Christmas gift ideas

[rick401r]

This year I'm considering buying kilts for all my grandchildren. I have 4 boys ages 4, 13, 12,16. And 3 girls ages 4,5, 12. They have all seen me dressed in various kilts and denim skirts but I'm not sure they would appreciate or wear them.
What do you think?

[Caultron]

I'd ask the parents if they're OK with it, and whether the kids would wear them.

[r.m.anderson]

Good for you to introduce your family to clothing that is other than boring same ole same ole everyday wear.

Just as long as you don't put them all in the same tartan plaid - like the Von Trapp Family Singers (aka 'Sound of Music') whose wardrobe was the
curtains from the main dining room. LOL !
The girls should adapt easily unless they have never worn skirts.
As for the boys the real young ones will look real cute - the early teens well be careful here least you start a Braveheart* family feud !
* I am not going to wear them things - that looks like a girls skirt !
Are you looking at the Sportkilt line with inexpensive kilts for the young ones ?

[rick401r]

Yes, I will ask my daughters first. One son-in-law had a fit when his toddler son was put in little girls underwear after he had an accident in his.
3 of the boys and one girl are all Campbells so I thought they might all get the same tartan. The rest I might go with Black Watch so they would match Grandpa!

[STEVIE]

Hi Rick,
It's a good enough, if rather expensive idea. Remember, the fit won't last, especially on the younger ones.
Lucky kids having a Grandad who's so generous.
Steve.

[JRMILLER]

Rick,
Check out sport kilt.com for these...good quality, reasonable price. I own several of them.

Happy turkey day!

[rick401r]

I spoke with my daughters yesterday at the family thanksgiving dinner (It so strange to find myself the family patriarch). The 12 and 13 year old boys would not wear a kilt, the 16 year old may, and of course, the 4 year old will wear whatever they put on him. Guess I'll just give them gift cards instead. Sigh!

[Sinned]

Sorry Rck but the answers you got were predictable and I feel your disappointment in this. I guess that the older boys are being swayed by the conventions of our time.

[crfriend]

(It so strange to find myself the family patriarch).

Cherish the role while you have it, because relinquishing it is the ultimate in finality! I don't have any offspring so I'm the patriarch of my own life, and I'm well aware of my mortality.

The 12 and 13 year old boys would not wear a kilt, the 16 year old may, and of course, the 4 year old will wear whatever they put on him.

Like Dennis, I feel for you in this regard, but recall that for as outwardly rebellious as teenagers perceive themselves to be those are really the ultimate years of absolute conformity -- and it takes a very strong mind indeed to break out of that mould even in later life. This is precisely why so few men wear skirts; they don't allow themselves to "think outside the box" because the "box" is a comfortable place they've lived all their lives. To even entertain the notion that a guy could wear a skirt and get away with it -- much less carry it with panache -- is utterly alien territory. You can't blame them, but it'd be nice if minds were more flexible -- especially during youth.

Youth, it's said, is wasted on the young. There's so much promise there, such broad horizons, and such unbounded energy. It's sad that it's forced into such tight channels that for many, if not most, it never escapes and allows the individual to be all that he (or she) is capable of. I would not wish to relive my time as a youngster, unless I could do so with the wisdom I've acquired over decades of committing blunders and not grasping at dreams; however, to take what I carry now in my mind and my heart back to the robust, energetic, and youthful body I once had would be a lot of fun -- but without that wisdom it'd be as boring as a television re-run.

There's a reason why so many of us here are "of a certain age" -- it's only with a wealth of experience, the willingness to fully deploy an open mind, and having the strength of character to pointedly question our surroundings, that we shake the shackles of convention off. I'll say this: Wearing a skirt -- as myself -- is an entirely liberating experience, and one I relish. I only wish I'd had the courage sooner; as a teenager, the mere thought was an impossibility.