After being bullied in school for putting on a dress, Melissa Lee, or for short, Mel, realises she does not want to be a girly girl. Instead, she wants to join the army. However, her mother Maria, who is a pageant director, completely opposes this idea. The two decide to make a bet - if Mel can win one of her mother’s child pageants, she can do as she wishes, but if she loses, then Mel must submit to the wishes of her mother for the rest of her life. What follows is a series of conflict of ideals between a mother and her daughter, all up to the point where the big pageant finally takes place.