So many things that I could write on this post! So, so, so many things I could write about this photo (above) alone!!! Like:
- How my mother must just be just drooling at the thought of it: another set of baby twins! She’s been telling me for the past year how much she seriously thinks that we should adopt another set of twins from Haiti – “girls this time!” she says. “Yeah, right!” I tell her. But she’s “serious,” she says. “O.k.,” I say, “if you move here and help me do it then I’ll adopt another set of twins.” That’s where the conversation ends. ;0 Sorry, Mom (and Corey!), the babies in the photo are just dolls.
- Ummm…. just looking at this photo — how cute would it be if our boys could have baby brothers/sisters — the baby brother(s)/sister(s) that they so desperately want and beg me for daily?!
- Ummm…. radical feminism. Nurturing boys to be nurturing boys. Raising sons to be feminist men. Egalitarian relationships in action in parenting. ETC.
- Ummm…. Do you know how few baby dolls are black in comparison to how many are white? I’ll tell you this much: much fewer than 10-12% (the actual estimated percent of black people in the U.S. population)… and that is in a Toys R Us just north of Philly– a geographic area with a disproportionatly high number of African-Americans compared to most regions of the rest of the country. And do you know how few of the baby dolls that are “black” are actually as dark or darker than my boys??? (Answer: NONE, none even come close.) I could go on and on about how disturbing this is. But I won’t.
- Ummm…. Just look at that photo (above). How cute is that?????? I could write a whole blog just about how darn adorable my bambinos are. But I’ll spare you…
So– I’ll just tell you a few things about the new dolls…
Today I wanted to buy Owen a baby doll. I have been wanting to do this for awhile because Owen shows so much love and affection for babies. When he sees a baby his impulse is to cradle its head gently in his own hands. He speaks softly to babies: “Hi baby. It’s o.k. baby, it’s o.k.” He really strongly desires a “baby brother” and asks me for this almost daily. Kyle chimes in too, but lately — especially — I’ve noticed it is a bit more Owen’s thing than Kyle’s. I think in theory Kyle wants a baby brother (or sister — Kyle is less adament about the fact that it has to be a brother)… but when Kyle actually sees me hold a baby he gets all bent out of shape. Owen, on the other hand, really wants a baby brother (his stance — and he’s really dug in his heels on this one — no sister, thank you very much), and seems unphased by it when he sees me hold a baby. Although, I must say, that at lunch today Owen saw a baby at another table (we were in a restaurant) and he said, “Mama- see the baby?!” And I said, “Yup.” He said, “I wanna baby brother.” I said, “I know sweetie pie. If we had a baby, who would take care of it?” And Owen thought about that for a second then answered, “Jackson’s mommy.” (!!!!) Anyway– at Toys R Us Owen picked out this beautiful sleeping baby doll. He didn’t want one with the eyes open, only one that was sleeping. It was clear immediately that Owen adored this baby doll. And it was one of those purchases that, immediately after the fact, I felt with all my heart and soul that it was worth every single penny.