Everyone had one...

The teenage idol. The style you strive to emulate every time you stand in front of your closet and complain about how you have NOTHING TO WEAR. I remember this vividly. Now my 9 year old niece is here at this very same stage, so yesterday we went shopping here:

I wanted to gouge my eyes out when I walked in here. I was stressed out just staring at the lack of options. She is definitely too big for Kelly's Kids or the traditional lines like it, so we took this route. We were actually able to find a few cute things after much digging and modeling to see how much she looked like Demi Lovato or Miranda Cosgrove. I had to dig deep, but I COMPLETELY remember having the same thoughts and hoping every time I opened the closet door I looked like her:

Cindy Mancini. The famous leather outfit she borrowed from her mother and then spilled red wine on, cue Ronald Miller, who then volunteers to pay for a replacement if she dates him. I saw that movie then and thought she was the epitome of cool wondering how on earth I would convince my mother to let me dye my very brunette hair blonde and get a spiral perm(that was huge "hell to the no" BTW). Coincidentally now I see "Can't Buy Me Love" and can't get over the fact that the mother of a teenage girl would own an outfit like that to even be borrowed in the first place. So, as I was able to remember how much I wanted to be Cindy Mancini, it was suddenly a little bit easier to help my niece attempt to pay homage to I, Carly and Sonny With a Chance. We've all been there...who did you want to be when you were a teenager with the worst parents ever and nothing to wear?