Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My boyfriend wore Uggs in the late 80s. They are not new.
I didn't say they were new....I said that they used to be sold in only certain regions.
But back to the original topic, I believe that the OP's daughter only wants them for the brand name, as is the iPhone. So she's a sheep by Lucidkitty's definition.
My daughter came home today and demanded that we start buying her name brands, claiming that "EVERYONE (emphasis added) has Uggs, iphones, etc." Is this just typical middle school behavior?
My oldest son started insisting that EVERYONE was some kind of expensive brand name clothes and clothes shopping started becoming an argument.
So instead of arguing, I got him a gift card with the amount I would spend on clothes for him. $150 looks like a lot of money unless you're looking at extravagance so he learned quickly it could be one pair of pants and one shirt unless he got a little smarter. He realized quickly that you can shop more frugally and have several outfits instead of one.
You can teach and preach forever about how brand names are ripoffs, but brand name is king in school and you aren't going to be able to change that. I can't believe you would force your kids to wear the Target brand to teach some useless lesson about economics, thus the other kids ridicule them. Also, better to be selfish than to be a doormat.
Ummm.... Teaching a child about budgeting is not a "useless lesson about economics". You're young and have a lot of opinions. Nothing wrong with that Moderator Cut.
Last edited by Jaded; 09-11-2013 at 04:17 AM..
Reason: off-topic and argumentative
To the OP. I feel for you, I really do. My daughter "demands" all kinds of things and this has been the source of constant battles. I don't do well with demands, poor attitudes or other nonsense. If she has been doing well in school, behavior has been good, she will earn nice things. She finally earned an iPod through some fairly hard work she did over the year. She is now quite pissed that she doesn't have an iPhone and refuses to use her nice phone she picked out last year. My attitude..too frickin' bad. She will get a new phone in highschool next year...behavior permitting......
Frankly her behavior and attitude is crappy so I'm not much inclined to buy her any luxury items. Target is my shopping store of choice...for school supplies and clothing this year. It's really not about money. We have plenty of that. It is about choice and catering to the whims of a kid who hasn't shown an iota of gratitude for the things that she has. Target is suiting me just fine for all our school shopping needs. Even got me a charge card last month, lol.
If I won the lottery and was sitting on 100 million dollars, it wouldn't change a thing. All about attitude really. Better to set up scholarship funds for needy kids quite frankly if I won that chunk of change.
Sorry for the rant. Pretty down this evening after some serious middle school attitude problems.
I can definitely sympathize, as my 8-year-old is already telling me all about what "everyone else has". I grew up in a circumstance where we barely had the minimum; we're talking gluing the soles back onto our shoes to make them last through the school year, and sewing up the holes in our underwear. So, while I am sympathetic to how it feels to not have the any of the latest styles... the fact is, while we will likely never be in the position to keep up with the latest technology, I'm trying to instill in my kids the value of these "things". Like, for this school year, we figured a shoes budget for the kids, which they could spend any way they want. My son chose to spend his budget on one pair of light-up Sketchers, while my daughter chose to buy 6 pairs of shoes at the thrift store (that's my girl!). They're both happy with their choices. It is important for kids to feel like they fit in, but they also need to understand that we have a budget, so they have a budget, too.
When my daughter entered 6th grade, she wanted the Aero t-shirts and Uggs. She got the Uggs for Xmas and we found the shirts at the outlet mall for about 5 bucks each-less than a Target top. All the other kids were wearing skinny jeans and asked why she wasnt. She is rather tall and I think not comfortable with her growing body. many kids refused to hang out with her and she had a miserable year,but she didnt cave. She refused to wear the skinny jeans, gave her little sister all her Aeropostale tops, and went with basic tees. Two years later, she still refuses to wear either, and it is not easy to find jeans she likes that are the opposite of skinny. She feels if people dont like her for her, she doesnt want them as friends. She says she is the only one without a phone,but hasnt asked for one. She can get one when she can pay the bill!
I didn't say they were new....I said that they used to be sold in only certain regions.
But back to the original topic, I believe that the OP's daughter only wants them for the brand name, as is the iPhone. So she's a sheep by Lucidkitty's definition.
Concerning phones, I do think that most kids are sheep though.
The differences between different iterations of the iphone and other competing phones are things that techies and message board people hash out endlessly, but are not things that middle school girls do or even know about.
They just defend their phone because it's an iphone and they always buy i brand stuff.
When my daughter entered 6th grade, she wanted the Aero t-shirts and Uggs. She got the Uggs for Xmas and we found the shirts at the outlet mall for about 5 bucks each-less than a Target top. All the other kids were wearing skinny jeans and asked why she wasnt. She is rather tall and I think not comfortable with her growing body. many kids refused to hang out with her and she had a miserable year,but she didnt cave. She refused to wear the skinny jeans, gave her little sister all her Aeropostale tops, and went with basic tees. Two years later, she still refuses to wear either, and it is not easy to find jeans she likes that are the opposite of skinny. She feels if people dont like her for her, she doesnt want them as friends. She says she is the only one without a phone,but hasnt asked for one. She can get one when she can pay the bill!
I am printing this and giving it to my kids. They hang with people who feel the same. But still it can't hurt to know that there are other people out there on the interwebs that feel the same.
Phone conversation with son: Who am I going to talk to? All my friends are here at school. I would just lose it.
I have no problem with quality, where quality is warranted. I bought both of my kids GOOD warm boots again this year because it gets crazy cold here. Good (fairly expensive) jackets for the same reason. It is the brand name for the brand name sake for being "in" with the cool twerps that I object to.
I have no problem with quality, where quality is warranted. I bought both of my kids GOOD warm boots again this year because it gets crazy cold here. Good (fairly expensive) jackets for the same reason. It is the brand name for the brand name sake for being "in" with the cool twerps that I object to.
You make an excellent point here. I'm like you. I will buy quality things as well, especially when it becomes a quality of life issue. Having warm boots or a warm jacket is important and if quality is a name brand and is expensive, so be it. Hubby and I bought quality and expensive furniture long ago. Our bedroom set is going on 30 years now, our couch 16, etc. It was name brand stuff however I more look at what I like, how long it lasts versus having a Name Brand xyz.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
