Sunday, May 17, 2009

Notes from the field: boys and girls are different


Last week we had an extended family picnic at the botanic gardens. Three families, three assorted fast food offerings (no one felt like cooking), and some picnic tables by a fast-moving creek made for a great evening. We spread out our paper bags while the kids wandered around, until Carden shooed them back to their own table: "Your food is over there. This is our feast." Who knew he'd be so possessive over chicken sandwiches and french fries.

The gardens were lovely, full of spring flowers and blooming trees. It seems to be a popular spot with wedding photographers and we saw many couples doing photo shoots. To appreciate this, you have to understand that Charlotte, not yet 2, is in a full-blown princess phase. Her limited vocabulary has a large chunk devoted to words like "princess," "pretty princess," "dress," "pretty dress," "shoes," "pretty shoes," etc. You get the idea. So we're wandering through the gardens, and around the bend we come across one of the brides. Charlotte stops dead in her tracks, mouth open, staring at this girl in clouds of white tulle. She doesn't move for a full minute, and even once I call her name, she takes a half-hearted step toward me, not taking her eyes off the bride until they've left. Princesses in real life! Who knew?

A few minutes later we come around another bend and spot another bride. I can hear my 5-year-old niece excitedly telling her mother, "That one had a tiara! The other one only had lace on her hair. I want a tiara."

A few minutes later we spot yet another bride. The 5-year-old girl says in a dreamy voice, "Look Mom, a bride!" To which Carden responds, "Sheesh, not another one!"

4 comments:

Emily said...

classic! I love your posts. Thanks for the fun read. It is amazing at how different they are!

Heidi said...

We loved to go to Temple Square so we could see the PRINCESSES. Abbey always insisted on taking pictures of them.

sarah e. said...

How cute! I love Carden's comment. So typical.

I am reminded of the proudest moment of my life (I may be exagerrating) when my two year old niece was looking at my wedding pictures, pointing to me, and asking her mom "Princess?" It's amazing what a fancy dress can do to a person.

I am now finding myself weighing the practicality of wearing a ball gown on a regular basis.

Rachel Steed said...

When I got married, people repeatedly told me that I looked like a Barbie; I would have preferred princess.