The Imelda Marcos Syndrome

Most toddlers I know have some sort of obsession and it starts round about 2 when they start becoming more independent and develop a mind of their own. Both Evan and Jordan have very fixed ideas about what they want to eat, watch on television or Youtube (their latest obsession).

Jordan, being a girl is also very particular about what she wants to wear. She's into pretty dresses and pretty shoes. She's absolutely chuffed that I've gone back to work because she gets to see me in what she terms as 'pretty clothes'.

Sometimes, it drives me crazy because she is hard-headed and adamant and requires extremely creative parenting like allowing her to wear her 'pretty dresses' to school just so that I can get her to go to school. Ok, admittedly. that's not very creative but that's the gist of what I occasionally have to contend with.

Anyway, a few days ago, what triggered off a major tantrum was shoes.

I usually get them to wear sandals to school because they climb around in the playground and the grass can be muddy. No slippers, no expensive shoes and no ill-fitting shoes. The last one was added because given the choice, the little fashionista would wear her younger, but bigger brother's shoes and will end up tripping over herself. If she didn't cry every time she did that, I wouldn't mind so much. But she cries as if it is the second coming and she's not dressed for it. So, the answer is usually no. On this particular morning, she decided she wanted to wear boots to school.

Boots are a good idea if it is raining and if they fit. On this morning, it wasn't raining and she'd picked up a pair that I'd just bought from Perth that were too big for her. Because it would be too big a battle and take too much time to convince her to take off her boots and wear something else, I let her but secretly brought her sandals in a bag to swop in the shoe cabinet in school. By the time it's outdoor play in school, she'd have forgotten what she wore in and merrily put on her sandals.

It did allow me to take some hilarious photographs. Because Jordan was wearing boots, Evan insisted he needed to wear his too. And for him, because his shorts are a tad too long for his short-ish legs, he looks like a little fisher-boy.






















It creates a nice fashion statement I guess and since fashion is always impractical, I guess they're on the right track. A colleague of mine said that she didn't expect any less of my kids since I am pretty particular about what I wear as well, even now, while I am pregnant.

But if they were my kids, it shouldn't be shoes. It should be bags. Although the twins have caught on to that one. See the Kate Spade bag in the picture? When I brought it out, Evan commented very loudly "Mommy new bag!"

Yes, Mommy's new bag. Actually not new. It's just been rotated back out to get some air.


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