boys and girls
Okay, so this may stir up contraversy. Oh well.
So, i've been thinking about the whole boy vs girl thing. You know, nature vs nurture. Does a girl play with dolls and not tools/hammers because she's a girl. Does a boy play with tools and not dolls because he's a boy. Or is because parents tend to give girls "girly" toys and boys "manly" toys?
I recently read an article [either in "Child" or "Parents"-- dont remember which], that said a lot of it does come down to their nature as female/male.
Erica is such a girly-girl. Is it her nature, or is it just b/c i'm really girly and she's mimicking me? Erica loves chapstick. She loves hand lotion and body splash. She pretends to put makeup on when i do. She pretends to put hairspray in her hair. She likes playing with dolls [and other various stuffed animals]. She pretends to feed them, bush their teeth, comb their hair. She carries around a pink purse. [And Lord forbid anyone tries to take it from her!!!] She does like cars too though. Is that proof that its not in a child's nature to play only with "gender-specific" things?
Not that any of these underlying issues is important. Its just cute that she's very similar to me, and enjoys doing what i do. Its why i was SO HAPPY to have a girl.
6 comments:
I agree with Clairissa's answer. I think whether you nurture it or not, girls will slowly move towards "girl things" and boys to their own.
I had tons of dolls and all those girly things, but I also had cars and sports stuff (that my dad tried to push on me all the time), the girly things won in the end.
Aww, She is so cute.
When I was little my mom told me I would play with dolls and trucks and climb trees and host tea parties. I think it all has to do with what the parents teach the child. We learned about this in my psych class too, that it has to do a lot with what the child sees as well. They know whether they are male or female so they mimic the parent of the same gender.
I guess I did leaern something in school (even though its more or less common sense, lol).
I hope everything is great in the Becky world. I'll see you on sunday.
~Val
clairissa-- awe, thanks for telling me i'm doing a good job!
'liya-- yeah, i think i played w/ cars too at times, especially when my brother did. But my sister and i were definitely into barbie.
val-- i never climbed trees. but thats b/c we didnt have a tree big enough to climb.
GI Joes are the way to go...dolls and action figures all in one...that way both sides are pleased! hahahaha
thanks janelle; andrew will appreciate that tidbit! he'll run out and buy her army men.
I wonder the same thing. We're constantly saying Riley is "all boy". He's all about cars and action cartoons. All boy.
I had a cousin who very much liked what your daughter likes. Makeup, hairspray, pretty, soft, dainty. Only he was a boy. He was that way at 2yrs old. He is now an adult and very much gay. (He's a sweet boy though...and a snappy dresser!)
I do not know if it is nature or bonding or what that makes them "girly" or "all boy". This will remain a mystery to me. :)
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