1 Mother 2 Another

Twinkle toes.


My whole childhood, twinkle toes was a nickname people gave me when
they couldn’t think of anything better than to reference my
ballethood. Apparently, now it means something different.


According to Maddie, “all” her friends are wearing
these fugly shoes – picture a pair of white Keds, graffitied
by Jackson Pollack armed with neon spray cans, and then bedazzled
by some poor Chinese woman who was apparently paid by the sequin.
Now add to that the fact that some of the jewels LIGHT UP when
jostled. Now realize that all of this is crammed on very small
feet.

The shoes have been around several months,
but have until recently been kept off my daughter’s radar
partially because we’re a commercial-free household, and
partly, I guess, because Maddie’s friends hadn’t gone
there yet. But they have now.


When Maddie’s friend Elise showed up with a pair of Twinkle
Toes yesterday morning, earned after weeks of extra chores, I held
my breath, waiting for Maddie to mention them. And sure enough, she
brought them up on the walk home. “Mommy, Elise has a pair of
Twinkle Toes, and she told me that I can probably do some chores
around the house and earn some myself.”


Thanks, Elise.


This would not be without precedent: a couple times before, Maddie
has wanted something frivolous and we’ve allowed her to
“pay” for them with a combination of turning over some
of her hard-earned lemonade-stand cash and a few weeks of extra
chores. So that’s what we’ll probably end up doing
here, and as much as I’d love to blame Elise, she’s
only the latest in a long line of pals showing up at recess with
bling-y footwear. And Maddie has noticed.


So today I’m making a list of extra chores for her, and
we’ll see how hard long it takes to earn enough jewels
– our household currency – to buy them.


Do you think I could drag it out until Christmas?