Raising Princesses

Sometimes I get caught up in pink. I have two girls who love pink. Two girls who want to grow up to be real life princesses…or mommies…both of which seem to hold an equal amount of appeal and glamor for them. I have two girls, who are the epitome of girly girls.

Now, let’s be honest. I revel in the fact that my girls have naturally gravitated towards femininity because they are growing up during a time in history where femininity is something that is underrepresented and undervalued. In fact, I have noticed a trend towards encouraging girls to be the opposite of the quintessential girly girl by removing pink from their wardrobe choices, giving them unisex names and encouraging them to wrestle with boy rather than play dolls with girls.

If that is the girl’s choice, that is ok. Not all girls are created equal. Some naturally gravitate towards tom-boy and some towards tutus.

For my part, I am not afraid to have girls whose pursuit of happiness includes ruffles and sparkles. I am comfortable with girls who want to glue glitter on every craft they make. I delight in my girls’ femininity and I want them to delight in it too.

But…I don’t want them to rely on it to define them. If I ever have a tom-boy girl, I wouldn’t want her to rely on those aspects of her personality to define her either.

I want my girls to be defined by their relationship with the King. The way they live their lives and let Christ shine through them should ultimately define who they are. I want my girls to know that they are not princesses because they wear sparkly shoes or shiny lip gloss or pink toe nail polish. They are princesses when they show compassion to those who need a kind word or touch. They are truly beautiful when they show grace when it is not shown to them. By showing Christ’s love, they can be real princesses of the Kingdom of Heaven.

And there is no amount of glitter that can replace that.