S&M Barbie

I came across an interesting article on Jezebel recently and I was shocked to see the toy that they were criticizing. Shocked about the toy itself, not about them criticizing it! It is a shining example of the sort of messages that children are given about gender roles from a very early age. This sexist toy is recommended for children ages 4+.

Are you kidding me? I wanted to shout at my computer screen. Now, I like a little Princess Leia, I really do. I think she played an important role in Star Wars but selling children a toy that basically looks like S&M Barbie is just crazy. Is this how we want young girls to role play? Or worse, this how we want little boys to think they should view women? It is absolutely gross! The list of objectifications goes on, and on, and on.

I did a little more research on how people were reacting to this toy (by people I mean people other the Sci-Fy dudes that have always had a hankering for Leia in any form of dress). I found some interesting responses. In a recent Huffington Post article, Amanda Kloerne (human trafficking writer) wrote: "It seems to be that most people can make a clear distinction; women being forced into prostitution as slaves is not sexy: Princess Leia as a slave in a gold bikini is." My thoughts exactly Amanda! 

I for one am admittedly the biggest of the Star Wars buffs, but I have seen the film. I just cannot believe that any parent would purchase this toy for a child anywhere near the recommended age group. 

Again I must say….Gross!

Do you all agree? If so please drop a comment in below. 

Until next time, 

Jenni

Disrupting the Pink Aisle!

Recently I heard about this awesome new company called "GoldieBlox." It is a building and engineering toy DESIGNED FOR GIRLS. That's right young ladies... No more playing with toys designed for young boy brains and just painted pink and purple. This toy is actually made for the way that little girls brains learn spacial relationship skills.

Am I saying that girls can't play with Legos? NO! I loved Legos and Lincoln Logs as a kid and they are among my favorite toys to play with now, as a mother. But it is nice to see that there is a new brand of girl toys that really are doing the research into how girls learn.

The fields of mathematics, science, and engineering are still a hugely male dominated world. Partly, because young girls are not provided with the play skills that grow their STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) skills the same way that young boys are.

GoldieBlox is leveling that playing field, while attempting to overthrow the current PINK AISLE, filled with domestic dollies and toy kitchens. Here at GenderBlind, I want to say that this commercial was the only reason that I paid any attention to this years Super Bowl Game. They won the commercial spot and I am sure they have felt the positive shift in popularity as a result.

The GoldieBlox website is so user friendly! They have incorporated the commercial above as well as a multi-media video from the founder in which she discusses her mission.

Another thing that I LOVE about their branding is that they are not using only the two "girl colors" of pink and purple. The girls are dressed in a gender balanced way as well. They aren't in tiaras and princess dresses. It is just about perfect for me all around and I am considering purchasing one for my son and I to play around with... you know, just to see how we like the toy! Because as far as I'm concerned, just because it is made with girls in mind, doesn't mean that a boy shouldn't play with it!

I hope you all check out this commercial and the company and give me your feedback!

Thanks for letting me share,

Jenni

Thankful Thursday: Big Days!

Ok, you might think I am crazy, but this morning I woke up thankful for deadlines. As nutty as this sounds, I am. I am thankful for due dates, deadlines and those moments where things get "done."

For me, it seems like a due date is always assigned so far in the future, like I just have so much time to get a task done. Then life happens, I don't work ahead like I say I am going to and I end up scrambling to get it done in the allotted time (again). We are all human. We all have intentions of being better at time management "this time." It's just that "this time" slides into its place, with everything else that we have to accomplish and bit by little bit, we don't stay on top of things.

But guess what….then its DONE.

The moment things are finished, turned in, or when it is the big day for the thing I have been preparing for, I just start to feel a calmness. It seems we always have so many things on the TO DO list that I love the moment that I get to mentally "check" something off.

I am thinking this way because today is one of those big days for me. For weeks I have been helping to organize an event that will take place tonight. I have spent endless hours running errands, on the phone, typing e-mails, begging for donations and making checklists for the Michiana Monologues (an awesome student run organization that raises money for women and children in our community) and it will be DONE tonight.

Michiana Monologues 2014

It always feels so good to commit to something extra, outside of my normal chaotic schedule, but then the extra work just has a way of making life extra sticky. Tonight, after the lights go down and the curtain is closed, this can be crossed off of my list. It will not be something that I am looking forward to anymore; it will be something that I have completed.

When I lay down to sleep tonight, I will have extra space in my mind. Space that will not be filled to the brim with little details and things to be remembered. I will not get out of bed three times to jot something on my list for the following day. I will be filled with a contentment that I accomplished something and that I don't have to juggle that task any longer.

I hope that you look at deadlines and due dates a little bit differently today. I hope that we all get better at time management and working ahead. And mostly, I hope that you have the chance, soon, to check something off of your mental to do list and give your mind a high-five.

Let me know what you think by commenting below. Do you love the deadline as I do? Do you have any super-fantastic tips for actually staying on top of things? I am interested to hear if I am the only one who feels this way about commitments and obligations. I also added a follow by email link on the right side column. I am a busy and sporadic blogger, so this would be a great way for you to be updated about any added posts!

Until we meet again,

Jenni

Free To Be...You And Me

So when I was a little girl, circa the early 1980's, when my hair was permed and my favorite accessory was a totally rad fanny pack. (I wish I were joking!) This was my mom's favorite album to play for my brother and me. Marlo Thomas and Friends "Free to be, You and Me."

It is pretty dated but let me assure you that the messages presented via Marlo Thomas are still as relevant today as they were 30 years ago. Equality. Acceptance. Freedom.

There is an awesome track about a little boy, (William) who is being teased by his friends and family for wanting to get a doll of his very own. William is at his wits end until his grandma comes to visit and gives the critics a talking to. Explaining that he wants a doll so that he can practice being a good daddy.

So, my brother and I each had a Cabbage Patch doll. My son has one too, along with some of my old, and now raggedy looking dolls. My son LOVES them and practices disciplining them and nursing them. (They all seem to need a lot of time outs and always seem to be battling a bad cold.) These moments help define what parenting is, in his 4-year old opinion. It is fun to hear him and to watch him practice this role. I have always felt that he is emulating the role of the nurturer and what a good thing to pretend.

What do you all think, my friends, do you think there is anything wrong with a boy playing with a doll? Do you have any similar stories about children wanting to play with toys that society says are "not for them?"

Thankful Thursday

On my mission to be a better and more thoughtful parent, it occurs to me that I need to spend more time being thankful for the amazing things in our world. It could be as simple as being able to sleep in in the morning until you actually wake up on your own, without an alarm, without a kiddo demanding your attention, without a rushed and hectic schedule to attend to. It can be for a great cup of coffee or a long conversation with a good friend.

I think that we can encourage our children to have an attitude of gratitude by letting them hear us show our appreciation for the little joys all around us. This is a series that I will be continuing to post about once a week and I would love for you to join me in being more aware of the great yet simple moments that bring pleasure to all of our lives.

Today I am thankful for a good cup of coffee and a rainy grey early spring morning. I am going out on a limb by calling it "spring," but after the waist high piles of snow that have blanketed the world around me for the last 3 months, the sound of drizzle is a welcome sign of things to come. My son was at his dad's house last night, so I got to just lay in bed with my cup of coffee and a computer and listen to the sound of the world being washed clean.

I know we will get more snow. I also know that this rain means I will be sloshing and slopping around campus this afternoon.  But, right now, at the moment I am writing this I am warm and rested and inspired.

I am reminded, as I write this post, about a book I read a few years ago (and have given as a gift several times), called The Book of Awesome. This book is a collection of awesome and free things, moments, occasions, smells and sounds that surround us during our life time. There was a short writing on the sound of rain from inside of a tend that I think you guys would enjoy reading as much as I did, check it out. 

I hope you all enjoy today and find something to be thankful for, be it big or small. If you have one of those moments today, please take the time to share it with me. Next time you are having trouble remembering what all those little things are in life, pick up this book and be reminded.

-Jenni

It's the little things...



Photos Courtesy of www.genderremixer.com

It is so true that the little things can sometimes bring the most joy. Well, I had that kind of moment today. I was exposed to an awesome website! It is totally entertaining and easy. It is also kind of scary to see how differntly toys are marketed to boys and girls.

Basically the premise is that you pick a "boy" toy and a "girl" toy and reverses the advertisement for the two. So think a pirate toy's commercial language over the visual image of some ponies playing house.When you see one commercial with another gendered set of audio, it is amazing what jumps out at you.

For me, I was able to pick out the marketing stratagies more clearly because of the over-lap. The announcer's for the "boy" toys seem to have come straight from the nearest monster truck rally, while the "girl" toy's advertising voices are sweet and wistful. Manly, tough, rugged, grrr.... VS. House, whispers, colorful, shhhh...the baby is sleeping. The it is impactful to see the gender binary in such a visual way.

I sometimes think that my son reacts to one toy or another based on the color of the item. It seems that girl toys are always pink and lavender and boys lean toward primary and bright colors. But kids are getting audio messages to reinforce the gender that the toy is intended for.

So add this to my to-do list: Design and produce a pink, purple and glittery pirate ship and see how confused it makes my son!

Please enjoy playing around with this remixer and let me know what you think.

About This Blog

I am the mom of a rambunctious and brilliant and challenging 4-year old son. He is busy trying to learn about the world all around him and testing out where he thinks he fits into it all. It is a struggle trying to keep him balanced when he is with his dad part of the time. His dad and I do co-parent well together for the most part but, my son has two different sets of rules and two very different ideologies that he has to constantly bounce back and forth between.

I worry about the message that little boys seem to get, that they need to be "tough!" I hear my son say things like: "Dad says I can't cry." Or he will question whether boys can like this music or that. I try on a daily basis to encourage him to "be just who he is and like what he likes," but worry constantly that my messages aren't sinking in.

I want to examine the messages that my son, among other children, hear in our modern media driven material world. I am so curious about what he thinks makes something appeal to either "boys" or "girls." I want to encourage my son's curiosity about people and differences and similarities, while fostering within him an attitude of acceptance.

I think that the differences that we all have from each other are beautiful. I hope that I can impress that admiration into part of my son's personal identity. Andre Lorde, a feminist and civil rights activist said, "It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences."

Lets work together to start "Celebrating our differences!"

-Jenni