Parenting

From the Community…

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  Posted by Valerie Rains, Shine staff Fri Jun 27, 2008 7:16am PDT

  This makes me so very sad. Why, toymakers, WHY?

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  Posted by bb Fri Jun 27, 2008 7:47am PDT

  I am so very, very afraid to have a daughter one day....The pony thing is beyond frightening. I mean, all the sexualizing of the other dolls is bad enough, but come on people! They are sexualizing HORSES!!! What the heck. Why are these toymakers helping to grow little girls up before they are ready? I have a 4 year old niece and I have already told her mother that when her birthdays come around, don't even ask me to get her any Bratz, any Barbies; etc because they send the wrong messages. And I myself was a girly girl when i was little and did play with Barbie, but it's gotten out of control. I can even remember dressing like Holly Hobby when I was in kindergarten. If you dressed a 5 year old like that now, she'd look more Hannah Montana than Holly Hobby. So now....I guess I can tell her "no My Little Ponies (or whatever they are), no troll dolls, no Holly Hobby, no strawberry Shortcake. My God!

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  Posted by cris Fri Jun 27, 2008 9:12am PDT

  i completely agree with you bb, and i think the best way to send a message to these toymakers is to simply NOT BUY this junk! what a sad day when even a troll doll is no longer short, squat, and innocently plain in the face..... i too am terrified of ever having a daughter, for fear of what society and TV (and yes, even you INTERNET!) will influence her into....

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  Posted by Amy Ann Fri Jun 27, 2008 9:28am PDT

  I don't think the Strawberry Shortcake one is TOO awful but the rest are INSANE! I have to say that the "Strutz" are the dumbest toy creation ever. Seriously? Horses that wear heels and skirts? Is that the best we can come up with?

  And Trolls aren't meant to be cute!

  You know what started this? Stupid "Bratz" dolls. People need to boycot these oversexed toys and write the companies.

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  Posted by daytripper Fri Jun 27, 2008 7:04pm PDT

  This is why I want boys. My childhood's been dragged through the mud and sexualized. Disgusting. Any daughters I would have would never get a good shot at a real childhood, no matter how hard I'd try. If I shield them, I'd be seen as overbearing and overprotective, but I'd be damned if they ever traipsed around looking like hoochies.

  So sad childhood forever ended with the coming of Britney Spears. Thank goodness it happened when I was in the 9th grade, so I HAD a childhood. One of the last generations to have one. Dear God.

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  Posted by Giggles Sat Jun 28, 2008 10:16am PDT

  I looked at all the toys mentioned above. Yes they have been updated. Yes Barbie have gone through changes but she was not made into this sexy thing. Out of all the toys I looked at that have been updated, the worst to me are the Trolls and the horses. The horses are just freaky. No kidding, really freaky. The Trolls aren't too far behind. Kids are exposed to so much more now then when I was a kid. In the cartoons, movies, music videos, every where. Shows where a 12 year old is worried about getting a date for the school dance, if the boy she's dating is cheating on her, and other things. When I was that age, that was the last thing on my mind. Boys were still gross at that age and my friends agreed with me. I try to give my daughters the childhood I had by not buying into the dolls, chothes and such. I tell them enjoy your childhood and the other things you can worry about when you hit that age.

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  Posted by shannonnmelvin Sat Jun 28, 2008 8:40pm PDT

  I have a 3 month old daughter and I am so worried about the ridiculous girl toys. They totally make me sick. I just wish the toy makers didn't make sex look like it's an okay thing for a young girl, SHAME ON THEM.

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  Posted by Lady E Sat Jun 28, 2008 10:26pm PDT

  That horse is scary! And yes, I agree, these toymakers are riduculous but they're only supplying what many people want...but uh hello people, just because you have a girl doesn't mean she'll turn into a hoochie. Now if you're a passive parent and don't pay attention to your kids and just give them your credit card and turn them lose in the mall then yes, they'll come home w/shorty shorts and belly tops. But if you give your girls a sense of morals and educate them on the oversexed media and toy companies, give them the ammunition they need to survive then you'll be ok. Give them the moral base they need in this world because it's only gonna get more over the top! Just because you have a boy doesn't make it any easier because some other over-sexed girl will get a hold of him and wham bam...HELLO GRANNY!!! Boy or girl, just teach your kids right and wrong and supervise them online, watching TV and everywhere else you can and they'll be fine!

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