An unusual hashtag has swept Twitter this morning and the Internet is a buzz over #hotdogprincess.
In a world of Disney Princesses, this little girl wanted to be a hotdog, and we absolutely love her for it.
The condiment fan arrived at her dance class in the epic ensemble, and Tumbler and Twitter took note.
Hotdog Dad, Brandan sounded equally proud and bemused at the news that his daughter had gone viral:
No parent is ready to learn that their daughter is trending… #hotdogprincess Best part is it was all her idea! pic.twitter.com/YBmUkRoj4y
— Brandon E Turner (@turnerbrandon) June 2, 2016
When asked on stage at her dance recital, her teacher asked about her costume choice:
“Why did you want to be a hotdog?”
“Because it’s my favourite costume.”
“Are you a ketchup or a mustard fan?”
“Ketchup. Mostly.”
we brought #hotdogprincess on stage at recital pic.twitter.com/5PIKmVtJLI
— Brianna Steers (@BriannaSteers) June 4, 2016
It’s great to see kids disregarding the ridiculous gender stereotypes that we adults, sometimes totally unconsciously, place on them.
Gender stereotyping is something I often wonder about as my two-year-old son is absolutely obsessed with cars and trucks and muck and I can’t remember at any time particularly pushing these things on him. It often seems like he just came out with this preprogrammed love of anything on wheels.
I mostly dress him (well he mostly picks his own clothes now and is very much into his ‘look’) in pink and white and green and blue because I think they’re the nicest colours on him, and perhaps because of this (and his long curls and his amber beads and the lipstick he wanted to wear to play school yesterday) he is often described as ‘beautiful’ and a ‘pretty girl’ which I privately see as a bit of a mini win, proof that I’m not shoehorning him into a ‘boy’ identity and just letting him be who he wants to be.
Conversely, however, I also call him ‘my mini man’ and I’ve read criticism of using the term “man” for a little boy which makes me question my use of it. I think it’s a pretty innocent affectionate moniker for a baby. However when I put the shoe on the other foot I don’t like calling my friend’s daughter “little lady”, it sounds slightly patronising or something…
Luckily if Hotdog Princess is anything to go by the new generation may have this whole gender identity sussed better than we do
Do YOU struggle with the (often unintentional) gendered way we parent our kids? Let us know in the comments…
