Parents are raising their kids and Klout scores, one glamshot at a time
It’s hard to deny the benefits of financial stability to a child’s upbringing. But new research suggests that the goals of pursuing wealth and raising a child are incongruous. Parents with more money and education derived less meaning from childrearing. It’s possible that people who find less purpose in parenting are drawn to higher paying jobs.
But here’s how some wealthy parents are trying to have it all: By using their children to achieve material satisfaction.
Conspicuous wealth plus parenting makes for adorable if not jarring fodder, a part of the trend Buzzfeed dubs “baby fashion blogs.” Earlier this week, New York Magazine featured Gucci-clad, iPad 2-wielding 5-year-old Alonso Mateo. He has become an Instagram sensation for his Kanye-style swagger and runway-sharp fashion. His mother, Luisa Fernanda Espinosa, acknowledges her unconventional situation:
“I think people usually judge right away,” Espinosa says, defending her choices. “When we go shopping, if he wants loafers just like his daddy and I can afford them, I get them. We’re fine raising our son. He’s always polite, he’s grounded, he’s a sweet boy.”
It’s one thing to dress your kid like his father, another to invite internet-stardom. Of course a generation that has professionalized parenthood would derive satisfaction from Junior’s ubiquity on social media.
Besides, it’s cute when children act like adults. What’s not cute is grownups’ more focused on raising their Klout scores than their own kids.
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