Color code

The other day, I drove my son home as we discussed one of my imminent Mother's Day presents - a cake apparently destined for my home.

My son told me, "I'll eat this cake even though it's pink and pink is a girl color."

"Oh," I responded. "Who told you that?"
"It's just a rule I made up."

I continued to question him on this line of thinking, trying to figure out if there was something that specifically triggered it, or if he had simply absorbed the old cultural standard that pink is for girls and blue is for boys.

I was curious since I had never droned that into his head. He's had "girlish" toys before and it didn't matter for a long time. He had this wonderful fuschia polo shirt that I loved (though his dad hated it.) And I have tried my best not to instill any sexist stereotyping.

However, he has come to the age when he realizes that girls are different and that in defining himself as a boy, he likes to act tough and play with trucks and avoid all things pink. He'll say things like tell his grandmother that when she goes to China, he wants a "boy toy" as a souvenir. And all of his girl toys are now starting to pile up on my bedroom dresser, because rather than throw them away, he'll give them as a gift to Mommy.

Since Mommy should have all the girl toys.