AIBU that my child is not the unusual one !

[Lostmymarbles25]

group mum chat today and we were discussing the birthday parties coming up and Christmas ( they do a class secret Santa ) quite a few were suggesting the girls wanted vouchers for Sephora etc for some face cream routine stuff and some kind of elephant cream 😅 they have just gone in to year 5 so mainly 9 approaching 10.
I was explaining that for DD that she would be happy with any sort of squishy / anime surprise bags / fidget toys / rocks. This was described as unusual ?
I don’t think it’s that unusual - she would not know what Sephora is or the difference in face creams !
will she start to fall behind in what her peers are growing in to ? If I suggested face cream for Christmas she would probably cry 😂😂😂
she is not in to her dolls as much anymore but more like Sanrio character / anime figures / slime / fidgets / art sets / rocks / mini brands / mini verse etc
I don’t remember it being this unusual at this age.

I think still liking toys is fairly normal. I do think at that sort of age that children with older siblings or parents really in to make up do show interest in more teen type presents too.

I’ve always doing that the older kids I know who have apparently out grown toys all actually still love playing when they get the opportunity.

Id be pissed off someone had the audacity to refer to my child as unusual.

Nine year olds should not be on TikTok

Many are though.

Speak for yourself! Why are your 9 year olds seeing influencers at all?

No not unusual at all, my 11 and 13yos are desperate for some skincare stuff for Christmas but they're both at secondary and it's still mixed in with squishmallows and stuff like that too

I don't think either is unusual🤷‍♀️

She doesn't sound at all unusual in her interests.

But out of curiosity, what do you mean by 'rocks'?

I have an almost ten year old who has started with an interest in skin care and has a couple of things from Florence.

She still loves squishmallows though

DD started asking about Sephora last year in Year 7, found out about it through friends / YouTube shorts (she isn't allowed social media yet), and is now regularly talking about her "skincare routine" (I bought her face wash and moisturiser and she records herself applying it, along with running commentary in a fake American accent)

Back in Year 5, she would have liked Lego Friends, some tat from Smiggle or character gifts (Ladybug iirc)

Your DD sounds like she has perfectly normal interests for her age, I wouldn't expect a strong interest in beauty and skincare until the pre-teen stage or even later (or never at all for some)

DD is 10, nearly 11. She expressed an interest in some expensive brand for Christmas (can't remember what) but when I asked her about it, what she actually wants is something in a dropper bottle like she sees on YouTube. She's not really arsed what's in it.

Nine year olds should not be on TikTok

Doesn't stop them though.

But 9 year olds to be in to drunk elephant… it is a high-end, high-priced brand, one that I think is lovely but skip over as an adult, wtf are they going to be doing with it on their 9 year old skin?

Are we just inducting female children into a world where they already face unbelievably harsh financial pressures hurtling down the track at them (3rd level education funding, housing) but also leading them to believe they need some over marketed and over packaged shite? Is it any wonder young men quickly end up with much higher net worth then women?

Hold it off, OP, and start teaching your child about saving and the power of compound interest instead.

My 9yo wouldn't have a clue about this stuff. She was complaining earlier that her friends don't like playing Pokémon!

Oooops I clicked yabu - I meant to click yanbu! Your dd sounds like a totally typical 9/10yo to me. Shes still a kid so being into squishy toys, fiddly things etc all totally on track.

My 16 year old wouldn't want that or know what it is! She's asked for art stuff, sewing stuff and candles for her birthday. I've only recently persuaded her to use face wash.

It takes me a lot of justifying to buy drunk elephant for myself as an adult because of the price. I'm guessing it's the whipped one, which is lovely and has an interesting jar. I think at 9 I was still into Sylvanian families!

Oh times are a changing... at that age my friends and I would have gutted to be given skin products. Washing your face was essential chore. (We must have been very grubby).

What 13 yr olds can afford drunk elephant?!

I remember messing around with make-up and skincare at that age - I don't think it's hugely unusual for 9-10 year olds to want to play at being a grown up.

Doing it with £25 lipsticks & £50 moisturisers wasn't the norm though...

This struck me today when I saw the stories of a fairly well known social media figure on Instagram. Her 10(?) year old’s Christmas list is mainly expensive skincare and make up. It baffles me.

Depends on how much disposable income the parents had, and which people had generous older siblings!

I was a 90s child and my friends and I loved playing with makeup at that age.

I still got my Polly Pockets out sometimes but wouldn't have expected to go to a friend's house and play with anime figures.

I think both interests are pretty normal.

Hmm, I was at private school so it really was common for people to have the expensive brands.

I'm not saying every girl did it but it's certainly not something that's only come about because of TikTok.

Depends on how much disposable income the parents had, and which people had generous older siblings!

Not always, I grew up with an expensive education & holiday homes but my parents weren't buying me v.expensive brands.

I have a 6 fig income & don't buy my dc expensive stuff...

But these are Christmas presents. If your 10yo is into makeup they probably play with £1 Rimmel eyeshadows but you wouldn't wrap one of those up and put it under the tree.