I've been dying to share this t-shirt/blog for such a long while now but life got in the way. First, as you all know, I was dealing with that person, X. During all of that my husband got a job in LA so we were traveling back and forth almost every weekend on the hunt for a place to live. As if all of that wasn't enough, I found out I was pregnant! This pregnancy so far has been extremely tough. I have NEVER experienced so much sickness for such a long period of time. I am still waiting for all of it to go away and for the "fun" part of pregnancy to begin. After all of that, we had to move, unpack, etc., etc. Our lives are still not completely in order yet but I just couldn't wait any longer to share this tee!
The idea came to me some time ago but as you all know by now, my production took WAY longer than expected with many issues along the way. While most of my production is damaged and unsellable (sad face), I am so thankful that our Right Way tee in solid white came out perfect so I could bring this graphic tee to life!
So a long long time ago, as all stories begin, we were driving and Mila decided to put almost an entire BIG bag of Goldfishes into the cupholder in her carseat. I'm sure you all know those cupholders aren't big enough to hold a bag of Goldfishes, really, no cupholder is equipped to handle an entire bag of Goldfishes! So fishes and crumbs EVERYWHERE! At first, I was upset but then I reminded myself that my almost 2 year old (see, a VERY long time ago, Mila's almost 3!) has no idea what she just did which means there was no point in me getting upset but to embrace the situation and allow her to have fun with it. After my few seconds of sighing and staring at the crumbs all over the car floor I just looked at her and said "It's okay, have fun little one." Within the next few minutes, I had all these thoughts running through my head. How I need to remind myself not to get so upset when Mila does these things she has no idea is wrong and how I should let her be a kid for as long as she'll let me. Immediately after these thoughts I started telling my husband about how this phrase really caught my attention and I had no idea what I was saying when I said it but now it means so much more to me.
It made me think of how parents get so caught up in having their children be the first to pee in the potty, the first to learn their ABC's, enrolled in every extra curricular activity causing them to bounce from one class to the next, etc., etc. While there's nothing wrong with encouraging children to succeed, I personally feel as though this can cause so much pressure for parents and children. Sometimes it's okay if your child is late on learning certain milestones and we forget that these little humans are just kids and sometimes we have to stop and let them be. We all eventually learn to pee in the potty, right? Haha! Again, I'm not saying we shouldn't push our children to succeed, I'm just saying that if your little one isn't peeing in the potty yet, it's okay!
All this caused me to think some more and it lead to so many more thoughts on this phrase. I'm a first time mom and I'm still learning how to be more and more patient with a toddler and my patience is always tested when we're out in public at restaurants, grocery stores, or anywhere where you can feel eyes on you when your toddler starts to act up - so everywhere, haha! I'm slowly learning that the eyes that follow me are more bothered by my daughter slamming utensils to the table then I am because you know what, if she's happy and my husband and I can eat a meal, then she can slam away. Of course, we wouldn't allow this at some fancy schmancy five-star restaurant but we also wouldn't take a 2 year old to fine dine with us, haha!
I also want those without children to see kids in this tee and be reminded that it's not polite to stare when kids are acting up in places because their parents are doing the best they can and sometimes it doesn't bother us if they are playing with the shopping cart while we shop, what we care about is getting our shopping done without people staring at us. Although, I know we've all been there, we've all been a starer but now that I have a kid, I know how it feels and the last thing we need when our kid is screaming are all eyes on us.
My hope is that this fun graphic tee can remind us all that these little ones are allowed to act up at the grocery store once in a while, that babies can take those first steps when it's their time to do so, that they can take a break from learning their 123's and play outside. There's nothing wrong with structure, but there is also nothing wrong with breaking that structure...in moderation. These little ones deserve to have all the fun they can while they can because we ALL know adult'ing isn't always the best and we so wish we could go back in time and be a kid again. I want this tee to remind kids that no matter what fun means to them, to do what makes them happy.
I am having SOOO much fun with this little tee! I had my very first super official photo shoot for Mila James with this tee and It was pretty much the cutest and most tiring day of my life!! We had a great location thanks to Breather, an amazing photographer (Arlene Easterwood of Icarian Photography) and the most adorable little girls ever! Lena, Mila, Lily and Penny, I couldn't have done this without you ladies! A huge thank you to all the mama's for letting me use their little's and helping me sing all the songs to hold their attention, my husband for making sure all my requests and details were done right, and my very talented friend for doing our first brand shoot. I will forever remember this day and everyone who helped me get this done!
I know I'm not the creator of this phrase, I'm sure many people have thought and said these words but I'm super excited to bring this to all of your little ones. Be sure to follow Mila James on social media to see when the shirts will be for sale. Hoping for both Right Way tees to be available for purchase within the next couple of weeks! I can't wait to see your little ones having fun in these tees!
**Trademark pending for "Have Fun Little One."**