Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Are they 7 or 17?

Wow! It has been awhile since I have written! I have been trying to spend more time in my role as busy wife and mother and staying on top of all of my duties, so blogging was one of the first things that had to be thrown to the wayside!

But recently, I have found myself disturbed about various topics and so, back to writing I go...mostly to get out my crazy emotions!!! ;)



 
One of my new favorite toys is my Nook Tablet. My dad and his wife gave it to me for my birthday a few weeks ago and I just LOVE it. I take it everywhere and I am reading more than I ever have before...plus surfing the web and playing Words with Friends and Angry Birds, of course!

I got a subscription to a popular parenting magazine on my Nook. The magazine is geared towards parents of children who are school age, basically ages 5 to 9 or so. But after reading this last issue, I am canceling my subscription. There were several things in the magazine that disturbed me, but I will just share one with you today.
I was reading along and come to a spread in the magazine about cute summer clothes for your school-age child. (I would love to just share the picture with you, but those silly copyright laws forbid me from doing so....)


The little girl on the page caught my eye. She had her hair in pigtails and was missing her two top teeth...just precious. I would guess she was about 6 or 7 years old. She was standing on the beach with big heart-shaped sunglasses on. 


And then I looked closer. Is that a skin tight halter top? Is that a very short skirt that also happens to be mostly see-through? Really?!


The outfit this 7 year old was sporting could easily be worn by a nineteen year old!

Teaching our daughters about modesty is becoming increasingly difficult when the world around us is telling our little girls that what is in that magazine is what they are supposed to be wearing.





These pictures are of my mother. A far simpler time! My grandmother made most everything my mother wore herself. Can you imagine? I can barely sew a pillowcase!

But look closely. Dresses go to the knees, and the necklines are high.


Advertisers and clothing designers today are counting on the fact that our little girls will be convinced that they will have no friends if they do not buy these revealing clothes. And our little girls, in turn, will beg and plead to wear these clothes to fit in.


But this is a battle I am willing to have with Emma in the coming years.


I know, easy to say now...she's only three. But it starts NOW. There is no reason for my three year old to wear a two piece bathing suit or an outfit that would be suitable for a teenager.



I think she looks just as precious with that belly covered up!
I want women to be modest in their appearance, They should wear decent and appropriate clothing and not draw attention to themselves by the way they fix their hair or wear gold or pearls or expensive clothes. For women who claim to be devoted to God should make themselves attractive by the good things they do. - 1 Timothy 2:9-10


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1 comment:

  1. I totally agree! We have to start teaching our daughters modesty from the time they are young. I've told my daughter that we just don't wear two piece bathing suits. Others may, but in our family, that is just what we do. It isn't easy to go against the norm, but as more and more of us stand up for a more modest dress, hopefully the clothing designers will begin to cater to us as well. Thanks for encouraging me that I'm not alone!

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