Yesterday I bought the first items for the baby’s nursery!! I went to Toy R Us to purchase a couple of ‘spy kits’ for "da boys", Midge & Ripley. The spy kits apparently have motion detectors in them and I need a couple more to keep those darns kids off my kitchen counters/tables/new couch. I have recently purchased a proper cat training motion detector online at Pet Smart (don’t know why they don’t sell them in store but they don’t so I had to order from the US). Anyway, I walked through the Babies R Us entrance for the first time (not intentionally) and of course I had to browse around a bit. I had told myself to try to hold off as long as possible before buying baby stuff. I want to make sure a) I get through the Home Study, and b) I’m placed with an infant girl. HOWEVER, I somehow made a sharp veer to the right and found these really cute lamb plush items – the brand is “Baasley Baby,” tee hee. The lambs are sooo soft. I got a small free-standing lamb, a lamb sitting on a pink crescent moon, and a lamb sitting on top of a cloud with pink stars hanging down off pink ribbons – AAAHHH!! Too cute. I haven’t really signed off on a décor for the nursery yet and it won't be all pink that's for sure, but lambs have always intrigued me as a theme if I must have one – they are gender-neutral and not so cutesy as to be annoying or boring after the first 5 minutes.
So, is this first purchase controversial? Because the baby is not a sure thing yet and because I chose pink girly things? It got me to thinking about the inevitable comments that people will say or think – “you’re not going to decorate the nursery all in PINK are you?” I know someone’s going to think that surrounding my daughter with any pink is going to send her the wrong messages and set her up to fail as a woman because she will cow tow to, and believe in, old-fashioned stereotypes about women. Well let me tell you, I was one of the most girly-girl girls you ever saw, growing up – pink was my favorite color and is still one of my favorites. I loved wearing dresses, going to dance class, playing with dolls – all of that stuff. And you know what? I turned out JUST FINE thank you very little!! Yes, I grew up with a bunch of brothers and sisters, but my daughter will have plenty of exposure to good, strong male figures in her life, plus little boys to play with. I feel that I am a feminist in that I believe that women are equal to men and have not always been treated as such – nor are we always treated equally/properly today. I believe that gender should not dictate how any person is treated and that there should be social, economic, and political gender equality for all. I am also a strong woman who is secure in her femininity and I refuse to act like a victim. Not because of my gender, not because of my race, not because of nuttin. And I certainly do not see men as ‘the enemy.’ I don't agree with that “us against them” attitude - as if all men are bastards who only want to look down your shirt or up your skirt. Like my uncle Olaf used to always say "Act like a victim – be treated like a victim."
As a good, male friend of mine from waay back used to always say "Mama didn't raise no stupid chile!!"
