AIBU to think crocodile pajamas are unisex and perfectly suitable for DD?

[CockyFox]

This morning I went to Tesco to get DS and DD some pajamas, DD didn't want any of the girls pajamas (cats, cakes, butterflies etc on them) so I said we would look the other side of the shelf for some for DS and go somewhere else for hers.

On the Boy side we selected some with monkeys on for DS and DD saw some with green and blue crocodiles on, and said she liked those. They had her size so I picked up the pack and asked her if she was sure those were the ones she wanted. She was sure so I popped them in the basket at which point an very friendly assistant who had been setting out shoes told me the Girls pajamas were around the other side of the display, I said thank you but we were fine. Then while i was selecting myself some knickers she appeared with a pack of pink pajamas and asked me if DD preferred those. DD bless looked at me and said 'I like crocodiles' so just said again no, we are fine and walked away.

I am sure IANBU, but do you think I am and if I am could somebody please explain what makes crocodiles unsuitable for girls? I am not bothered by the shop assistant she probably has really girly daughters and thought I was trying to make a point and was making sure the crocodiles weren't being forced on DD.

It's the assumption that girls only want pink sparkly things, to the exclusion of everything else, that makes people angry. And the overt messages that children are given that cupcakes, fairies, and princessess are for girls, and everything else is for boys. It's ridiculous.

NotKathyReichs

I see what you are saying, as I said up thread I am not Anti-Pink, DD has her fair share of Pink and Sparkly but she doesn't need to be that all the time and she also likes more boyish things. I am not forcing her to be a tomboy I am allowing her to be herself the same as I am with DS.

*Rapunzel even

It's the lack of choice we parents of girls dislike. So much sparkly pink and ruffles and frill everywhere. If it is pink/purple/flowery but practical and up to the job of playing I wouldn't have an issue but it isn't. Even pumps seem made for posing not the playground, swimmers for hanging out at the pool side/on the beach not getting wet (anyone else spotted the Peppa one with a full on tutu!).

I'm fuming after a trip to Tesco today. All the toys shelves are helpfully labelled "Boys' Toys" and "Girls' Toys" so you don't accidentally buy them something they Must Not Play With in case they grow up... well I'm not sure what they would grow up, but I'm fairly certain it must be pretty awful to warrant all the signage.

It's madness. Before i had DS I thought it only affected pink and blue. So when choosing his clothes went for what i considered to be culturally gender neutral like Red, Green, Yellow, Orange (i love bright colours anyway). But we always get asked if DS is a girl when in yellow, but never when in green. We took him for his passport photo in a yellow jumper and everyone kept calling him a her, fine, but then were at us when asked why he was wearing yellow then? Apparently he will look like a girl in his passport for the next 5 yrs

It's a whole new can of crazy i never had to open before having dc.

I bought a Postman Pat PJ set in the market the other day (I didn't have a choice, 22 mo DD grabbed it and refused to hand it back, whilst screaming "PAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!" ) and the stall holder looked aghast and said "It's not for the little lass, is it?" The "little lass" who is clinging to it with an enormous grin on her face, kissing Pat's picture and saying "Pat, Jess, Meow Meow!"? Why yes it is for her, because she loves it, and no, I don't want the Barbie, Hello Kittie or Disney Princess ones. I thought it was just because he was on old fashioned, older chap in a trad Northern market ... it's so depressing that women join in with perpetuating this crap.

Btw, DD is today wearing blue jeans and a blue t shirt with pictures of fish on it

I have begged DD3 to put on a pretty dress and let me plait her hair but she won't do it. She insists on wearing Spongebob Squarepants converse

DD frequently skips the girl's section and goes straight for the boy's. Currently the favourites are: a reef flipflop pair, black with spiders and creepy crawlies on the soles, combats and a navy moshi monsters TShirt. I don't see it a a boy's outfit.

I do let my DD wear pink if she wants to, and she has plenty of dolls, but it's the creeping genderisation (if that's a word!) of what used to be neutral territory that I really object to. What's masculine or feminine about crocodiles, post delivery or fish??!!

"why must absolutely everything be divided into stuff that's suitable for only one gender at a time?????"

Because then they can sell double the amount of clothes/buggies etc. to those who have children of different genders and believe all this marketing crap.

Nothing wrong with a pink globe. One of my sons has one right next to his normal coloured one and a brownish one.

Have you all seen the "let toys be toys" campaign?

My son is obsessed with cats and kittens and would reject your crocodile pjs. Luckily, he also loves sparkly pink crap too, because apparently cats are for girls only, don't you know. Yes, the disloyal torture-killers of the pet world are obviously all cute and fwuffy and perfect for wickle gurlz

I buy his clothes for each season in advance, to take advantage of offers and stretch the cost, and have been sorting them just now, as he naps. Everything is pastels or brights. There's a few navy items, but mainly because I love navy. I get what I like, what suits him and what I know he likes. He also has longish curly hair and the face of an angel (not biased, ahem). He is a very caring boy, and I get raised eyebrows when he gets a free choice of toys, he will run to the dolls and cuddle them in his arms, tuck them into bed, feed them, and so on. We were at a toddler class this morning and every single girl was wearing pink or lilac and flouncy stuff, and the boys were all in sludgy-hued 'bloke' gear. Well, except for DS in a peach and white striped breton, jeans and turquoise Converse. I found the conformity boring and depressing.

Things were just not this ridiculous when we were kids, were they? I mean, I know there was miles less choice and availability of clothes and toys, etc., but we just all used to run around in flares and polonecks with pasty shoes and bowl haircuts . If you wanted to look particularly feminine, you might go mad with a kilt, some plaits and a fire-hazard cardi some ancient great-aunt had badly crocheted, but that was it. And kids just played with whatever was available. Yes, boys would generally be the ones with cap guns and action mans (men?) and girls with a Girl's World (I wasn't allowed one, sob!) or dolls, but there was none of this bullshit about pink lego or science kits being for boys, or even stuff like sticker books being gender segregated.

There's nothing wrong with girls wearing pink, or boys playing with cars, but parents should just let kids like what they like and back the fuck off with their ignorant gender ideas. A lot of people say they think it's rubbish, but still comply with the stereotypes because they don't want their kids to get teased or whatever. Well, if all the people who know it's bollocks dared to act on that, it wouldn't be an issue (or much less of one, in any case).

I went to buy pyjama pants for ds3 (6). They had several packs of pink butterfly ones reduced to clear. I asked if they had any cheap boys ones, which they didn't, so I bought the reduced ones. The shop assistant looked like she was going to expire.

It was meant to be a joke, CockyFox - I seem to have failed dismally.

Um, I agree with the Pink Stinks campaign, NotKathy. I also slagged off the fact that all the little girls in my son's group were wearing pink or lilac.

I know I did get it. It just made me think that I am the exact thing the mums who won't dress their girls in boys stuff hope to avoid, the oily fingered, short haired, non make up wearing woman that the other mums wonder if I'm secretly a lesbian despite having a husband.
Interestingly my Mum is very glamorous and as a child I was always trying on her high heels and makeup and wearing dresses.

My DD is quite happy in her brothers old pirate PJs. She also likes to wear some of his old dinosaur t shirts and play with his cars. She likes pink and dolls too.

You see crocodiles live in far off lands, traveling to far off lands is adventurous and adventures are for boys ok, girls, well they are just going to spend their life in the kitchen, it is best not to encourage an unhealthy interest in adventure in little girls, they will only be disapointed when they have to stay at home cooking and clenaing and washing

I do find the some animals are for nous and some are for girls thing really baffling - why, for eg, do boys get all the bugs except ladybirds, butterflies and dragonflies? And girls get cats but boys get lions? I would live to know how these things get decided!

In the meantime I generally encourage DD to choose for herself, which for a while was pretty much pink and sparkly in an obsessive way, but have drawn the line on PJs - the girls ones are crappy and wear out bizarre quickly. She is perfectly happy to sleep in pirates and monsters and DS will get some wear out of them too.

I wish DD1 (3yo) wanted dinosaurs or crocodiles. Unfortunately she's recently become obsessed with princesses and pink :(

Luckily she still loves jeans, converse and other colours like yellow and green. And her favourite pyjamas are her blue karate-monkey ones. But still, I feel like she's rejecting me in a weird way because I am not a nicely-dressed well-groomed type.

I had a pair of bright green corduroy trousers when I was young. They were my favourites. Can't imagine many little girls wearing t hose these days.

YANBU at all! I'd be very annoyed and would probably complain (who else is going to speak up if we don't?)

Ski tesco have some great plain swimsuits.

I also find girls clothing is completely impractical for outdoor rough and tumble. If its not dresses getting in the way on the slide,its the buttons and frills and strings catching them,and the pastel colours stain and look tatty quickly. They are designed to go along with stereotypical 'girls' toys !