The other day I was at the shops looking for some last minute stocking fillers for the kids.
I was looking at all the choices and associated costs. Geez, there are so many things that I could get them and some items are HUGE!
While getting overwhelmed at the millions of choices I overheard an older lady with her granddaughter.
Brilliant graphic from A Mighty Girl – Also confirms my thinking that toys are just toys and not boy toys or girl toys. Just toys!
I was in the LEGO aisle of the toy section and this little girl walked up and said “No these are boys toys”
The grandmother then said “Yes they are boys toys, come over here and look for girls toys”
They both kept on announcing what were boys toys and were not for girls. This angered me and I felt compelled to confront them but I didn’t.
I really wanted to say there are no boys and girls toys, there are just toys!
Why are we setting up girls to think they cannot play with LEGO, robots, transformers or cars? What about trains or other fun things?
My girls have been exposed to all sorts of different toys, trains, cars, dolls, dress ups, LEGO, blocks, painting, playdough, STEM, and so much more.
The twins favourite thing to do is LEGO and the complicated sets are the ones the kid’s LOVE!
You cannot know what talents or skills your child will have and limiting them with the toys they play with is just wrong. Also exposing all kids to many different toys is a good thing.
Kids who play with dolls and teddies show their emotions and learn how to care with these toys. Alexander is making sure his teddy, Bark the Dog is wrapped up in a blanket and that he is all tucked in for bedtime too. He wipes away his ears from his eyes and pats his head and back like he is soothing him.
Due to Alexander’s interest in cars, trucks and some television shows, of course, his gifts have been based around those. However, he still plays with his teddies, serves me food with his pretend food set and put his teddy in the toy pram and races up and down the hallway.
The girls are obsessed with Harry Potter and as mentioned massive LEGO fans.
I am going with the kid’s interests and I am not seeing toys as girls or boys toys, they are just toys.
Have you been finding it hard that some people believe there are toys for girls or boys? I personally hate this view.
I do love the graphic from A Mighty Girl as this really says that toys are for all, aside from the other toys that are for adults.
Let me know what you think?
Sign up for my newsletter
Stay current with all the things that are happening on Mummy to Twins Plus One. Don’t miss a thing by signing up for my newsletter. This newsletter will list all giveaways and fabulous things that are happening.
A post shared by Suzanne (@mummytotwinsplusone) on
Now when the twins were babies they had trucks, dolls, teddies, cars, train sets, puzzles, books, musical instruments and so many things to play with. I made sure to give them a great choice of things to play with.
The girls had cars, trucks, and balls but did not love them as much as our little boy does. It is a new level of love for things really.
Personally, I don’t believe that things are for girls or things are for boys. Toys are toys.
You play with what you are interested in and what you like doing. Girls like playing with trucks and balls just as much as little boys do, some girls might not, but that is not to say that some boys would love to play chef or say tuck in their dolls to bed each night.
My little boy loves his teddies, he likes some dolls, he pushes around the pram the twins had as toddlers and also likes to play tea party.
However, he is mental and crazily obsessed with cars, trucks, trains, and balls. Yep, we cannot go to a shop and pass by the sports section or toys without this kid getting angry about wanting yet another ball. Honestly, if I purchased a ball every time I went to the shops the house would be overflowing.
Matchbox cars for Alexander. He loves them and carries them everywhere.
The other day I stood on the corner of the school and main road and watched trucks and cars go by with Alexander. He was so happy and excited. We looked and he ooohed and ahhhed about everything all the while pointing. He even laughed and giggled to the delight of many truck driver.
While we were truck and car spotting some kind truckies waved to us and a few even put on their lights and honked their horns. A full on show for my little boy.
We stood there for well over 20 minutes and he loved every minute of it. One driver could not contain himself when Alexander got too excited over one particular truck. Alexander was pointing and saying oohhh oohhhh ohhhh and jumping up and down while I was holding him. This made the driver laugh and I think we made his day.
As I have only had girls and this is our first boy I am not sure where this fascination with trucks and cars and of course balls comes from. Alexander has been interested in soccer and can dribble a ball on his own from when he was starting to walk, now it is much better as he is running around like a kid with a mission now.
A post shared by Suzanne (@mummytotwinsplusone) on
I have spoken to other mums of boys and they all say the same thing. All their boys love cars, trucks, trains, balls and of course anything with wheels. I’ve looked this obsession and interest up online. It seems to be all down to hormones. Boys with more testosterone seem to be more taken with cars and trucks and the same for girls who have more of this hormone. Again, it is also down to personality and what your child likes to do.
When Alexander was still crawling he would go after any pram and just try and spin the wheels. He was amazed at the whole thing, he had to spin it, had to be near it or maybe part of it. I had no idea?
It was a bit weird when it was someone else’s pram but many said they understood as they had a boy who was doing the same thing. Oh… Okay…. glad it is not weird.
The girls are not into trucks or cars. Although they love playing with them. I still make sure to purchase things that will foster their development. I am conscious that girls are not doing or continuing with STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths) subjects. With this in mind, I make sure to showcase women and girls that are doing well in these fields and to also get toys that foster skills in these areas.
As I said earlier, I make sure to give all my children many different toys to play with that is not based on gender. I find this sad that we discriminate on toys due to sex. Colours for kids is another thing that gets me annoyed. Why can’t boys have hot pink, reds and purples too! I suppose this is another post in the whole idea of boys clothing that is not as bright and colourful as girls. I do have plans to make my own with some fun fabrics for my little boy, oh and also for the twins.
Trains are another huge favourite. Alexander loves putting as many trucks, trains and cars on the tracks.
If boys have dolls and understand how to care for people and others they are better husbands, fathers, boyfriends and just caring all round. Dolls are not just for girls. It helps both sexes.
I suppose the one thing that amazes me is the fact that the drive for cars, trucks, trains, and balls is inbuilt. My little boy loves them. He thinks they are fun. He holds my hand to make me sit on the floor with him to play trains and cars.
It is obviously something that is in his personality, maybe it due to gender, maybe it is just what he likes to do? I have no idea.
My little boy cannot tell me at the moment, and if he could I am not sure he would know why either. Basically, he just loves them. He wants to play with what makes him happy and now as a mum to a boy, I’m accommodating his wishes.
I am making sure that I stop on the highway to watch cars and trucks. We stop at railways to see trains and I have purchased many balls, matchbox cars, and a car ramp so that he can have fun at home.
We still have the toy train set that the girls had as babies and now Alexander is loving it too. When I opened up the old train set I saw that the girls had half a dozen of matchbox cars they used to play with as well. Now they are Alex’s and he is so happy.
I’ve read online that playing with trains and balls helps with spatial awarness and can also help with your child’s STEM skills in the future. It is interesting that Alex has been into this since the early days but I have made an effort to ensure that all my kids get exposed to all different toys. This I feel helps their development and learning.
Kids are kids and are still learning. Toys help them understand how things work and play is super important.
Play in all forms is good for kids, pretend play, dress ups, getting dirty in the garden, sandpit fun, exploring nature, trains, cars, trucks, balls, tea party and playing musical instruments. It is all fun and helps kids grow.
Trucks and yet more trucks to play with. Alexander loves the choice from Playgroup.
I am still amazed at how inbuilt Alexander’s drive to play with cars, trucks, trains, and balls are. He instantly had to have them. He loves them. It was not directed by me or anyone. He just loves them. It makes him happy and he is even happier when I’m on the floor playing with him and making the sounds of the cars and trains to boot.
Due to having girls and not experiencing anything boy I had no idea. He is a real rough and tumble boy, but is also super sensitive too. He loves cuddles and his teddies.
Do you have a boy? If you do were you shocked at how instantly they take to cars and trucks? What about trains? Do you find that you cannot leave a train station without watching a few trains come and go? What about watching the traffic go by? I must say watching traffic is a super cheap way to keep your kid entertained.
Do you find that you cannot leave a train station without watching a few trains come and go? What about watching the traffic go by? I must say watching traffic is a super cheap way to keep your kid entertained.
What about watching the traffic go by? I must say watching traffic is a super cheap way to keep your kid entertained.
Let us know.
Sign up to my newsletter
Stay current with all the things that are happening on Mummy to Twins Plus One? Don’t miss a thing by signing up to my newsletter. This newsletter will list all giveaways and fabulous things that are happening.
I have been asking the girls how their days at school were and who did they play with? The girls listed some of the kids at school, girls and boys and I said it sounds like they had heaps of friends to play with, this comment was met with “We don’t play with the boys mummy”. I thought that this was a bit sad, but obviously a phase. Maybe it is boys germs. I remember I did not like boys for a while either, although my best friend at school was a boy. I must have just not liked certain boys.
This got me thinking why little girls decide that boys are not worthy of friends or playing with. Is it the bigger kids that help form this opinion? Is it just the fact that they feel more comfortable with other girls? This cannot be entirely correct as the girls love the boys next door and really enjoy playing with them.
I think it is nice that the girls are developing a network of friends and playmates at their new school, I am just curious about this phase of disliking boys. Is this in built into girls and boys. Do boys suddenly say they don’t want to have anything to do with girls. Yuck girls germs and so on. Is it peer pressure or socialisation that causes this phase? Or is it just a matter of being a little girl and figuring out how things work, a right of passage in friendship and figuring out the genders.
I was a tom boy as a kid and still sort of am. I do get dressed up and wear dresses but not all the time, and actually rather prefer pants and jeans. I do like getting glammed up, however as I stay at home mummy looking after the girls there is not much need to get all dolled up to go to drop kids at school/shops. I did like getting dressed up for the office and meetings, however there is none of that in my current world. The girls seem to be girly girls, which is great and fine, however I am constantly looking for something pretty for each child to wear. I hand them something practical like a t-shirt, or long sleeve top and it gets handed back with the words, “That is not pretty mummy!!!” The girls do get dressed up for special occasions and parties however if they are just going to get dirty and play, why not be in comfy and practical clothing.
This line of difference is very obvious in the toy section of any department store or shop. In the section supposedly for girls it is wall to wall pink, dolls, babies and all things that will have little girls trapped in the kitchen or the house. The section for boys is much more interesting, building blocks, science and other games that use the mind and don’t trap the person into housework chores. As you might have guessed I have not purchased any of those things for the girls. They do have dolls and some stuffed toys as dolls. However they don’t have a kitchen/sinks/vacuum cleaner/broom and brush. We have given the girls a mixture of toys, building blocks, planes, trucks, cars, prams, doctor kit and so on. They have girly toys if they have to be labelled as such and they have other toys that will help develop other areas of their brain and interests.
Currently I am very curious about why girls go through this hating boys. I know I did it and thought that they were just silly. I used to scare the boys off by saying that I would kiss them. This worked as they did not want girls germs, until the boys decided that they now liked girls, then I ran away. This is the other concern that we will have to worry about. When boys like the girls. This is a long time off, say 10 years from now, so we have plenty of time until that happens.
Have you as a parent been curious of this development in your child? I know it is all normal, however still curious about why it happens. I have looked online and only found information about toys, gender and other things. Nothing is addressing my question. I will keep on looking, and if I see anything that is helpful, I will post it here. If you find anything that might help send it my way.
>
