Getting rid of the term "tomboy"

My Mother put me in a dress almost every single day. (And looking back over family photos, a large number of them were plaid...) My room was done in a very flowery Laura Ashley pattern (wait - weren't all Laura Ashley patterns flowery?) and my favorite color was pink. I had lots of My Little Ponies and baby dolls and Barbies. I was sometimes referred to as a girlie-girl.

Sorry, Mom. I understand that frogs should stay outside now.

But, I was also a tomboy - or at least that is what people said I was. I climbed trees, tromped through the woods, played with my older brother and his friends, and tried to catch tadpoles in the creek to raise into frogs (about that last one - Sorry, Mom!)

In short: I was a girl. Just a normal girl with interests that varied throughout her childhood. I didn't actually need to be labeled with terms like "girlie-girl" or "tomboy," because most girls have a wide variety of interests. And none of that should be shocking.

There is a beautiful, insightful talk by Christopher Bell called Bring on the Female Superheroes that makes me wonder how much different my life would be if my son were born a girl, yet had all the same interests that he has today. Would I still encourage him the way I do now. Would I be the parent he deserves?

What are your child's interests? Do you spend enough time supporting them? Tell me in the comments.