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.

This is what I find too- my son is 9 and would be pleased with makeup if it was the correct brands (he likes designer makeup), my niece is 9 and would be pleased with any makeup/cream/hair stuff/nail varnish/bath stuff.

Bit they would also be pleased with teddies/crafts/slime/board games etc.

What your child likes is age appropriate IMO. Unfortunately children seem to be growing up quickly at the moment and being in to all manor of things I wasn't interested in until late high school! I have a 2 year old and I may be naive but I wouldn't be encouraging things like that at that age as the ingredients are for adults... kids need good old fashioned water to wash their face as long as possible and certainly before puberty as their skin just doesn't need it!

Let your child be a child and a unique individual she had many years ahead to explore face creams etc

It's a ridiculously expensive like £40+ moisturiser made for ADULT SKIN!!!

I'm with you OP. My friends DD is 10 and has been wanting face creams etc for the past year.

I do think it's social media and feel sad that our kids are being forced to grow up so young. Where is the fun in face cream?

I was quite a grown up 9/10 year old and even I still liked toys at that age. That was before social media though.

Fenty is Rihanna’s brand. It’s the one celebrity brand that’s actually worth buying imo, particularly the makeup.

My daughter is 12 and has no interest in face creams. She's into art, Anime, rock music and all sorts of random stuff. I don't worry about it, I am kind of glad that she doesn't follow the crowd too much. I suspect she will get into make up etc a little more as she gets older.

Omg your child is perfectly normal for her age mine is 12 and still loves fidget toys and squishy stuff she don't follow trends all thos is due to tik tok

This! Why on Earth would 9 yos want face cream?

Maybe bath bombs, nail varnish or lip balm - lots of even younger kids quite like the idea of those - but face creams is something I’d struggle to get excited about at 44! More of a boring, “I suppose I’d better get this” purchase than a fun one.

Im so sad people were able to make you think "she will fall behind"
You sound like an excellent muma... and we should absolutely treasure them being young and enjoying fun things... they will be forced to grow up much sooner than we would like.
The only reason I could see anyone thinking this is unusual is because we live in a world where people think they know how every one should act...
Enjoy every moment of your daughter being young and wild... it unfortunately won't last forever xx

I have an 11 year old and she would much rather anime comic or figures then face cream.

My gosh how things have changed I was using E45 as a face cream at 11 lol.

My daughter is a teenager now but in year 5 she was definitely like your daughter and not into cosmetics at all apart from painting her nails every now and then and even that was more like “ta-da! I’ve painted each nail in a different colour!” Rather than being “grown up”.

And thank god for that tbh. Plenty of time to obsess about face cream(!) when they’re older if they choose to.

9 year olds wanting Drunk Elephant?! Wtf.

Perhaps they were referring to the rocks? That is a bit unusual for a gift. I have a geologist in my family and I still wouldn’t gift them that (nor do I think they’d want it). It seems like a special interest sort of thing that you’d want to choose for yourself.

Skin routines for 9 and 10 year olds is mad though. They aren’t formulated for kids’ skin and they don’t need them. It would just be them wasting product to play pretend, which they can easily do with something cheaper if they want to pretend to be influencers or whatever.

That said, I wouldn’t be encouraging or even allowing the anime due to safeguarding concerns. Too many questionable groups are heavily interested/involved with it (incels, MRAs, paedophiles, etc) and looking at anime-related stuff online will bring her into contact with them. They love to make chat/Discord groups about the show to lure them in to talk about it. Especially for shows aimed at children/girls or that are known to have a following with them.

To be honest, the thought of buying Sephora make-up or its' face creams (Drunk Elephant being a popular brand in that store) for 9-10 year olds is ludicrous. Let them still be kids! Buy them toys suitable for their age. Or gift vouchers from £5 upwards.

Sephora as a store is not cheap and is found in big cities such as Dubai, London, Rome, etc. The contents sold range from £12 lip balms and lipsticks to £20 mascaras - not every parent can afford to buy such items for the birthday girl or for a Secret Santa gift. Also, it would be unfair on the parent who cannot afford to buy it for their daughter's friend / classmate, and could cause some sort of animosity. That would not really be the ideal message to convey across.

Be happy your baby is enjoying her innocent childhood at her own pace and not being pushed into the horrid world of fake influencer Instagram perfection where the better the life looks on social media the worse it is behind closed doors. That's cruel & unusual imo.

On the plus side, 11 yr old DD is also massively into skin stuff (including Drunk Elephant) and her absolutely favourite thing to do on a Sunday afternoon is play beauty salons.

This involves me lying on the sofa for an hour, under a heated throw, with lots of pillows and relaxing, whilst she gives me a full facial and head massage. It’s my favourite thing to do on a Sunday afternoon too!

@Lostmymarbles25 my child is same age as yours and is the same as yours as well.
She has a fidget toy, skateboard, paints, and even lol bubble surprise dolls on her list.
But I would much rather things like this than clothes shopping, and things creams and proper make up etc etc. Why would I want her to grow up so soon. She's got lots of time for that.
I'm unsure what the other children in her class are into. But I know she has no problems with friendships so it's all good

This is literally my 9 year old too. She's not a girly girl, she's into gaming, anime etc her list comprises mainly of books so far

Your daughter sounds like all the typical 9/10 year olds I know. My niece would never want face cream at this age. 😂 Think they are letting their daughters grow up too soon.

I'm right in the middle on this one I think Sephora etc for a 9/10yr old is far too grown up and smaks of mummies trying to be better than their mummy friends however I also think slime and rocks and fidget toys are also quite childish/young for a 9/10yr old. I have a 6yr old and this is what I'd buy for him (actually no I wouldn't buy him slime or rocks but the fidget toy yes)

Our 9 year old has asked for clothes and skincare/beauty stuff for Christmas - specific brands for the beauty stuff and that is fine. Our close friends Daughter who is 11 would be horrified if we bought her skincare/beauty stuff and that is also fine.
Kids grow up at different ages and much faster nowadays. Depends on their friends, where they sit in the family and their personality. Just buy her what she is happy with and don't overthink it!

Your daughter is wanting normal age appropriate things, expensive face cream for a 9yr old? That’s just ridiculous

My daughter is 14 and wants Funkos, Marvel themed clothes and lego for xmas. She's not unusual she's her herself! Her skin is beautiful and she has no interest in makeup. I wish I had been as comfortable to be myself at that age.

I'm late 40s with no idea what Sephora is.

Are 9 year olds keen on face cream that's going to leave them looking .... younger? 😃

Letting kids build their self esteem on looks is an excellent way to build shallow, brittle underachievers. Think about the messages they've been getting to consider that stuff important age 9.

"will she start to fall behind in what her peers are growing in to" - not "fall behind" but have a broader base of things she's interested in beyond the superficial.

JFC.