"Ya Did Good Kid!"

I previously mentioned  that I have two daughters.  Anna is seventeen and BEAUTIFUL and Nora Jane is six and full of spunk.  Like many mothers in this modern age, I have begun posting their photos online.  But only for my friends and family to see.  My sisters live in Alaska, so the only way they get to see their neices with any regularity is via Face Book.  And I don't want any old Tom, Dick, or Harry gaining access to their cuteness.

And I enjoy sharing them in this way.  I feel pride when I post Nora's soccer successes, or Anna's B+ in Chemistry (believe me, this is a HUGE accomplishment:) As such, I should probably mention that Anna just got accepted into WWU (Western Washington University in Bellingham and only THE MOST beautiful campus in the Pacific Northwest.  Not to mention the home of Nash Hall: the place where her dad and I met.....  He lived on the 1st floor and I was two flights above... Ahh....sweet memories...But back to the present)  Anyway, we are super proud!

Recently, I posted Anna's Senior Pictures online.  And yes, they were beautiful.  Full of smiles, seriousness, and completely air-brushed and polished into blemish removing perfection.  And because our photographer (Ms. Molly Finnell, of MollyFinnellPhotography.com--who is fantastic  by the way) was very acccomodating, she let Nora Jane join Anna for some of the shots.  So I posted a few of them together as well.

When the comments came there were the typical, "cute photos,"  "BEAUTIFUL," and "I like this one the best!"  But then "ya did good kid!" started popping up.  I did good?  This sentiment was again mentioned following the release of the holiday card.  "You guys did good!"  Did we?  What, exactly, did we do?  Because, the way I see it,  other than having sex 17 and 6 years ago, the way my children look today was completely out of my hands, a genetic crap shoot.

Now, in all fairness,  I know my friends were simply trying to tell Dave and I that our children are beautiful, smart, funny, and we should be proud of them.   A no-brainer!  And, as a mother, all compliments that I am both proud and happy to receive.  But it did make me wonder.  Was there something I did (or we did) that inadvertently produced my two beauties.  Did I eat a special food, or not eat a certain food?  Did I work out "just enough?" Did I stimulate my mind with thought provoking readings?

Then I learned of an article claiming that beautiful couples are "more likely to produce daughters."  WHAT?  I'm not kidding.  Apparently, there was a study in the UK on this entire subject.*  Those crazy Brits!   Immediately, I was curious.  My mind was racing.  Who in our group of friends has ONLY girls?  Which of our friends are the "beautiful ones?"  Surely, Dave and I cannot be categorized as such....I mean he is good looking and I CAN clean up in a pinch....but on a daily basis, without bells and whistles, plucking and coloring.....no way!  I mean Nora just told me last night that I have whiskers....whiskers!  OMG!  She's right!  I have noticed these light hairs taking up residence on my upper lip.  But they're so fair I didn't think anyone else could see them.  In my defence, I did try having them removed several months ago...and the immediately following smoothness was glorious!  Until the next day when I woke up completely covered in a rash!  I looked like I had just hit puberty AGAIN! The entire area between my nose and mouth was covered in tiny red pimples....And they lasted for DAYS!  It was horrible!  I felt hideous!  So I vowed I wouldn't endure that humiliation again.  I was going to age with dignity and bask in the glow of my natural beauty dammit!  (except for my eyebrows...)  So much for being one of the "beautiful" ones.

Stay tuned.....

P.S.  Obviously, I cannot agree with the afore-mentioned study.  Because in my world, my friends are all beautiful and they have all produced beautiful children, both boys and girls.  Oh, and I'm calling the beauty parlor TODAY :)

* (found on the internet: Beautiful parents tend to have more daughters than their homelier counterparts, according to a report by evolutionary psychologist Dr. Satoshi Kanazawa of the London School of Economics. Kanazawa tackled the same question in a 2007 book that covers all sorts of facets of human behavior, "Why Beautiful People Have More Daughters," which he co-wrote with Alan S. Miller.)  Crazy huh???