The Princess and the Tomboy
Next up in the Raising a Badass Girl series? Natalie. And she's got double trouble!
Being a mom is no joke. I think we can all agree that it's the hardest job we've ever had. Being a mom to twins is pretty hard too, especially with twins that are so different from one another. These are my girls, Mia (the blondie) and Lila (the taller one.) They are almost five and getting ready to start kindergarten. They are BFFs, inseparable and yet totally different from one another.
While both of these girls love princesses, playing dress up, and snuggling, that's about where their likenesses end.
Mia is pretty much convinced that she is a princess and likes all things girlie: high heels, fashion, and perfume. She hates getting dirty, doesn't like exploring the unknown, and would rather sit on the sidelines and watch (much like her mom) rather than play any sports. She's probably make a pretty damn good princess now that I think about it.
Lila loves princesses and dress up too, she has more babies than I can count and loves to be the Mommy. But she also loves to get dirty, loves playing rough with her brother and his friends, is a daredevil, has no fear, and wants to do anything and everything that her older brother does. In short, she's my tomboy.
And I'm finally coming to my point. Anytime strangers see the girls together, they can immediately pick out that Lila is a "tomboy" and they nod and smile like they are in on some kind of secret. Like little girls who like to do little boy things are somehow different (maybe less than?) other little girls. That tomboys are rough and tumble and grow up to be (oh-my-God-I-have-a-hard-time-even-writing-this-it-is-so-ridiculous-but-people-seriously-think-this-way) lesbians. I can't see how that is considered a bad thing, but you and I both know that it still is by the general population.
So she prefers to wear shorts over dresses, why does that make her boy-like? So she wants to dig in the mud to look for bugs to throw at the boys? I have no problem with that. She fights having to take a bath and has no problem getting (and staying) dirty. How is that a bad thing?
Just because Mia is a "typical" girl and Lila is a "tomboy", it doesn't mean that they aren't both badass girls. They are both learning to be self confident, to take risks (and that failure is a part of learning), and that they can do anything that they set their minds to. So why does society still slap a negative connotation on tomboys?
Maybe Lila will grow up to be a firefighter or a sportscaster (work with me! I'm trying to think of "male" dominated jobs!) or maybe Mia will. Maybe Lila will turn out to be a cosmetologist and Mia will work in law enforcement. Who knows. And why does it matter? As long as I'm raising happy, healthy young ladies who are confident and can take care of themselves, I think I'm doing a pretty damn good job raising some badass girls.
Natalie is a wife, mom of a six year old son and four year old twin girls, wannabe foodie, lover of wine and of all things social media. She blogs at Mommy of a Monster and Twins and also works as a freelance writer and virtual assistant. You can find her tweeting as @NatalieHoage, Facebooking, and pinning more recipes than she will ever have time to try.