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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To be worried about my “Tomboy” DD

197 replies

SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 15:17

My 6 year old is constantly being asked if she’s a boy or a girl. She usually just refuses to reply at all, or she will say once that she’s a girl. Some children seem to ask repeatedly though. She’s beginning to get really annoyed about it. I’m not sure how to help her deal with it.
90% of her clothes are from the “boys section” in shops. She has long hair but refuses to tie it up unless she has to for sports activities. It’s probably her mannerisms that make children think she is a boy though, more than anything else.
I obviously don’t want to change her, but I wish I could stop children being so rude. I know I can’t affect the behaviour of other though. Any suggestions of what she could say when asked, that may stop the repeat questions would be great!

OP posts:
DryIce · 25/07/2024 16:21

iamtheblcksheep · 25/07/2024 16:09

You probably aren’t going to want my opinion but you’ve posted so I’ll give it.

it sounds like you were buying her boys clothes long before she decided that’s what she wanted

Theres nothing wrong with being a tomboy but trust me as someone that grew up the same. Her life will be difficult. Her relationship with female friends will be difficult and her male friends will drift off as incoming wives don’t want her around.

You need to make time to ensure some of her life is spent doing what normal girls do. Gym and horse riding are great physical sports for girls that don’t like tutus and ballet slippers

Edited

🤨 what do you mean by "normal girls"? Having a collection of stereotypes that constitutes being a normal girl is exactly the problem !!

I have managed to develop into a reasonably functional member of society despite having never had any interest in make up, clothes, ballet, gymnastics, pink or dolls. I don't consider this makes me any more or less a woman!

SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 16:23

Sisterdeloris · 25/07/2024 15:56

Does she spend hours on Youtube or watch trashy american tv shows?

No! She does watch a football drama on CBBC though that she’s obsessed with. She doesn’t watch YouTube and rarely American kids tv for 5 mins in a morning before school. She watches iPlayer and Bluey!

OP posts:
SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 16:26

DuckTales1234 · 25/07/2024 15:59

The kids aren't rude, they are just being kids! If they are not sure if she's a boy or girl, they'll ask 🤷‍♀️

What did you expect from others if even you say she's a "tomboy" ? Biscuit

I don’t, I just knew people would know what I meant using that term. Couldn’t think of a better one. When people say she’s a Tomboy I say she’s a girl who likes football.

OP posts:
Crunchymum · 25/07/2024 16:27

You're making this into a very big deal when it isn't.

So either you're exaggerating or you have an issue with her being perceived as the wrong sex (or a bit if both?)

No 6yo is being repeatedly asked if they are a boy or a girl.

TheSerenePinkOrca · 25/07/2024 16:28

What on earth are boy mannerisms???

6 year olds are just 6 year olds.

If they ask her if she's a boy or girl just get her to ask them back or respond that she's an alien!

DryIce · 25/07/2024 16:30

Crunchymum · 25/07/2024 16:27

You're making this into a very big deal when it isn't.

So either you're exaggerating or you have an issue with her being perceived as the wrong sex (or a bit if both?)

No 6yo is being repeatedly asked if they are a boy or a girl.

So weird to assume OP is lying about this very mundane issue. I can assure you my 6yo has been asked multiple times , not sure why I'd make it up

And I don't have an issue with it - it sounds like OP doesn't really either, except that it is upsetting her daughter

Sisterdeloris · 25/07/2024 16:30

So she's still got long hair which is feminine, likes football and wears non girly clothes? Id be pissed off with other kids asking if she was a boy as it makes no sense.

Dotto · 25/07/2024 16:32

It makes sense when you realise schools and TV are propogating all this gender claptrap

SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 16:37

leopardski · 25/07/2024 15:59

If she’s into football have you considered getting her in to a local team? My friends daughter is 9 and has played for a few years and now has some lovely friends all also football mad and determined to become lionesses :) Maybe help her find her tribe?

She does go to girls football each week thanks. They’re not allowed to do mixed sessions until they’re older apparently, that’s the case locally anyway.

OP posts:
Blackboxbetty · 25/07/2024 16:38

I'd teach her to respond confidently that she's a girl. It's not rude of small kids to ask, that's what they do. I think it's on you to teach her confidence in answering. My dd is 11 and dyslexic. I have taught her that if anyone says why can't you do this or tries to make fun of her she needs to be confident in who she is. All but the very biggest of arseholes will back off with a confident answer.

DontKeepScratchingIt · 25/07/2024 16:38

Sisterdeloris · 25/07/2024 15:27

Why are you buying her clothes from the boys section 90% of the time? I know we live in a more gender neutral society than ever but most clothes retalilers still sell boys and girls clothes!

I wondered that

SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 16:38

politicalintrigue · 25/07/2024 16:00

oh they haven’t

op blatantly exaggerating

Why would I? How strange that you’d think that. I think they ask repeatedly because she refuses to answer or because they can see it annoys her, or both.

OP posts:
SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 16:44

politicalintrigue · 25/07/2024 16:05

i will now out

but my spider senses tell me you’d be quite excited if you daughter wanted to change sex because of all the attention you’d receive

Edited

You can definitely fuck right off now! This is so far off it’s laughable. I’ve got a family member who would’ve possibly been groomed into puberty blocker bullshit as a child if she wasn’t born 40 years ago and that terrifies us both. I voted for the Party of Women in the general election as we were lucky to have a candidate locally. That’s how far off you are!

OP posts:
Dotto · 25/07/2024 16:45

DontKeepScratchingIt · 25/07/2024 16:38

I wondered that

Perhaps because her DD prefers them? Or because they are invariably better quality, less flimsy, offer more coverage and more choice?

SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 16:53

politicalintrigue · 25/07/2024 16:05

i will now out

but my spider senses tell me you’d be quite excited if you daughter wanted to change sex because of all the attention you’d receive

Edited

You can definitely fuck right off now! This is so far off it’s laughable. I’ve got a family member who would’ve possibly been groomed into puberty blocker bullshit as a child if she wasn’t born 40 years ago and that terrifies us both. I voted for the Party of Women in the general election as we were lucky to have a candidate locally. That’s how far off you are!

OP posts:
SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 16:55

IncessantNameChanger · 25/07/2024 16:03

Never had this for my boyish girl but plenty of adults assumed my boys was girls when they had long hair. My son had a "Dude" tshirt on to.

My dd wears her brothers clothes on occasion and has never been mistaken for a boy.

Kids says lots of things some designed to hurt. Are they strangers? If not they are choosing to wind her up

There’s one boy in her class who asks her just to wind her up I’m sure. She’s been in his class all term so he knows she’s a girl.

OP posts:
iamtheblcksheep · 25/07/2024 16:56

MrHarleyQuin · 25/07/2024 16:16

Oh you think ballet isn't physically demanding? 😂

Normal girls play football, are into cars and trains and dinosaurs maybe also dancing and wearing pink and glittery things and My Little Ponies. It's all entirely normal and unremarkable. I know because I was that girl now grown up. I've never had trouble making female friends!

Oh do get off your high horse. I danced until I left for uni. You completely missed the point of what I was trying to say.

And your experience doesn’t trump mine

SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 16:58

sunsetsandboardwalks · 25/07/2024 16:07

She will confidently tell people she doesn’t play with girls because they play games about unicorns and she likes football and dinosaurs.

Isn't that part of the problem, though? Where has that attitude come from?

School I guess, she says that’s what the girls like playing and she doesn’t. She always gravitates to boys in the park as well. I tell her girls are ace, I’m a girl, Granny’s a girl, my best friend who she loves is a girl. It’s ace to be a girl! We can grow babies and do all sorts of other amazing things.

OP posts:
SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 16:59

ebadame · 25/07/2024 16:09

That's slightly different to what you said originally. The girls in her class like unicorns and the boys in her class like dinosaurs. Apart from your girl who likes dinosaurs.

In what way? They like those things so play games related to those things.

OP posts:
x2boys · 25/07/2024 17:00

GonnaeNoDaeThatJustGonnaeNo · 25/07/2024 15:31

Girls voyages are fairly limited. Pink. Unicorns. Sparkly. Crop tops etc.

Don't know about OPs DD but my DD hates most of the clothes in the girls section.

Not as limited as the boys section
Go in any clothes shop and there's rows and rows of girls stuff
And a bout half a row of boys stuff.

SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 17:03

iamtheblcksheep · 25/07/2024 16:09

You probably aren’t going to want my opinion but you’ve posted so I’ll give it.

it sounds like you were buying her boys clothes long before she decided that’s what she wanted

Theres nothing wrong with being a tomboy but trust me as someone that grew up the same. Her life will be difficult. Her relationship with female friends will be difficult and her male friends will drift off as incoming wives don’t want her around.

You need to make time to ensure some of her life is spent doing what normal girls do. Gym and horse riding are great physical sports for girls that don’t like tutus and ballet slippers

Edited

I appreciate your opinion greatly actually. I do worry about this kind of thing. I try to encourage friendships and with girls, while at the same time facilitating her friendships with boys she’s close to. She’s been invited to girls houses twice for tea and refused to go. She will go to birthday parties of girls at school but always plays with the boys when we’re there. I’ve suggested gymnastics classes a few times because she’s always leaping about, of course she’s 6, but she’s not interested. She’s not keen on animals and I couldn’t afford horse riding anyway unfortunately.

OP posts:
SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 17:09

Dotto · 25/07/2024 16:17

My daughter's school was teaching that anyone not 'presenting' or feeling like the gender stereotype for their sex was 'trans'.

Hence my otherwise individual, not particularly pink-liking, non-'girly' daughter declared herself as trans.

We had a talk about it and she is now gender critical entirely.

This is scary!! Luckily we live in an area with small towns and villages, nearest large city 1.5 hours away. So it seems to have not taken over our schools from what I hear, yet.

OP posts:
SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 17:11

Dotto · 25/07/2024 16:19

You need to make time to ensure some of her life is spent doing what normal girls do

This is bullcrap. OP's daughter is not abnormal.

Exactly, what’s a “normal girl”? 🙄

OP posts:
SendMeHomeNow · 25/07/2024 17:14

Crunchymum · 25/07/2024 16:27

You're making this into a very big deal when it isn't.

So either you're exaggerating or you have an issue with her being perceived as the wrong sex (or a bit if both?)

No 6yo is being repeatedly asked if they are a boy or a girl.

How am I making it into a big deal? She’s been upset about it today, hence me posting. She’s also been upset in the past a few times this term and annoyed a few times this term.

OP posts:
MinniesCountdown · 25/07/2024 17:19

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