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<\/a><\/p>\nI\u2019m about to have two little ladies running around my house instead of just one. (I\u2019m expecting a girl.)<\/h3>\n
And raising a girl is nothing short of a blessing.<\/p>\n
But sugar and spice and everything nice? Nah.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ll take a sprinkle of naughty and a hint of \u201clikes to roughhouse.\u201d<\/p>\n
I\u2019ll throw in a pinch of burn-your-mouth spicy and maybe an occasionally sour too.<\/p>\n
Because I\u2019ve been thinking a lot about raising girls and about being one too.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve been thinking about my own experiences, hardships and hard-won lessons, and what exactly being a woman means to me.<\/p>\n
So, here we go: a compilation of my\u00a0memories, self-experiments, personal gender studies, stories and teachings.<\/a><\/p>\n Let her pick out pink, frilly dresses\u2014and wear them outside to play.<\/p>\n Throw the baseball with her in the backyard so that she can break in her new baseball mitt.<\/p>\n Be comfortable with her nudity and with your own, so that she can grow to be comfortable in her skin.<\/p>\n Let her take off her teenage bra and not wear it for a year. Don\u2019t freak out if she stops shaving her armpits. Let her disown her girlhood because she\u2019s rebelling against\u2014and mourning\u2014leaving it behind.<\/p>\n Let her eat, but teach her that\u00a0self-indulgence is not self-care either.<\/a><\/p>\n Hold her when she\u2019s fallen down and then help her learn how to get back up, for when you\u2019re not there to grasp her hand.<\/p>\n Make sure she knows that she can date whatever gender she wants. Teach her that nice guys and girls do win, and teach her, preferably through example, to choose partners based on qualities that matter and not what\u2019s between the legs, inside wallets or behind \u201cmysterious\u201d demeanors.<\/p>\n Help her to be proud of her femininity when (and if) she discovers it, and teach her to appropriately equate this word with strength.<\/p>\n Encourage her to develop her voice. Reassure her that she can be loud and large when she wants to be.<\/a><\/p>\n Remember, if you\u2019re also a woman, that she is not you and that just because she\u2019s a girl, this doesn\u2019t mean you will share experiences, perceptions or personalities.<\/p>\nHow to raise a girl:<\/em><\/h4>\n
Let her cover her breasts and wear baggy clothes\u2014but make sure that she\u2019s not covering more than her body from the world.<\/h4>\n
Teach her that she is whole alone.<\/h4>\n