Kpants's Profile

I laugh reading this because my two-year-old is currently dancing around the house in a frilly pink tutu and little pink ballet slippers. I grew up with pink and barbies and took ballet lessons throughout my youth. I also had a mullet and rode a BMX and when I was finished with dancing, I took kickboxing lessons. My point is that withholding a child's exploration of the world, be it princesses or dragons, isn't going to shelter them from the realities of sexism and gender stereotypes.

As parents, it's our responsibility to monitor their exposure to these things and educate them on how they work. Explain to your kids that Cinderella is just as awesome as Xena and that both are pretend. Explaining how marketing works may not be a bad idea either, if/when they're ready to comprehend such a thing.

In our house, we don't have cable TV (so no commercials, ever) and books are always more accessible and much more prevalent than toys. So far, it's working but she's only two so we'll see.