Mrs. Obama, me & the Little Girl
Much of my money goes toward buying clothes for my daughter, not myself. As a result, I sport a wardrobe that is mostly older than my daughter.
As reported by BlackEnterprise.com, Michelle Obama has been offering parenting tips lately.
I spoke with her once in an interview about feeding good food to kids. I even had the chance to mention the Little Girl and her eating habits, which pleased my daughter no end at the time.
I wish we'd had more time to speak, because the woman seems to be raising (with the help of her husband and her mother) two lovely, shining girls. Anyone doing that well must have usable wisdom to impart.
What struck me about the BlackEnterprise piece was Mrs. Obama's statement about parental appearance:
"I want my girls to see the model of a mother taking care of herself, because, quite frankly, my mother didn't do that. My mother was the traditional stay-at-home mom who never went to the hairdresser…and the thought of spending a dime on herself was just like, "'Oh, my goodness, why would I want to do that?'"
Much of my money goes toward buying clothes for my daughter, not myself. As a result, I sport a wardrobe that is mostly older than my daughter. Also, lots of the clothes come from Costco, known more for its large, Armageddon-ready jars of mayo than for fashion-forward duds. I'm pretty certain the Little Girl doesn't think her dad is a sartorial dandy.
The bad news: As much as I try being a decent dad, I might be falling down as a role model here.
And -- I couldn't swear to it -- but I don't think the First Lady was all that impressed with my clothes, either.