When Mikayla was little, I did not let her watch many fairytales. We just didn't focus on those type of stories, whether in a movie or written. Of course I got a lot of criticism, questions, and strange stares when this topic came up. It wasn't something I announced or made a deal out of, but when she went to play with other little girls, or even in the nursery at church, it was obvious that she didn't know the newest Disney storyline. There were several reasons for this decision. She was extremely sensitive to anything visual that contained spiritual darkness. We noticed this when she was watching Beauty and the Beast with her cousin at two years old. She wouldn't watch certain scenes and was disturbed by others. I LOVE a good romance as much or more than the next girl, so this was kind of sad to me at first. Beauty and the Beast was my favorite princess movie! I dreamed of watching all of the princess movies with my girl. During this time, as new parents without a clue, we were striving to be deeply intentional in our parenting. I began to realize there was a reason my little girl didn't react well to these types of movies. God made her sensitive to darkness. Fear is NOT from God, so why would I introduce my kid to things that scared her? At first, this was the main reason for avoiding Disney movies. They were not wrong, just wrong for her and how God uniquely made her. After considering the true message in these movies, I realized that I did not want my daughter to buy into the lie that she needs a man to complete her or rescue her. I wanted to teach her that she is a princess because her Father is the KING OF KINGS! I wanted her to know that she is valuable just because God made her and loves her. The only one coming for her on a white horse and can truly rescue her is JESUS!! While I don't believe watching these movies is going to ruin young girls, I do know without a doubt that as her mom, I was making a decision based on my child's specific design. It was my responsibility to guard her heart until she was able to do it herself. Because I was so intent on doing everything with a purpose, I believed this was what God would have me do. I am so thankful it worked! She did not look for romance, or believe she had to have a boyfriend to be worth something in high school. As a matter of fact, she didn't go on her first date until college. She had a healthy view of relationships and her security was in Christ, not a boy. She will be 20 years old next week. Today, she LOVES those princess movies and that is OKAY with me. She is grounded in her faith and confident in herself so they provide hours of harmless fun.
I did second guess myself many times. I worried she was missing out on something as a little girl, but ya know what? I have absolutely NO REGRETS!
