My daughter who is 4 was asked today if she was going to be in our town contest this weekend, I hadn't thought about it, I am not really a pageant person myself, but it got me thinking. I asked her if she wanted to and she said yes, but she really has no idea what it is. She is cute, but I would hate for her to be really sad if she loses.

I don't know if I should? Then I have to go buy an outfit? We would get to go to the fair to compete county wide, etc. Then what if my son wanted to be in the boys contest?

__________________
"A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked." ~ Bernard Meltzer

while, ultimately, it is up to you, here's my thoughts:

*the dresses/clothing/outfits can be EXTREMELY expensive
*some pageant "families" are just downright scary! They are quite literally living vicariously through their child.
*when the young kids, girls especially, are made up, hair stiled, fake smile plastered on, etc., it's really quite sad to watch! And I *think* sends a poor message to the children ("you can't be pretty without makeup, hairspray, bows, lace, etc.")
*did I mention the true pageant moms? OMG! Obsessive to the point of frightening.

If you are going to enter her for the fun of it--don't spend much on a dress, don't put her in makeup, don't fancy up her hair. Have fun!

I have seen the good side of pageants--girls who gain a lot of confidence, it can be a bonding experience for mother/daughter, and it can provide educational scholarships for older girls.

__________________
Mental that one, I'm telling you. ---Ron Weasley, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"

I found pageant very creepy,litlle girls looking much older than they are....
so to answer your question: noway!!!!

__________________
By the time you make ends meet, they move the ends

No, and I HATE them....especially ones with little girls. I have yet to see any sort of pageant that lets a little girl LOOK like a little girl. Mom's buy $100 (or more) dresses and curl their hair...makeup....makes me sick. A girl who looks like a little girl will not win. No matter what they say about them not being "beauty pageants"....can't convince me otherwise. I know some who like them but we agree to disagree.

__________________
Proud to say I haven't shopped at a Wal-Mart since Sept 2003

Yeah that's what i was thinking! I would curl her hair get her all dressed up, just to make it more fun, but NO makeup. It's so much effort really, the dress, getting ready, then going to the next contest if she did win. It's not like it's important to us, it would just be cute, kwim?



ETA, it a Little Miss contest, not a regular pageant with talent, and all of that sort of stuff. I know one girl who was in it last year, maybe I'll call her mom and see what she thinks of it.

__________________
"A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked." ~ Bernard Meltzer

We entered DS in one when he was 2. OMG, we rented a tuxedo for him even. You had to pay a fee to enter, he got a trophy for best outfit and a banner for soemthing else, I don't even remember what. But, he didn't win any money or anything....for that you had to keep climbing the "pageant ladder". IOW, keep entering contest after contest after contest. That ONE was it for us!!!

Rent Little Miss Sunshine. Don't let the kids watch it, tho. It is IMO, a good movie.

I would not do it, if I were you.

__________________
Doing the right thing isn't always the same as doing the easy thing.

I just wanted to let everyone know that we didn't do the pageant.

We went to the festival after it was over, so she didn't see the contest, but she can be up to 7 and still enter, so we have a couple of years. It just isn't my sort of thing, but being a girly girl, maybe when she's a little older she'll want to and that's fine.

__________________
"A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked." ~ Bernard Meltzer

Maybe, next year take her to watch the pageant so that she can see what it is like if it comes up again next time.

Interesting discussion!

I have a hard time with even child modeling. I do not see anything inherently "BAD" about it, but I don't think a kid should be so aware of their own 'image' at a young age.

While attending a wedding, I was asked by an acquaintance who worked for a famous designer if I would be interested in having my then 4 year old daughter do catalogue pictures and/or runway shows. I thought about it for a while, because it seemed like such a rare opportunity. I ended up saying no - I just had a feeling that this would lead me into a different world - one where your kid is well aware of all of his/her physical 'flaws,' and works on masking them, downplaying them at a ridiculously young age. I mean, kids learn that stuff early enough on their own!

I've always wondered what it would have been like to take her up on it, but I've never regretted it.

I'm sure there are lots of people who have done something like this, though, and it was hopefully a great experience for them and their kids. I just had a bad feeling about it, myself.

I hate child beauty pageants

I saw one recently on tv where 4-year little girls were having spray tans applied, hair extensions put in (the little girl was crying because "it hurts" ). They were wearing false eyelashes and FAKE teeth!

When they showed the pageant pictures next to the "before" pictures, you couldn't even match them up.

In my opinion, it is often the expensive dresses/costumes that win.

I just always think of Jon-Benet Ramsey.

Yes, I do too. I don't like child beauty pageants. All that makeup, lipstick, hairspray, costumes - it just creeps me out.

Like another poster said, rent "Little Miss Sunshine".

I have never like them either!
I can't remember what show I was watching a few days ago, but a mom was putting her daughter in a pageant, the mom was going on and on about how this one was an "all natural" pageant as she was spray tanning her daughter. LoL
Let kids be kids! IMO

__________________
Chicago Bears!!!!
We are the Bears Shufflin' Crew
Shufflin' on down, doin' it for you.
We're so bad we know we're good.
Blowin' your mind like we knew we would.
You know we're just struttin' for fun
Struttin' our stuff for everyone.
We're not here to start no trouble.
We're just here to do the Super Bowl Shuffle.

Loved that movie.

I do too!

Jon Benet wasn't really a blond. They bleached her hair. She was way to young for that.
JMO, even if I get flamed.

I think some parents are wacky.
One mom kept saying that her child wanted to do them. Her child was not even 18 months old!

Wow, I had no idea about her hair.

I'm sure there are "some" kids who want to do these pageants, but, I believe the majority are forced by their parents.....perhaps trying to live vicariously thru their children??? There's no telling. We knew this was NOT for us!

__________________
Doing the right thing isn't always the same as doing the easy thing.

my DD is 20 now, but when she was six we did enter her in our counties first little miss pageant. It was very low key, they didn't even want us to buy new dresses for it. I just found a cheap one and decorated it myself. It was so fun, BUT she was in it one year later and it was already changing and the girls were much more serious. She wasn't in it again. She was asked over and over to enter the older pageants and we just didn't feel right about it. PLUS, I was always a mess emotionally. Fortunately she won both times she entered, but if she hadn't of I think I would of stroked out!!! Not a healthy situation!!! LOL

I'm quite sure there aren't any "low key" pageants out there anymore. I would say it's not a good thing. Competition is great, but to be critical of children so young for their looks is just not healthy IMO.

I have such an urge to brag here..........so I"ll sign off....lol

Me too...My kids have never done pageants...They've never asked to do them...I realize that not all pageants want the kids to dress up with fake tans, whitened teeth, and bleached blonde hair...It's that kind of stuff that I don't go for...I just like for kids to be themselves...nothing fake. ~Lisa

My DD did the town "Little Miss" contest when she was 5 (19 now) and she won....lol Never did another one.

We did however do some catalog modeling until it started interfering with school. They kept wanting her to miss school for castings.....Uh........no thanks.

S

__________________
This space for rent