Guess what Malayna will never have? The Rose Petal Cottage. Not only is it super-pink {my very favorite color!}, but it's also "an entire world where your little girl can play, discover and explore. It's a place where she and her dreams can grow." Right. As long as her dreams are to bake muffins, wash the baby's clothes, and clean her home.
The little girl in the "Dreamtown for Kids" video sings, "I love when my laundry gets so clean. Taking care of my home is a dream, dream, dream!" Read Alice Bradley's post about this toy at AlphaMom. I couldn't agree more!
6 comments:
It's also like a couple hundred dollars. I saw it in Sam's Club. Nope, my girls will just have to deal with their cardboard boxes and their princess tent! LOL!
I have 2 boys (9 and 5) and a daughter (3). She loves taking care of her babies just as much as she loves playing power rangers and spiderman w/ her brothers. In fact she is going to be a PINK (OMG!) power ranger for Halloween. My sister in law wants to get her the house for Christmas and I'm fine with it. I of course will not be singing the song to her, but if she wants to play house, just like I did, than go ahead. Also, my 5 year old plays w/ her dolls!
I totally agree with you! Why would they make a dream house for a little girl to teach her how to be in control by society by learning nothing else but doing household chores!
That song is - oh my gosh. I have no words.
I'm in no way going to defend Rose Petal Cottage (and hope my daughter never sees an ad for it - it's bad enough she already wants Dora's Talking Kitchen - believe me, she talks enough for two kids already - when will Dora get in a word?), but there's nothing wrong with being a stay-home mom/ homemaker (which, for the record, I am not). Plenty of my friends have chosen this path, which is what Rose Petal seems to be pushing, and are happy.
I think what we need to recognize is that what/who we become is because of the choices we're given.
Yes, the Rose Petal ads are over the top. But boys' toys are marketed the same way - feeding into the rough-and-tumble stereotypes.
When he was younger, my son loved the Rescue Heroes, Power Rangers, etc. They were specifically targeted toward boys (they didn't include hairbrushes, makeup, etc. - they were given guns or tools). So what did I do? I got him some of those, but also bought him a kitchen set (which was blue, green, red and yellow) and a baby doll dressed in blue. I wanted him to understand that there's nothing wrong with being nurturing - whether you're a girl or a boy. I think the danger is allowing kids to feel that they have to be one thing or another - nurturing (pink kitchen sets) or tough/masculine (guns, tools, sports items, etc.).
In the end, it's about making sure our kids have choices. We have to let them decide what/who they want to be - and if we do our job as parents, it won't matter whether they play with pink, girlie toys. (k)
Aside from the gender driven stereotypes of such toys, which are not all bad, these types of toys seem to do the opposite of what they claim. How can something so completely outfitted stimulate or encourage imagination? It seems that the more a toy provides the less a child has to improvise and imagine. Dreams don't grow when everything is spelled out and given but rather when a child finds him or herself in need or want of something and then fulfills it on their own. Or not, I guess I just think that giving a child open-ended toys and situations provide for more exciting and imaginative play and better and more successful problem solving confidence.
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