thoughtfulI guess that attitude of mine could go along with the article's apparent opinion that Disney movies teach people it's okay to never grow up... I don't think they really do, though, because I feel like a reasonably responsible adult, and I watch Disney movies all the time.
Speaking of such things, there was an article going around Facebook the other day about how to talk to a little girl. Here's the link, for anyone who's interested. I don't necessarily agree with it, but I don't necessarily disagree with it, either. I do think it's important for little girls to realize that what they look like isn't what matters, but I don't think you have to restrain yourself from telling them they're cute. Anyone who knows us in person can probably tell you it's obvious we're not obsessed with how we look, but Dad used to tell us all the time when we were young that we could be models. So obviously Dad's constant affirmations didn't lead us down a path to anorexia or obsession with having our makeup on just right.
The other thing that didn't teach us to be obsessed with our looks is Disney princess movies. The woman who wrote that article laments the fact that the little girl in her story loves a book that is ultimately about appearances (actually, if you ask us, it's ostensibly about appearances, and ultimately about the stuff she ended up discussing with the girl--these people who keep talking about how you need to look past appearances seem to be really bad at it). When we read that, we were like, "You know, there are some great movies out there for girls where the heroine goes out and does stuff and doesn't think too much about how she looks. They're called Disney movies."
Every one of the Disney princesses has goals and a personality, even if some people don't like to admit it. They go out and do things, sometimes pretty cool things, like saving China. They do tend to get a man in the end, but I'd hardly say they all teach girls that the only way to be happy is to find a man. Usually they go through a trial and rewarded after hard work (except in the case of Sleeping Beauty...but she at least wasn't a total slacker (she didn't complain when asked to get berries again, except to say that she thought they already had berries)), and I think that's a good message for anybody.
And now that I'm off my soapbox... It's just been one of the main things on my mind, and the other stuff is either private or confidential.
Today I'm thankful for the chocolaty shakes they have at the Habit, getting to the end of the book we were working on today, getting to sleep until eight-thirty today, having time to play Kingdom Hearts tonight, and the yummy snow cones from Steve's new snow cone machine.
