Recently, on the spur of the moment, I purchased a pair of Hello Kitty pajama pants. I’ve never worn anything like them before, but, I have a preschool daughter who’s heavily-vested in the world of Hello Kitty, I needed a new pair of comfy around-the-house pants, and I had two minutes to shop. Hence the impulsive, atypical purchase. On the way home, I patted myself on the back for being a fun mother, even a mother to remember fondly some day.
When my daughter first saw me wearing them that next Saturday morning, her eyes lit up and she followed me around for a while, counting the Kitties.
My middle child just laughed his goofy laugh when he saw me.
What I didn’t account for was my eldest, heavily-vested in the world of second grade, the grade of “no more character backpacks†and “I’m so not a first grader anymore.†He took one look at me and made a face. It was not a benign face.
“What (emphasis on what) are you wearing, Mom?â€
Apparently a big, giant fashion faux pas, according to the biggest small person in my house who, incidentally, still doesn’t understand the concept of matching when it comes to his own attire.
“Pajamas,†I answered, apprehensive.
“They’ve got Hello Kitty on them,†he said, his face contorting even further.
“What’s wrong with wearing Hello Kitty PJs?†I retorted.
“You’re a mom,†he stated, the meaning obvious.
“So?†I responded with profundity.
Pause. “Well, don’t ever wear those in public.â€
Obviously, he felt the need to be painfully clear since I’m not normally in the habit of leaving the house in my sleepwear.
So then.
Later that evening, my husband, in a bout of sympathy, raised his eyebrows dramatically when I donned the scorned attire again and said, “Hello, Mama!†While I appreciated his support, that just felt kind of weird.
Ultimately, I’m left with the question of whether to wear or not to wear the Hello Kitty pants. Frankly, in the end, I think it will come down to the fact that I’ve got entirely too much Scottish in me to get rid of a perfectly good albeit controversial pair of pants. This will no doubt solidify my “Mom’s so not cool†status. Oh, well. You can only fight the forces of nature for so long anyway.