Wednesday, January 27, 2010

A Crayon Badge of Honor

Relating to my last post about wearing Eleanor's hair bands: Don't you think we, as parents, should get some slack in our personal appearance? Maybe there's some kind of pin or ring that we all have so that, when we're out in the "real world," our messy hair, mismatched socks, and frumpy, lumpy sweaters all fall into context.

Of course, this wouldn't really help. There is only one standard for personal appearance, and it's set by Hollywood. So I don't come anywhere near it, even on my best days. It's not a sliding scale, that gives you slack for the fact that you only got 2 hours of sleep last night, because of a crying baby. It does not grade on a curve, based on the fact that all 3 of your children simultaneously had different sports activities/clubs at 3 different locations for the past week.

The standard, unfortunately, is set. There is no changing it, or getting a free pass. The only question is: what is my response? Do I keep striving to get as close to perfection as I can? Or do I pack it, and consider an outfit that is 1) washed, 2) not jeans, and 3) matching to be good enough? In case you can't tell, I'm leaning towards the latter option.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

I think that when they see your little girl - she is badge enough! They know (they being other parents) know where you are at. They've been there. No badge needed. Just the smiley little girl running circles at your feet would be enough of a sign... :)

M. Lubbers said...

True. When I have Eleanor with me, and people see the speed at which she operates, I think they would understand. It's the times that I am required to go out in the world without Eleanor, and just look like a normal adult, that concern me.