Thank You Marketing Execs

Why is it that every time we shop in a certain store, my mostly modest (two out of three) daughters turn instantly into hoochie mamas when we walk in the doors?

Seriously you'd think they were 13, 16 and 18 rather than 2, 5 and 7. There's something about the lighting, the MUSIC and the atmosphere that starts their hips twisting and their bottom shaking. These girls who are otherwise uninterested in shopping are all of a sudden drooling and dripping with "This is SO cute" and "Mom, this ROCKS." I am looking at them like "Who are you people and what have you done with my daughters???

They get silly, sappy looks and walk a little taller. They put one hand in the air and the other on their hip as they slip into "shopper mode" and all of a sudden have opinions on things I didn't even know they knew about.

Yesterday my simple goal was to buy some new shorts for camp since the ones we bought in April are now too small for my almost-eight-year-old. She is on the tall side so it's hard to find shorts that aren't INDECENT and don't have "I'm adorable" pasted across her rear end. And I have given up all hopes of finding anything without a rhinestone of some sort glued on the fabric.

When we got to the dressing room, things just went from bad to worse. There's nothing like a full-length mirror and some spaghetti straps to make your daughter feel "hot." Which, by the way, should only be a temperature to them at this age.

We did manage to find some cute things that we agreed on, but it just makes me sad that our girls are faced with such tough choices at such an early age. Their modesty is so crucial and our culture counters every single modest bone in their sweet little bodies. And it happens simply by walking into a store or through the mall. You can't get away even if you try.

So I guess I'll just continue to stay on my knees for the next eighteen years and pray that they will make wise choices. And I just might start checking out affordable convents just to be on the safe side.

L