Point/Counterpoint: The New Barbie Commercial

Have you see the new Barbie commercial circulating in your news feed? If not, here it is. Take a peek.

When I see videos like this (the "mommy wars" video made by Similac is similar), my first reaction is "ho hum, another cute/inspirational video by a large multinational corporation trying to sell me something." I'll admit to some consumer apathy.

Also - I never played with Barbie. My mom gifted me three of her 1960s Barbie dolls, which mainly sat in a box, to be brought out when other friends came over and wanted to play dolls. Book nerds have little time for dolls.

But I developed a tiny spark of interest in Barbie in university, as I navigated my master's degree in environmental and gender studies. And later, as a mother, I was convinced I did NOT want my daughters playing with Barbie or any other symbol of women's oppression under capitalism and patriarchy. So far, my girls seem to be following in my book nerd path, and don't seem too interested in Barbie (princesses....that's another story. Sigh.)

Point/Counterpoint

I have a horrible habit of flip-flopping when it comes to polarizing issues (this is probably why most employers check off "team player" as my top asset - I can understand and empathize with many different points of view.)  So instead of writing this from my own point of view, I decided to reach out to other women and get their thoughts on the video.

Our Team Players:

Lara Wellman is owner of Kids in the Capital and Lara Wellman Digital Marketing, and graciously offered some pro points for this video. 

Faustina Konkal is a Sociology and Women's and Gender Studies student at Carleton University, the mom of three and a life time resident of Ottawa. She's offering our counter points.

And me, Misty Pratt, resident Community Manager of the blog, who is sitting on the fence at the moment!

Imagine the possibilities

Barbie wants young girls to imagine the possibilities, and for Lara Wellman, that's easy enough to do. "My take on [the video] was that they were real life scenarios where kids were doing adult jobs and doing them from a child's perspective," she says. The video is cute and funny, and it's uplifting to see young girls follow a passion or dream.

And really, let's think about the possibilities for a minute - what if girls stopped playing "Ken meets Barbie, Ken marries Barbie, and they live happily ever after," and instead started playing "Barbie grows up and decides she wants to be a veterinarian, so she goes to school and opens her own practice." As we see the shots pass by - professors, veterinarians, coach - we can't help but feel inspired to pass the same message on to our own girls. 

" I GET that there are issues with Barbie," says Lara. "But when I look at how my kids play with them, I see that my son plays with them too, and my daughter enjoys them while also climbing trees and rough housing with her cousins." 

But these inspirational feelings fizzle out with Faustina: " What you have to understand is that the effect of this new message, and the old 'Barbie marries Ken' message, is that they are the same message. Exactly the same. Different packaging, but the same message. And the message is: do what is expected of you. Define yourself by what others think and see of you."

You Can Be Anything

The video ends with the (pink) screenshot and the words "You Can Be Anything," signed Barbie.

"Well, no," argues Faustina, "not everyone can be or do anything. People have different access to resources, privilege, abilities, localities. Structural barriers are real. Discrimination are real. Prejudice is real. And all those things can impede an individual girl's ability to realize her dreams and aspirations."

So if this isn't the message we want our girls to be hearing, what DO we tell them? "Do we stop telling our kids to dream big?" asks Lara.

"Perhaps the solution is to stop telling girls anything," says Faustina. "And just listen to what they have to say. Stop treating them like empty vessels for us to fill up, or like victims in a dangerous world that we need to save."

Buy the Doll

Let's put the cute, the funny and the problematic aside for a moment. Look at the subversive: buy the doll. Boil it down, and this video is nothing more than an advertisement, designed to get me to buy a piece of plastic junk made in China. A bunch of brilliant minds worked on this video, getting paid to sell the brand to parents of young girls.

"Of course they're trying to sell more product while doing it!" says Lara. "That's their job - that's what they HAVE to do...but isn't it nice that they're sharing a positive message with their mega bucks beyond just the ads that have my kids yelling "I WANT THAT!"

Faustina is not so sure: "I think that it is inherently impossible for a large multinational to do [positive] messaging. Which is why I'm wary of ads like this."

Game, Set, Match

There is no winner here today, in terms of whether the new Barbie commercial is GOOD or BAD. What we do have are two opposing points of view, doing exactly what I think we need to do to help foster change for young girls - having a respectful and intelligent debate, and challenging the status quo.

I know we all get a little tired of critical thinking - sometimes I feel like screaming "for the love of God, who cares!?" when yet another critique comes out on a story, issue, or advertisement. I remember feeling the same way in university, when all I wanted was to stop talking about the damn problems and DO SOMETHING.

But it's Friday and I'm feeling philosophical, so let's quote Ghandi:

"Your beliefs become your thoughts, 
Your thoughts become your words, 
Your words become your actions, 
Your actions become your habits, 
Your habits become your values, 
Your values become your destiny"

Doing something is not always realistic, or desirable. Sometimes we need to sit back, explore our beliefs, our thoughts, and our ideas, and change the world...one tiny step at a time.

What do you think of the new Barbie commercial? What are your points/counterpoints?

Show and Tell for All Ages! Maker Faire Ottawa

My husband is a maker - he makes things, All The Time. If he's not in his shop crafting something beautiful out of wood, he's carving vegetables and fruits into characters for the kids or inventing elaborate sprinkler systems for the gardens.

Eco Sprinkler System: hooked up to three rain barrels, which connect to all four of our vegetable gardens

But my husband only revealed his crafty brilliance to me when we moved into our first home.

Prior to that, we had been living in small apartments, with zero space for hobbies. We were stepping on each other's toes just to get to the bathroom. So although my hubby WANTED to build and make things, he had no space for the tools necessary to do so.

Waldorf Curvy Boards, which have become a popular Christmas gift!

On a tour of the home we ended up buying, the deal was sealed when my husband discovered a giant workshop in the basement. Since moving in, the number of tools in his shop has doubled, and the lack of storage space in my home has been halved. Once in a while I threaten to turn the workshop into a yoga studio, but I never make good on my threat. There's no way I could take away my husband's space for creative expression!

An island for the kitchen, big enough to house all of my gadgets!

And it seems my oldest is following in Daddy's footsteps. She loves joining hubby in his shop, and will happily pound nails into wood. She is really interested in figuring out how things work, and my husband is just as interested in teaching her!

Do you have makers in your family? If you do, you will want to check the Maker Faire, coming to Ottawa in November.

Maker Faire is the Greatest Show (and Tell) on Earth—a family-friendly showcase of invention, creativity and resourcefulness, and a celebration of the Maker Movement.  It’s a place where people show what they are making, and share what they are learning. It's a Science Fair for the whole community! Or what I like to call "Show and Tell for Adults" :) Because hands up if you miss making something that you can show off to your peers!

Makers range from tech enthusiasts to crafters to homesteaders to scientists to garage tinkerers.  They are of all ages and backgrounds. The aim of Maker Faire is to entertain, inform, connect and grow this community. My husband will definitely be attending with my daughter in tow!

When & Where: October 15th and 16th at Aberdeen Pavilion in Ottawa.

Learn more here
Connect on Twitter here
Follow them on Facebook here

What do you love to make?

Disclosure: in exchange for this blog post, my family will receive a pass to attend the Maker Faire. All opinions are my own :)

Potty Training Options

By Katie

Potty training: a phrase that inspires hope in parents of babies in diapers, and shudders of horror in seasoned veterans who have lived through it. 

I am absolutely not an expert on potty training techniques, but I proudly count myself among one of the survivors. My daughter was not easy to train. She is extremely stubborn (wonder where she gets that from?) and had to make up her own mind about when she was ready.  No matter how many articles/books/blogs we read on the topic, or how many gummy worms we offered with guilt, she only started using the toilet when she was darn good and ready. 

I can, however, show you how cloth diapers and training pants can make the learning process a lot easier and cheaper whether you have cloth diapered or not. 

Daytime training

Training pants, whether disposable or cloth, have a simple function. They are easy for potty learners to take on and off when nature calls while protecting the floor from a good soaking if accidents do occur. They also allow little bums to feel wet if an accident does happen, which helps them learn.

If potty training is on your horizon, take a cruise down the diaper aisle in the grocery store and take a look at prices on disposable training pants. Pretty costly, eh? Especially if your child ends up wearing them for an extended amount of time. While the investment in cloth may seem like a high up front cost, it will actually end up being more economical, even if your kid learns like a super star!

Cloth training pants fulfill the exact same functions, with several added bonuses. 

1)    They can be used for more than one child
2)    You can sell them afterwards (and since they haven’t been used long, they keep their value well)
3)    Patterns and styles make kids actually want to wear them! 
4)    More comfortable than disposables (imagine wearing crunchy underpants)
5)    All of the environmental benefits of cloth diapers (less garbage, less resources used)

Cloth trainers are really easy to use. To wash, just flip them inside out and wash them with your other laundry (as long as you don’t use fabric softeners ). In case of a poo accident, flip the majority of the solids into the toilet and give it a rinse before putting in the laundry. 

And how many do you need? Recommendations vary widely from between 3-15 pairs, but I would recommend starting with 3-5 and seeing how it goes. You may have to buy more if your little one is having more frequent accidents, but you might be pleasantly surprised.  Hopefully your kiddo will progressively have fewer and fewer accidents as potty training continues as well. 

Night Time Potty Training

Learning to stay dry during the night can be a challenge for kids, even those who breeze through day time training. Many kids still have occasional bed wetting incidents well after they have been using the toilet on their own.  Disposable diapers marketed for night time use for older kids are (again) quite expensive, and the thought of using them nightly to prevent accidents can be daunting to your wallet. 

Again, cloth can save the day (or night)! If you are just using diapers at night, having a couple of cloth diapers with enough absorbency for a heavy wetter makes perfect sense. They will quickly pay for themselves, both financially and in preventing the lovely task of changing pj’s and sheets in the middle of the night. Some training pants allow you to add extra absorbency in case of larger accidents overnight, but if your kiddo is often waking up wet, I would return to diapers for nighttime, as most trainers (cloth and disposables) aren’t designed to hold a full toddler pee.

Some kids will need to wear diapers overnight even after they are successfully using the toilet during the day. This can get tricky when kids have grown out of the largest diaper sizes. Cloth to the rescue! There are cloth diapers that are specifically designed for older kids. Applecheeks Size 3 covers are sized to fit children from 30-65+ pounds. They are an awesome overnight solution, and can be worn until your wee one consistently wakes up dry, at which point you can all do a gigantic happy dance all together! 

Potty training can definitely strain your patience, but it doesn’t need to strain your wallet. Even if you haven’t cloth diapered yet, using cloth for potty training still makes financial and environmental sense.  Good luck – you will survive!

Bumbini Cloth Diaper Company has tons of cloth diaper options, including reusable training pants.  We also specialize in helping parents with cloth, no matter what stage they are beginning at. fa6b418ab8e52acda7e33366bf8064bc06213622b8b0714125

Scared of bugs? Think outside the box!

I visited Thailand in 2003, a wayward university student looking for overseas adventures. The beaches were beautiful, but we spent most of our time in the North, visiting universities and learning about the culture and economy of Thailand. Many small towns in the north had daily markets, filled with local fruits and vegetables, handmade wares, and....bug stalls. Not like, "hey, come check out some beautiful bugs in these terrariums," but more like, "git yer roasted bugs! Piping hot!!"

The entire stall was dedicated to dead bug snacks. All carefully displayed in cardboard boxes. 

Well, being 23 and slightly crazy, I ordered a paper bag full of some kind of roasted worm (I think they were meal worms), and I polished them off like I would a bag of chips. And they did taste like chips!

Fast forward some (erm...many) years, and eating bugs doesn't appeal to me so much. But the new Bugs Outside the Box exhibit at the Museum of Nature  wants you to experience bugs on a whole new level. A life size level!!

The exhibit opened on October 23rd and features sixteen larger-than-life models of exotic insects, as well as live insects, videos, games and....yes, even some bugs to taste!

After taking the time to experience the whole exhibit, I wondered - would my kids even enter this room?

I'm not sure when and why it happened, but at some point, both my kids became frightened of bugs and spiders (fun fact - spiders are not bugs! They have eight legs and insects have six legs and three main body parts.) I chatted with one of the scientists at the Museum of Nature, and got some great tips for helping children to overcome their fear of insects

Tips for Helping Children Overcome Their Fear of Bugs

• Children learn through play. Attempt to engage them in "bug play." The exhibit features a spot where kids can "roll like a dung beetle," dress up in a bug eye mask, lift "weights" like a beetle does, and hop like a grasshopper (as pictured below) 

Can you hop as far as a grasshopper?

• If live bugs freak them out, get kids interested in dead bugs. The Science Corner in the museum's Animalium gallery (also on the 4th floor) encourages kids to become "bug scientists." They can learn how to pin insects and practice their skills at drawing them as well. 
• Start small with the easy-to-love bugs - my kids seem fine with butterflies and dragonflies. Not so much with beetles or stick-like bugs!
• Try to encourage your child to relate to bugs by explaining that bugs have families too! The display of stick bugs in the Animalium has giant "grandpa" bugs, and even teeny "baby" bugs. Kids love learning about families, even insect families!
• And finally - try to be a good role model. Your children learn by example, so you screaming and running away from a bug that lands on you probably doesn't help ;)

Are your kids afraid of bugs? Will you be taking them to the Bugs Outside the Box exhibit?

One of the beautiful bug sculptures on display

Tips for Winter Babywearing

by Desiree Beattie

Now that the warmer days are behind us, it’s time for coats, mitts hats and boots. If you’re a teeny baby, extra protection is necessary for those wickedly cold winter days. What’s warmer than snuggling up to another human body?

Babywearing can be a great option for keeping your little one warm during winter outings, but many parents are confused by all the options. Is purchasing a $500 babywearing coat necessary? Should my baby be under my coat or over my coat? Should they wear a snowsuit, even when they’re inside the coat? And what carrier is best?

Check out this 1970's Snuggly that I got from my MIL! I would recommend that you find something more updated that puts your child in the correct M position

Let’s simplify babywearing for winter!

1.    No, you don’t need a $500 coat. BUT, if you really wanted that coat, and thought you would get years of use out of it (the insert can be removed and turned into a regular coat once you’re done babywearing), then it might be worth it to you.
2.    Remember the #1 rule of babywearing – baby’s head needs to be visable and kissable from your vantage point. If they are too low (and snuggled down inside your coat), they are not getting enough oxygen.
3.    You can wear baby inside OR outside your coat. Go to Value Village and score a large coat that will cover your baby, or have someone sew an insert into the coat you already own. But remember the visible and kissable rule!
4.    If baby is outside your coat, yes, they will need their infant snow suit and a nice warm hat. You be the judge as to how cold they are inside the coat – some coats are large and drafty, whereas other coats are tight and snug. A quick check behind the baby’s neck will let you know whether they are too warm – a sweaty neck is a definite sign they have too many layers on.
5.    Using a carrier that is adjustable such as a ringsling can make for a quick and easy outing, as it simply slips over both baby and your bulky winter gear with no fuss or modifications.  It even has the added bonus of being an extra blanket layer for both you and your little and of course is easy to have on hand as it can be slipped into even a small bag for transport.  

Do a few practice runs around your neighbourhood to start. The worst thing would be to head out on a big outing, and realize that your baby is too cold. Once you get the temperature right, you’re set for hours of fun outside!

And remember to always be cautious when choosing the activity to do with your baby. Hiking through a forest can be difficult if you can’t see the ground in front of you, and skating while babywearing is not recommended (although I have known women who are very comfortable on skates and have no qualms doing this while babywearing). You be the judge of what works and doesn’t work.

Just don’t let your winter baby keep you inside!

Congrats to Desiree, owner of Little Luv Slings – the winner of three months of free advertising on the blog! Little Luv Slings offers a wide variety of ringsling styles, including woven and double layers, in many different fun and fashionable prints. Find them online and on Facebook.