to not buy gender specific gifts for birthday parties?

[MousyMouse]

got a from another mum for giving some lego to a girl but it's not for girls because it's not pink

I hate this attitude

My DD has always loved pink, I can't abide it.

However she also love trains, fire engines and science so I do get other stuff in the house.
She will always choose to wear pink and will only wear blue on a school day (school colours).
This is entirely her choice, she has very specific opinions.

I just let my DCs choose something. People can buy what they like.

I buy what I think the individual child would like.

So, if I know the child in question loves Barbie - then it might be that.
If the child loves Lego - I'll get that.
If I don't know, then I ask DD (who comes with me generally anyway)

I wouldn't say Lego was a boy's toy though anyway.
Not all children like Lego, but that is not linked to their gender.

I don't think a girl that likes pink and sparkly stuff has to have been brainwashed by her parents!!!
Some children just like pink and sparkles.

the problem coems when you don't know what the child would like.

so you have to choose something that any child would like.

that's when the shops try to force you to choose girl or boy.

I always try to get my customers to buy something gender neutral, just in case, if they don't know what the child would like.

I don't mind the DD's having pink stuff etc but would and have bought generic lego and playdoh sets etc for girls and boys.

YANBU.

I've just remembered being in a kids clothes shop a couple of months ago and a screeching loud parenting type mother bellowing about how "I draw the line at you having a t shirt with a crocodile on it!!!" DD. To her approx 2 year old DD.

While I lurked behind the racks pulling all sorts of faces behind her back

We went to great lengths to avoid pink girlyness when DD was born. This lasted until she was old enough to express an opinion and life has been unremittingly pink and sparkly since.

we are still at the 'all children from the class invited to parties' stage (reception), so I just have a big pile of gender neutral (=primary coloured) toys and just take the one from the top for the next party. so no, I didn't ask what she would like, but thought that lego is usually a safe bet for boys or girls.

YANBU. My goddaughter, who was only dressed in pink or white until she was 5, asked for Lego for Christmas. I knew she would hate the blue box, because blue things are for boys, so searched high and low for a green or red one because there was no way I was going to buy her pink.

It looks petty now I've written it down, but I just can't bring myself to buy into this pink-only thing.

At least she asked for Lego though. Her mum used to fondly call her a 'weirdo' because she had a ride-on truck she used to love playing with.

What graham said

Surely you get what you think the child might like - not what you think they should have

I'm getting a headache from all the eyerolling this thread has inspired. A bunch of people who think it's fine to buy sparkly things for boys (I agree btw!) but wouldn't do the same for girls - why not? Grow up and get over yourselves! Does it really matter, does every present have to be a political statement, or can you just get something nice that the dc would like, whether the gift happens to be gender neutral or not?

OP it was a lovely present and the mum was quite rude not to be more grateful.

YANBU. Lego is a great gift for boys OR girls. The Mum was ungrateful and rude.

I must admit though, after 2 lovely boys I'm done with 'boys toys'. I'm now enjoying having a DD, and seeing my house gradually turn pink with added sparkles . Oh, and I couldn't care less what people think about that!