By Shannon Magsam
I did something really weird this morning: borrowed my daughter’s deodorant.
Did you hear the faint screams as you were pouring your breakfast cereal? Yeah, that was me. After I realized my daughter was anywhere near old enough to be wearing deodorant.
I remember my sister and I hauling our mother’s various beauty products – deodorant, shampoo, hairspray and make-up – upstairs to our trashed bathroom. She would yell up the stairs, “Did you girls take my new [fill in the blank]?!”
Inevitably, the answer would be yes and we’d have to walk it down to her STAT.
But every now and then she’d walk up to our lair and ask to borrow something from us. Oh how we loved that.
Ladybug and I aren’t there yet. She doesn’t wear hairspray, makeup (well, she occasionally asks to use some of my lip gloss) or fancy shampoo. But I decided recently that she needed to start wearing deodorant. It’s in a special, cutesy tube just for her, although I’m considering ditching it and going for a more natural brand. I worry about aluminum and that sort of thing. Anyone know anything about the brand in this picture?
The first time she slathered her new deodorant on there was a distinct grown-up air about her.
Now I have to remind her – multiple times — to slap a little under the arms when she gets out of the shower. It’s certainly not yet a habit.
The smooth round top of the berry-scented deodorant feels like a slippery slope all the way to teenager. “She’s only 8!” I’ll mouth desperately to my husband when I remind her to use it.
I don’t remember when I first started using the anti-stink stick. Maybe 10? I remember watching a film in health class about stuff like that and worrying that I might smell and not realize it. I started taking showers much more often and worrying about whether my hair was greasy. Let the angst begin.
Is it possible that I’m old enough to have a daughter who’s wearing deodorant? Secretly, I’m still 27 inside.
Shannon, please don’t let Ladybug wear traditional deodo that contains aluminum like the berry kind and the kind that makes her pits smell like Demi Lavato (this is the kind my daughter wanted). The brand pictured above is aluminum-free. This is good! Another good brand (that my 10-year-old uses) is Waleda and we buy the citrus scent, which my daughter says makes her smell like fruit loops. It’s available here in F’ville. 🙂
Thanks for the advice, Cara. I really do want to find a deodorant I don’t have to worry about. Do you use Waleda, too?
-SM
p.s. you look 27 on the outside too, so it’s all good! 😉
Yes I use Waleda as well. It’s a spray, so you can share without the gross-out factor of your deodo having touched someone else’s underarm. haha.
THANK YOU!!!! I wish 🙂
OK, I might have to consider going that route as well….
Shannon,
Isabel has been wearing deodorant since 5. The pediatrician said that B.O. at that age was not too common, but not abnormal. She uses the “Toms” brand, and while I go throught the stuff once a month she has been using the same stick for over a year. These little girls are growing up too fast!!!
Courtney,
That’s good to know. I’ll have to go check out all these ‘natural’ options.
Yep, growing up WAY too fast….
-Shannon