Gender roles this Christmas!

You know, I was never into the stereotypes behind gender roles, I just never had a problem, or a realization rather until todays experience.

My daughter is two years old now and VERY curious about everything as children are! We encourage all kinds of learning, play, colors, toys, etc. I never thought otherwise, it didn’t ever feel right to put her into a conforming box of what a “girl” should play with.

She loves animals, farm toys, dump trucks, trash trucks, hot wheels cars, she LOVES dinosaurs! The list could go on! But she also loves her baby dolls and loves to cook for mommy and daddy in her kitchen/grill. We just let her be free and get her all kinds of things.

Today my husband and I were in Walmart getting ready to check out. We were behind a couple who looked about 50s. They were watching my daughter and telling me how cute and polite she was. (She asked me to look at the small toys in the check out line.)

I told her she could and she went over to them as this woman watched her with me. There were small princess figures, farm animals, hot wheels, and playing cards. She was very enthusiastic when she saw the hot wheels and ran over to me with them. The woman was very fast with a frown, and talked down to my daughter in a derogatory tone. “No no, those are BOYS toys. Not for little girls.”

I had to pause. In my mind I was like exsCuSE me?!?! I couldn’t believe it just came out of no where, and WHY?

What made me speak up was my daughter looking up at her as if she had done something wrong! I don’t like to talk negatively in front of my daughter or I would have gone off on this woman! I chose to ignore my fuming brain and I asked her politely to not speak to my child that way and to maybe not indicate that a child that isn’t hers is doing something wrong. I then told my daughter “Good job, baby, those are some awesome cars you picked! That’s what’s so cool about toys, you can actually play with ANYTHING you desire.” And the confusion left her face. We got the cars. No one is hurt. So I still just wonder why. Why do people have to do those kinds of things to little curious children. 😔