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Christmas

From present ideas to party food, find all your Christmas inspiration here.

Original poster

I have just realised all DDs presents are a big 'boyish'

35 replies

PavlovtheRedNosedReindeer · 14/12/2008 13:38

Does it matter? Or should it really be sparkly?

She is really into trains, so we have bought her (hopefuly if it wins on ebay!) a brio/elc train set, with trains, and also with some fire engine/police/rubbish trucks.

She loves animals and outdoors and tractors, so we have bought her a toy tractor and a farmyard set (again if it wins on ebay).

We were also planning on getting her a 'Doctor' dressing up set as she loves being 'doctor'. I had considered getting a nurses one instead, but she is really not interested in nurse.

She is getting a fairy from a friend, so there is some girly there (don't know what rest of family are getting).

Do you think its too boy related? Its ok isn't it, as it is what she enjoys playing with?

OP posts:
compo · 14/12/2008 13:40

it's fine , don't worry

CrackopentheBaileys · 14/12/2008 13:48

Gone are the days when 'boys toys' were actually 'boys toys', equal ops and all that. No use depriving her of what she loves to do because of some silly 'rules'. My ds has a dolly and buggy when he was 3 and it was his most favourite thing in the world for a few months. Incidentally, he's a pretty cool kid now, and apart from not getting on with my cm kids (thats another thread!) he is vry compassionate and thoughtful. Maybe from having some toys that encourage empathy rather than it all being about fighting?

NappiesGaloriaInExcelsis · 14/12/2008 13:49

shes a lucky girl, and she sounds lovely. enjoy her and well done for getting her things that actually interest her and not trying to make her like sparkly pink stuff simply because she doesnt have a penis.

CrackopentheBaileys · 14/12/2008 13:50

lol at nappies

pgwithnumber3 · 14/12/2008 13:51

Don't worry, DD1 (15 months) is getting farmyard and a garage for Christmas! She loves animals and cars so hey, why buy her girly stuff that she won't play with. She likes dolls but not obsessively.

Original poster
PavlovtheRedNosedReindeer · 14/12/2008 14:08

LOL Nappies - very true! We did not consider whether they were boy, girl or other just got them as she likes them, and then I thought... what if its not a good idea...! Logic says fine...marketing says otherwise!

She has plenty of toys that are gender specific, dolls, pushchair, dressing up outfits, fairy toadstall tent, she loves shiny things and loves dressing up as a 'princess'

...and also likes pirates and has her own 'treasure box' with treasure in, and has lots of cars!

pg - we were going to buy her a garage too, but thought that might be a bit much!

OP posts:
pgwithnumber3 · 14/12/2008 14:20

Pavlov, save the garage until her birthday! I used to absolute love playing with my brother's Fisher Price garage and I was such a girly girl, I asked my Mum for a Cabbage Patch doll when I was 11.

DD1 hates anything girly, she goes all green when her friends play with dolls. She is getting an Ipod Touch for Christmas because all she likes is technology. She is only 6!

NappiesGaloriaInExcelsis · 14/12/2008 14:23

you stick with your instincts pav, and keep feeding HER interests, not the ideas of faceless marketing types.
im sure she'll be immensely feminine when she wants to be even if she spends her entire childhood playing with cars, trains and science kits. hoenstly, the idea that peoples interests are entirely dictated by their genitalia [bee in bonnet ]

WinkyWinkola · 14/12/2008 14:25

All her gifts sound great to me. Lucky girl not to have her interests stifled by her mum and dad!

Who says trains are for boys? There are plenty of female farmers who are married to farmers or who farm in their own right. And female doctors.

PirateDora · 14/12/2008 15:26

My DD is just the same, she has train sets, cars and a garage, and even spiderman toys which she plays with more than her dolls etc.
She will love all her gifts!

Fennel · 14/12/2008 16:34

My dds have all of that, plus technical lego and Electromag and scalectrix and a toy garage when they were little, and toy castles, pirate ship, etc. They play with all of it, the only "boys" toy they never really played with was toy cars (which are, after all, tear-inducingly boring).

Original poster
PavlovtheRedNosedReindeer · 14/12/2008 16:40

I actually really really gutted I did not win the train set.

So I am going to buy the £10 set from tesco and then add some thomas battery trains etc to it, build it up from Ebay after christmas when everything gets put on to sell.

Tesco is compatible with Brio and ELC isn't it? (its like a third of the price of ELC!)

We are not here for christmas so she is not having her presents until new years day anyway (going abroad and she will get plenty to unwrap there)

LOL Fennel at cars being boring!

She loves visiting her 5yo male friend's house, as he has a tree-house, and big toys, and a pirate ship and all that kind of stuff. She loves rough and tumble, funny to watch her climbing hedges and verges and slides and climbing frames, wearing pretty dresses!

OP posts:
Original poster
PavlovtheRedNosedReindeer · 14/12/2008 16:41

pg - at the Touch! DD would probably figure out how to use it in 5 mins too though! She can do things on our computer I never knew it did until she managed it!

OP posts:
CrackopentheBaileys · 14/12/2008 18:13

pavlov is is compatible, I have a huge set with mixture of both brands, and you can't even see the difference. Defo go for the tesco imo

Gemzooks · 14/12/2008 18:53

bit shocked you think it was more feminine to be a nurse than a doctor!

Joolyjoolyjoo · 14/12/2008 18:59

I wouldn't worry about it- my dd1 is very girly, wants make-up (she is 4.11- she can dream on!) and other girly stuff. dd2 is a tomboy and already has a garage and a train set (which is great as we now have a ds ) so she wants a marble run and some DVDs. I am happy that she isn't as girly as her sister, tbh! I was never a girly-girl, and the whole pink-sparky thing makes me baulk a bit, but hey-ho!

Original poster
PavlovtheRedNosedReindeer · 14/12/2008 19:56

Gem - see, being drawn into the marketing already! stereotypes have a lot to answer for...

Oh but don't say the word tomboy - you will have DH frothing at the mouth! He insists she is not, and never will be a tomboy rofl! Like he will get a choice!

OP posts:
pgwithnumber3 · 14/12/2008 20:20

Pavlov, DD1 has always been very good with technology, she gets it from my dad. We don't have Playstations etc but did buy her a DS Lite for her birthday which she uses every now and again but to be honest, she finds it a bit babyish, she is not into the kiddy games whatsoever but as she is still learning to read, the older games are not suitable yet. Hence we have clubbed together with my parents to buy her a Touch! I will also download all our music onto it so it works for us as well, it won't just be hers iyswim.

Blondilocks · 14/12/2008 20:24

I always used to have "boys toys" - cars, farm set, construction set, Lego etc as well as dolls. I don't think it matters really so long as they like it & find it fun.

DD is similar & even gets cross with some of the boys pages in the Argos catalogue as they are things she wants!!

pollywobbledoodle · 14/12/2008 20:30

sounds like dds(5yo) presents last year!

She said to me yesterday "the girls all like princesses at school.....do i have to?"....i said to her "you like what you like" ....she giggled and said "they all want tinkerbelle mummy but i think she's stinkerbelle"...and went back to her trainset....

used2bthin · 14/12/2008 21:05

OOh XP is looking for a train set for DD can anyone recommend a good one? Something like Brio but cheaper preferably. Want to be able to build it up too.

pollywobbledoodle · 14/12/2008 21:17

most of wooden sets are brio compatible.
Good company called the wooden toy company online
ours is a mix of parts from WTC and NCT sales
woollies had a set with its own table this week for £30!

used2bthin · 14/12/2008 21:23

Oh wish I'd got to Woolies, couldn't face it with an angry toddler in tow though!Thanks will have a look at the wooden toy company.

Fennel · 14/12/2008 21:25

I think you can still get the brio-compatible from Asda and Ikea and Tesco.

We have the duplo train set as DP is very brand-loyal to anything lego. But I prefer the brio.

seeker · 14/12/2008 21:29

Why is being a doctor boyish and being a nurse girlie? I think I may have to shoot myself - my 70s feminist self is spinning in her grave!

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