy a piece of clothing that you REALLY don’t like?

Transcript

So this one is really, really short. In that situation

this is what you need to do, zip it.

It doesn't matter how hideous you think the outfit is,

just go back to this main principle.

If it's not harmful and it's not permanent,

she gets to decide. So,

try to remember, that the issue here isn't really even about clothing.

It's about who owns your daughter's body and who gets to decide.

There is a lot of judgment

and social pressure on mums about what we “let” our daughters wear. I feel it too.

It's seen as a reflection on us and dads can feel it as well.

But there is something far more important

and enduring at stake than

what your daughter wears on a particular day

and what someone might think about us as their parents for

allowing it. We are locked in a battle for our daughters’,

self worth, and self belief. And this battle will determine if she's going to grow up,

liking herself or not. And one of the most important factors in winning that

battle is to teach our girls to live by their own standards.

They are the ones who get to decide

who they are, what they do with their bodies,

and if that's okay. And we,

as parents, need to be brave enough to be on their team

and not cave and join the team of all the other people who are going to try to tell them

what they need to do and that they're not good enough.