Toddlers and Tiaras

How old would you guess this girl to be? I can guarantee your guess wasn’t six years old. This is child pageant star Eden Wood. She has stared on several episodes of Toddlers and Tiaras. If you’ve never seen this show, I honestly wouldn’t recommend it, especially if you have a daughter. The show is about pageants, but not just your normal “isn’t my kid cute” type of pageant. This is extreme pageantry. Most of the moms on the show participated in pageants themselves when they were younger. These moms are fierce and in control; and they’re in it to win it. Most of their time is committed to buying their little showgirls supplies for their next pageant. Eden’s mother Mikie Wood had invested roughly $70,000.00 in her daughter’s pageants and publicity. She says that if Eden’s career takes off and she’s not stuck in some small town then it’ll all be worth it. For Mikie’s sake, I hope so! If you’re really serious about winning these extreme pageants, you’re daughter needs to be the best! There are many awards a girl can win in a pageant apart from first place: she can win prettiest smile, prettiest hair, best talent and the list goes on. However, for a girl to win these titles, she has to have the right supplies! Most girls have many extensions or wigs. Many girls get spray tanned regularly (even at home!). Most girls also invest in a good solid pair of flippers (fake teeth. These aren’t just a pair of dentures like your grandfather has, these are sparkling white, perfectly straight and molded to the child’s mouth.). Sometimes the pageant girls even get padded bras to give off the image of having breasts! Some of the girl’s headshots (such as Eden’s above) make the girls look like dolls. Sometimes they don’t even look real! And when they do look real, you certainly don’t think that she’s a six-year-old child! She looks much older than six. Pageants have been long debated over whether or not they are morally right for women. With pageants like Miss America or Miss Universe, the idea is that it’s not really a beauty pageant (there’s talent and the question and answer portion too!) However, Toddlers and Tiaras show pageants of girl’s so tiny that their parents actually carry them on and off stage. Even at age six, I don’t think the winners are picked because of their answers of  “world peace.” The stakes are high and the hemlines are higher for these girls. Some of the outfits really make me uncomfortable. My parents wouldn’t allow me to wear belly shirts even in high school but on Toddlers and Tiaras it seems to be ok. People might say, well the girls are so young, its not sexy, it’s cute. Will if still be cute when that girl turns into a teenager and starts thinking for herself? What other world could she possibly know other than makeup, money and beauty? I’d be scared if I saw that girl walking around the hallways of my child’s middle or high school. I personally don’t think that even a $5000 cash prize for best pageant girl could convince me into turning my daughter into somebody like that.

Jackie Barthuly

Growing Up Too Fast

In the past we’ve all seen funny quotes or idea on Facebook that we can like. I’m assuming everyone has seen the one about how Disney has given us bad influences as children? “Jasmine was in a forbidden relationship with Aladdin. Snow White lived alone with seven men. Pinnochio was a liar. Robin Hood was a thief. Tarzan walked around without clothes on. A stranger kissed Sleeping Beauty and she married him. Cinderella lied and snuck out at night to go to a party. These are the stories our parents raised us with and then they complain our generation is messed up?” It’s true; our generation is a little messed up. And these really are bad influences… I think this might be why girls get so excited when they meet a boy. A few years ago I went to visit my cousins in South Carolina. My cousin Gia had her fifth birthday on that trip. She had a pool party (which actually was a Disney Princess party, complete with pink castle cake and all) with al her little classmates invited (boys and girls). Every gift she opened she screamed how she loved it. When a boy gave her a gift, she screamed, “Oh thank you, I love it! I’m going to marry you!” Oh the simplicity of a five year old’s brain… Her mother did explain that she couldn’t get married at age five to all of her classmates. My cousin is the cutest little girl, and she’s absolutely beautiful. However, she is spoiled and a little too grown up for her age. Also on my visit to South Carolina, of course we went to the beach. On our way out the door, I went to get her and she was dressed in long jeans! I asked her why, and she said she didn’t want boys to see her leg hair. I was astounded! Leg hair? At age five, she’s worrying about leg hair…? I found out where her inspiration came from when her mother admitted to have shaved Gia’s legs before. She sees mom getting rid of her leg hair so why shouldn’t she? I tried explaining to her that girls don’t really have to shave their legs until at LEAST age twelve but Gia wasn’t having it. She then rubbed my legs up and down and said, “see, you don’t have any leg hair!” Gia then had her legs shaved so we could finally go to the beach. I can see where she would want to be like all the other girls. And I feel bad! Five year olds shouldn’t be shaving! That idea is ridiculous. But she’s only five, why wouldn’t she think, well if everyone else does it why shouldn’t’ I? I can’t even think of a solution. She already has this image in her mind there’s no going back unless every woman she met stopped shaving her legs. I can almost guarantee her mother won’t and now she’s already almost nine. Little girls grow up too fast.

Jackie Barthuly

Disney Princesses...What Are They Really?

Disney is especially famous for using the "prince finding his princess" analogy in their movies, but what is a princess? We've always known princesses as these thin, beautiful, long-haired beauties with no flaws and endless amounts of money and clothes. These women are always popular, kind, and wonderful to every living and non-living thing in their path. Thanks to Disney, this is now the goal that most women strive for, even though we all know it is impossible (or really darn hard) to achieve.
An example of this is as easy as looking at the story of Cinderella. Now Cinderella was a girl forced to work as a maid, but happened to be able to snag her Prince Charming by showing up to the dance looking perfect and leaving all mysterious-like. This kind of thing rarely happens in real life and no one can use the help of a fairy godmother to get all the things they want in life. This is completely unreal.
Whatever happened to being yourself? To loving you for being you and offering the best of you to the world? Most men, at least the ones that I've known, are attracted to strong confident women that are not afraid to be themselves. Being an individual is what makes the world go 'round. Without individuals, we would all be carbon copies of each other and nothing would be exciting or fun. Trust me, as a twin, I do know that being a carbon copy of someone else is boring and really takes a toll on your own life.
If I could be a beautiful Disney princess for a day, I would pass. I would rather be myself and enjoy life as it comes. No young girl should aspire to grow up and be perfect as a princess.

-Maggie M