naturally, jan has the most gifts already in the pile, just waiting to be wrapped and laid under the tree. daddy wants to give him a toy, mommy wants to give him something to wear. we end up buying both, and then some.

see, probably like most pinoys, i associate christmas, birthdays and first days of school to getting new clothes. for hubby, however, it’s tacky to give clothes as gifts, because he considers it as a basic necessity: “you’ll have to buy him clothes, anyway, occassion or no occassion. and besides, no child of two would appreciate clothes. now, toys are different.”

granted that i accept this logic, ok, next question: what sort of toy? walk through the toy section of any department store, and you’ll see shelves upon shelves of attractive, colorful, expensive, but otherwise, stupid toys. toys that would keep a child busy for about… four minutes. i like toys that challenge the intellect, develop motor skills, or cultivate creativity. otherwise, jan could just go ahead and bang the pots and pans in the kitchen. at least somebody’s putting them to better use.

speaking of kitchens… have you ever seen these make-believe-kitchens with oven and sink, complete with pots, pans, laddles etcetera? why do they ALWAYS make it in PINK? and why are there so few choices of male dolls?

fact is, we have seriously been considering giving jan a doll (do i hear gasps?). what is wrong with a small boy, playing pretend, nurturing a baby doll? or a stuff toy? what is wrong with a small boy playing with plastic plates and pretending to pour tea into cups? my own mother said, “wag mo pabayaan, baka maging bading!” sus! bading, my foot!

i’ll tell you what is wrong with that picture: it’s just a tiny detail, but can’t these toy factories make them in colors other than pink and purple?

it took a while til mattel showed sensitivity and started manufacturing dark-skinned and asian barbies. i wonder how much longer we have to wait til we get male dolls. and no, not ken, please.

in the meantime, we’re going with the flow (cop-outs!), and giving him something “appropriate” for boys.

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