Tips for shopping with a teenage gir
By Brent E. McCoy thereal@roadrunner.com

I have often said that I possessed two of the most important things that any parent can have. These are two things that will keep your children near you. These two things are cash and car keys. Unfortunately, since both of my children now have their own cars, I now only have half of the greatest gifts a parent can have. But, as I found out the other day, it's still enough.

I was enjoying a quiet afternoon when, quite out of the blue, mind you, my daughter asked me to go shopping for clothes with her. I was very flattered (and not a little suspicious). I said of course I would go with her and off we went. I actually enjoy sitting on the bench outside of the store until I am summoned to make payment. You can see some pretty interesting things while sitting outside the store. Perhaps we would see or learn something together.

We went over to the Simi Valley Town Center and I parked as instructed. I immediately received my first lesson in shopping with a teenage girl. It is apparently very important to park as close as possible to the store that you will start with and not too far away from the store where you might end up.

We parked the car and started toward our first destination. As we walked, I had a feeling that something was very strange. Suddenly I realized that we were walking side by side. Not only that, we were talking and laughing in public where, were we to come upon someone she knew, it would have been very difficult to deny my existence or our relationship. This was indeed an unusual day. I decided to just enjoy it.

But there was more.

When we arrived at my daughter's favorite store, I prepared to take up my usual position on the bench outside with the other dads and husbands. But, as if this day hadn't been magical enough, she asked me come inside with her. Inside the store! I felt my pulse to make sure that I was still alive and I was. I looked around at the other shoppers and several of them seemed stranger than me so I figured I wasn't crazy and I followed her into the shop.

She picked out a few items and asked what I thought of them. She actually seemed to listen to the fashion advice that I was struggling to convey even though my answers we limited to "yes," "no," and "I'm not sure." There was one dicey moment when she asked my opinion of a very short skirt that I mistook for a not-so-very-wide belt but still I was not asked to o sit on the bench. We- yes, we- decided against the skirt. I'm not sure why we decided against it- I'm just glad that we did.

This was turning out to be a terrific day. It was becoming one of the best days that I've had in many years. I was determined to be on my best behavior and not ruin it.

I was growing in fashion confidence and gaining an appreciation for my daughter's exceptionable fashion sense. The other shoppers seemed to be listening in on us and enjoying the way we sharing the experience.

Then it happened.

She picked out a very pretty blue peasant-style top and as other shoppers listened in, she asked what color I thought would go good with it. This was too much. This time she wanted a decision. Up to now, I had been bluffing. I panicked and blurted out, "Plaid."

Yes, you can see some pretty interesting things while sitting on the bench outside the store.