Dora, Elmo, And Thomas! Oh My!How Do You Raise Character Kids Without Characters?
Charlie LOVES Thomas. No, really.
Here’s a challenge:
Try and buy diapers without Winnie the Pooh or Elmo or Nemo on the waist band – you can’t.
My wife and I are trying to make an effort at raising character kids without characters dominating our lives, but it’s hard.
We’re trying to buy new shoes for my son. All of them have Spider-Man, Diego, Cars, etc on them.
We’re trying to buy a new bike helmet for my son. Wouldn’t you know it, the same cast of characters are showing up.
From the minute our children are hours old, the message of characterization starts to weave into their lives.
So how do you fight it? Or do you even try?
I will concede that my boys do have some favorite characters, but the enjoyment of them is limited to the screen, a few toys, and books. We don’t have the sheets, the hats, the shirts, the shoes, the bike, etc etc etc.
We went to see Thomas the Tank Engine make an appearance at our local train park last weekend. Everywhere you turned there were kids with Thomas-blazened hats, backpacks, and tshirts crawling all over the grounds that sunny day. We bucked up for the Awkward Family Photo at the top (had to with Charlie crying like that), but that was it.
Yes, we watched Puss in Boots 3x last week, and my son’s 4th birthday party was a Buzz Lightyear theme, but that’s not the norm for us.
While we do have a few Thomas figures, our boys mostly play with the Ikea knockoff track and trains. While there is one or two Lightning McQueen models in their car box, most of them are just yellow, blue and black cars. They have a few Transformers they play with but their toys are just .. toys.
I’m not so naive as to think my kids will grow up in a bubble devoid of corporate influence, but I would appreciate some choice when it comes to having gear for my kids. Why is it so hard to get a plain, red bike helmet?
You Can't Have Bieber Fever When You're 5
I’ve heard stories of mall appearances by the likes of Dora where parents offered mall security hundreds of dollars to skip the line and give their children access. Working at a radio station I received calls from frantic parents when Justin Bieber was on tour saying they needed to get their 5 year old tickets to the show.
A 5 year old doesn’t really need tickets to anything. It’s the parent that thinks they really need the biggest, best, shiniest labels to help their kids fit in or be happy. (Check out Mommyfriend’s list of 6 Free Things Kids Need Most)
Guess what? The kids don’t care – or at least mine don’t.
Do your kids demand the ‘brand name’ character stuff when it comes to getting pyjamas, sheets, books, helmets, shoes, lounge chairs, blankets, beach towels, and t-shirts? Do you buck up for it?
Follow Buzz on Facebook or @dadcamp
Read more at DadCAMP or The Blog According to Buzz.
Get more DadCAMP on Kid Scoop:
You Know You’re A Parent When ______
16 Inspiring Viral Video Kids You’ll Wish Were Yours
Did Your Kids Get 60 Minutes of Activity Today?
Image Credit Adam Sundana
We’re with you, Dadcamp. We order online, it’s a lot easier to find non-branded items. I don’t like logos or brand names out in the open on my boys, they’re not advertising surfaces.
YES! I have a 9 month old baby at home (our first) and I have been amazed at how challenging it is to find anything that isn’t branded with characters and other things being pushed by a corporate machine. People don’t understand what I’m trying to say when I talk about it…when I decorated my son’s room in a transportation theme (cars, trucks, boats, etc. but nothing branded) people said “I don’t get it… what’s your theme?” like if I didn’t have Dora on the garbage can, sheets, lightswitch, etc. I was somehow depriving my kid. Friends aren’t thinking about this issue at all with their kids…I have a friend whose child won’t eat anything that isn’t branded with Sponge Bob and the Mom thinks its cute. I too agree that we can’t keep them out of the target of corporate marketers forever but it sure would be nice to provide him with things he likes at a young age that don’t have a cross-promotional sponsorship with a restaurant, toy, food, potty chair, etc. I’m desperate to find a good blog about this for ideas. If you know of one, please post!
Keep at it, Nichole! Thanks for commenting.
I have a theory about boys’ clothes, that most shirts for little boys are just t-shirts, so basically just squares with arm holes, which makes the manufacturers have to throw on lots of lame graphics and sayings to distinguish them. I hate them, because my adorable one year old is not a football player/surfer/monster truck afficionado. Girls’ clothes do not seem to have this problem as much because there are many more options in the detailing. Maybe this is part of the character plague?
Also, Target brand diapers, if you have a target near you. Save money, no cartoons.
We’re trying to be as character-free as possible, while simultaneously accepting hand-me-downs from our older cousins, who are as opposite as can be. Just try keeping girls away from the dreaded Disney Princesses! (I have no problem with actual princesses, or fairy tales, just the creativity-inhibiting “scriptedness” of the whole thing. When we inevitably get something emblazoned with a Princess™ we just call them “ladies”.) Our diapers are cloth, our food goes out of the boxes and into clear bins when we get home, and at just over 2 years old, they can probably tell you who cookie monster and spongebob are, but not having access to TV yet, they don’t go crazy for them or anything. And if they did, the simple answer is “No.” HOWEVER: Two things give me pause. Number one, research shows (done by Sesame street’s education team, of course) kids learn lessons presented on TV much much better from characters they “know” – apparently they bond and believe they are really friends. So If you’re plopping them in front of a video, make sure you like all the lessons they are getting from their “friends.” (This is what makes the product tie-ins particularly nefarious.) Secondly, if your kid is not the best at social situations, an early shared love of Thomas or Dora could grease the social wheels – get them talking to other kids that like the “same things.” So, in conclusion, it’s actually a pretty fascinating and multifaceted topic that deserves discussion. Watching the programs? OK if you deem it age appropriate, you approve of the content, and you’re not overdoing it. Purchasing the clothes? Not going to hurt anything, just makes your kid a walking advertisement if that’s cool with you. Buying the toys? Still fairly appropriate, as long as you witness them using the toys for open-eded, creative play instead of just re-hashing the program they just saw using the character. Buying FOOD, toothpaste, diapers, and the million other product tie-ins that have nothing to do with the character and his lessons? NO WAY. this is the lowest common denominator in advertising, the execs call the kids “low hanging fruit” and use the “nag factor” (i’m not making these up) when there is nothing particularly healthy or innovative they can use to sell their product. (the other reason I don’t do characters is because I don’t WANT to have meltdowns in the supermarket because I won’t buy whatever brand of whatever.)