Frivolous retail therapy poll.

[rivka]

Our finances, which have been tight for the last year and a half, are suddenly about to ease up. A lot. With more discretionary income on the near horizon, it's time to revisit the link folder where I've been storing up adorable toddler-sized sloganed T-shirts.[1]

I feel a little ambivalent about putting slogans on my kid. As I've said before:

I'm not entirely sure where to draw the line when it comes to ascribing my own political opinions to my child. On the one hand, I generally think it's distasteful when parents treat their young child as a political signboard, or put words in the child's mouth that they're too young to understand. My kid is not my mini-me. On the other hand, I think it's important to communicate our values from the very beginning, and to make political involvement and social justice work part of our family's everyday lives.

So, where does the line fall in T-shirt form? I welcome comments, personal philosophies, and of course, votes in my retail therapy poll.

[Poll #1138454]


[1] Yes, at some point I'll spend some of the extra disposable income on things for myself. It's just a lot more fun to buy clothes for Alex. Buying clothes for myself is work, and not pleasant work.

Comments

[kate_nepveu]

Hey, if she likes the shirt, go for it!

If she has not already decided that "sharks" is fun to say, I will not suggest it to her.

*looks at comment, contemplates urge to say "sharks sharks sharks sharks sharks" . . . decides it may be time to see if I have a fever yet*

[rivka.livejournal.com]

I took her to the children's museum yesterday because they've just opened a new Water Play exhibit. Wow, was it fantastic amounts of fun: a "stream table" you could channel, dam, operate a canal lock, or just drive boats up and down; unstable boats you could load with legos and see if they'd still float; windows you could wash with a spray bottle and squeegee, all kinds of other stuff. She played there for more than an hour, totally absorbed.

At dinner I was telling Michael how cool it was, and turned to Alex for corroboration.

She looked up from her plate and said coolly, "It didn't have a real hammerhead shark." And that was her only comment.

Why is it all about hammerhead sharks right now? Good freaking question. But yes, she already knows how much fun it is to say "sharks." (And "squeegee.")

[kate_nepveu]

"It didn't have a real hammerhead shark."

Well, ex*cuse* me! =>

I have seen a T-shirt advertised that says "please don't give my parents unsolicited advice," which strikes me as . . . probably satisfying for the parents but somewhat aggressive, especially to be putting on a kid.

[echosupernova.livejournal.com]

The Kids Room at the Maryland Science Center has a waterplay permanent exhibit...I'm not sure if you were talking about that or Port Discovery, but I know lots of people who got memberships to the MSC _just_ to take their kids to the Kids Room every week, day, or hour. But then, I did work there full-time. ;-P

[rivka.livejournal.com]

We do love the kids' room at the MSC, and especially the water table. But Port Discovery just opened up a large permanent water play area that's even cooler, because there are so many more different water activities. We have memberships to both.

Edited to add: Sadly, the MSC water play area doesn't have a real hammerhead shark either.

[shadopanther.livejournal.com]

The water play exhibit sounds very cool. :) My nephew, V, had lots of fun at a similar one at the Monterey Bay Aquarium (http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/); (which does, btw, have hammerhead sharks (http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/efc/efc_smm/smm_meetBrowser.asp?tf=14)).

Good luck with the cute t-shirts for Alex. :)