You need to examine why you want to force gender essentialism on this poor toddler, Aimee! Boo! It's a societal construct! Don't be a slave to the kyriarchy (sp?)!

Do you feel better now?

Seriously, though, if she wants to dress girly when she gets older I expect she will.

Steph, hope that head of yours feels better. Sounds like a bad bruise, esp with the coloration. I've had bruises like that before, ones that don't hurt much the first couple days but then get all tender when the color appears. I am a klutz so I bruise a lot.

Sean, I'm sorry to hear about your grandmother, and about your difficulties with your father.

Thanks, Hec. I know I shouldn't *care* what the hell they dress her in (and really, I truly don't), but my ingrained, bone deep, stereotypical girlyness is so hard to let go of sometimes.

Wait until she's old enough to voice her opinions on her clothes, Aims. It'll come soon enough. I dressed Liv in lots of black and gender neutral stuff but low and behold, the girly girl erupted when she got to pick her own outfits.

WRT head bruising, I sprained my ankle last monday and didn't see the first sign of a bruise until saturday. Now much of my foot is angry, electric purple and has that uber sore "ouch, bruise!" feel. So it may just be that coming out late...but anything head-related I'm all for getting checked by medical professionals ASAP. As Cass noted, brains are best spicy but not scrambled.

I'm sorry about your grandmother, Sean.

Ah, Sean, I'm sorry to hear about your grandmother.

Aims, she's two. Just remember, she's two, and it sounds like her preferences in clothes will be respected by her folks when she expresses them, so she may well go into a super-femme stage soon, and they will support it.

I looked like a boy(hair, clothes, etc) from birth to 4th grade (by my own tomboyish farm-raised self) and look how I turned out!

Teppy, when I fell and whacked my head, the bone bruise on my temple took a couple of days to kick in, and it hurt like a son-of-a-bitch. It also ached for a fairly long time after that.

Sean, I'm so sorry about your grandmother, and for the rift between you and your dad. It's such a hard thing.

Bone bruise? You can bruise a bone?

Dammit, I can't find the shirt I want to wear today. I need something a little long to wear over cropped black leggings, but not a t-shirt or clingy thing, and I have the perfect navy top, and I can't find it. Or I could wear my new teal t-shirt with a pretty bohemian tie-dye skirt that I haven't worn yet. I don't want to come across all hippie, though.