As I've ventured into the blogosphere, I'm been searching for experienced mom bloggers that I can relate to. I have a few mom blogs on my radar, that I'm slowly starting to read religiously. One of them is Leonore Skenazy of Free Range Kids. I love how renegade her personality is. Her opinions and topics stimulate so much thought within her readers that I find very inspiring.
A couple weeks ago she blogged about children's lingerie. What?!? Yah, children's lingerie represented by no other than Mylie Cyrus' younger sister, Noah. You can read more about it on Leonore's site here and here. Pretty ridiculous isn't it!?! I can almost hear the Colonel ask, "What is this world coming to?!? My Goodness!" Oh wait, that's me talking now. It's the age old opinion that what's current and new is downright outrageous and rebellious to older folks that have been there, done that. But I have to say, this children's lingerie thing is truly crossing the boundaries. Hello! Child molestors and predators!!
It's bad enough that I'm dreading the sex talk with my girls. Even though they aren't of age yet, I know it's coming around the corner, sooner than I'd like. Just the thought of it brings a whole lot of anxiety into my system. The Colonel nor Rambo never talked about sex and if they did imply it, it was masked behind the phrase, "Okay, be good." I never really understood what that phrase be good meant until I had informed them I was staying the night at my longtime-then boyfriend's house. In college. I was 20. I also went to a Catholic high school where they didn't teach sex education. So looking back, I can understand how uncomfortable my parents must have felt with the subject. It's bad enough to be working your butt off in a foreign country. But to come home and have to talk to your child about your own values in a society you still don't understand yourself? I'd probably pass as well. Although, I don't think this is abnormal for people from my generation to feel. Alot of my peers parents' never talked about sex either: "Oh my parents never spoke about it because they were strict Catholics", "We come from a very traditional family", or "Are you kidding!?! How embarassing!".
So what's a parent to do? I'm fortunate enough that I have a couple years to prep for this conversation. Are Pretty Pants and I planning to have it? By all means. Is it going to be uncomfortable? Most certainly, it's already uncomfortable now. just. thinking. about. it. But it's more important than ever to talk about sex with your children. Hello, children's lingerie!?! Thanks Noah Cyrus for making my job just a little harder. So here's the angle I'm thinking of and I've got a couple more years to fine tune and build up to it as well... self confidence and self respect: the ability to trust in one's own judgments, qualities and abilities. The idea that we will have raised our girls well enough through our faith, our community and our family and have armed them with enough information on the consequences of their actions to make the right choices for themselves. *sigh* Such a weighted topic that cannot be discussed in one post, but it's a start...
So who's got the sex talk down pat?
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<3 the post. thanks for putting a sistah up on game on the other blog. I HAD NO IDEA about this kiddie lingerie *shakin' head*
ReplyDeleteSEX TALK TIP: when u want to talk about it more, the hubs and i have had "the talk" with my two step-sons who are 13 and 17. i think it went a little easier cuz the hubs HAD NO issue AT ALL talkin' about it and explaining the "CONS" about having "IT" too early! if u ever want to use an example of "see what happens when..." - let them watch 16 and Pregnant or TEEN MOM (i think those were definite eye openers!!)
no problem! isn't it terrible!?! do you think the "talk" was easier because they were boys??
ReplyDeletethanks for reading (and commenting)!!
Here by way of JM! :) Just wanted to say that my dad was the one to talk to me about sex. My mom acted embarressed about it, so I felt uncomfortable talking to her...but my DAD, acted like it was no big deal to talk about this, there wasn't anything embaressing about me asking questions...and he laid everything out very simply and matter of factly.
ReplyDeleteI plan on talking to my kids about sex just like my dad did...becuase to this day I feel like I could still talk to him about it (not that he'd want his grown up married daughter talking to him about her sex life. ew)
My mom is Filipina and like you, I was also born in the Philippines. My dad is Iraqi. You would think they wouldn't be comfortable with the sex talk but that wasn't the case. Of course, being a Catholic Filipina, every talk ended the same way as yours - "be good!" (and I was for a good while). Now I have two little girls of my own. They are three and six and both know how babies are made; I mean, they know about the sperm meets egg part. They don't need to know more than that, but when they do finally ask how the two come together, I'll tell them open and honestly and as simply as possible. Any idea how to do that??!!
ReplyDeleteI totally LOVE Leonore Skenazy, by the way, and am with you re: the kiddie lingerie thing. Gross.
Also: espaghetti? Hilarious!
@Sarah - That's so great that your Dad seems very matter-of-factly about it. I bet that approach didn't make you feel at all embarassed. What a great idea! Haha, that would be a little funny now to talk to him about your married sex!
ReplyDelete@Natasha - Ah to be Catholic and Filipina! Sometimes that mix leads to alot of unanswered questions. I'm glad to hear I wasn't alone. It's such a hefty discussion, I think if we just keep ourselves open to hearing the questions and making our kids feel comfortable in asking... maybe that helps??
Thanks for reading, ladies!