The Process of Pedicures

Well, now that the whole world gets a chance to look at my toes, I thought I better do something about them. So again inspired by MommySnark, yesterday we did our monthly pedicure scream fest.

I guess that needs a little explaining. Let me tell you about my daughter's feet.

Girly-Lou must have the. most. sensitive. feet. EVER. Or at least the most imagined sensitive feet. I remember her being only a couple of days old, and having some lint between her toes. As I tried to remove it, she SCREAMED in agony. (and trust me, screaming like that from a preemie scares you to death!) It took several weeks for me to decide I wasn't actually breaking toes when I did this. Fortunately, I could cut her toenails while she slept.

Fast forward 18 months. She will no longer sleep in my arms, so cutting nails while she sleeps is out. Fingernails aren't a problem, but I honestly can't cut her toenails. I remember my younger, childless sister commenting that I was bigger than my daughter, just hold her down. But she did not realize the impossibility of cutting nails on a leg that is flailing like a beheaded chicken (not that I've ever actually seen a beheaded chicken, but it's good imagery, right?). Girly-Lou and I reached a compromise: I'd leave her toes alone until one ripped. Then she'd let me cut the ripped one, and maybe 1 other. So we cut toenails 2 or 3 times a week. And yes, she still shrieked and tried to kick the whole time.

Fast forward to age 3. Cutting nails is a crying sobbing mess. But Girly-Lou discovers my fingernail polish. Hmm. This might help. Cutting nails = agony. Painting them though, that's very cool. If she wants her nails painted, she must let me cut them. Our nail sessions go from 30 minutes (not exaggerating!) of screaming and sobbing to 10 minutes of screaming and sobbing. A VAST improvement.

So now up to today. She recently decided that painting Mommy's toes was even cooler. So when Girly-Lou needs her toe nails cut, it's a family affair. First we cut Mommy's nails. Then Girly-Lou's (this involves many stops and starts as she starts screaming before I even touch her foot. Usually I say more than once "Ok, we won't paint your toes today" to which she screams "NO! Paint my toes!", and she'll calm down enough until I'm on the next toe.) After we're trimmed, I paint hers and she paints mine.

And yes, Buddy has to get in on the action too. Do I think that this is because he's girly? (like his Dad thinks?) Nope. I think my attention loving boy just always wants in on any action going on. Because, after all, he refuses to have anything to do with any color that isn't BWWWWWWWWUE (I really need to come up with a way to type how he says that word. He buzzes his lips for the BL part for several seconds. So flippin cute!)

So here's our completed look. I really love the fact that 24 hours later, all the polish will be rubbed off my actual toes, and look like a half decent job. And I can tell people my 4 year old did it and put any reason for the weirdness squarely off my own shoulders. I just can't tell people that I did her nails.



Our awesome feet. And yes, I have super extremely wide feet. I really hate finding shoes that fit.