Family Controversy
 

Hi everyone. I hope that you all have had a wonderful Thanksgiving and not have tummy aches from too much turkey and dressing!! :D That being said, here is the issue:

Every Christmas, Hubby and I have our son go through the JCP Christmas catalog and circle what he would like to have for Christmas. This year, among the Spongebob Squarepants items, Hot Wheels, Legos, and K'Nex sets, he asked for an Easy-Bake Oven. I asked him why and he said, "Mommy I want to cook things with it." Fine with me I thought and started to scout around for a good deal.

Hubby however was not having it. He got all upset and started worrying about how buying him an EBO was "going to make him all gay and stuff." I told him that that was silly and that you never know, he could be the next Emeril or Bobby Flay and he'd be thanking us because we took the time to encourage his interests.

I also pointed out that an EBO would be useful in teaching him to read and follow directions (reading comprehension) as well as measure ingredients (math). I think that an EBO would give him a sense of accomplishment, something that kids who have learning differences need a lot of.

So of course, Hubby's family gets into it. His brothers and some of his cousins (male and female) think that an EBO for a boy is gay and effeminate while his mother and grandmother agree with me that an EBO could introduce our son to a future profession.

So what do you guys think? Would you buy an EBO for your son or male relative if they asked you for it? All responses are appreciated. Thanks!! :)

Girl buy him that EasyBake Oven but tell him that I said do not leave that plastic shovel/spatula in the left side while you get the dessert out of the right side because THAT SPATULA will melt QUICKLY and then you have to use other things to get your cakes out.:o :( :p

Let a boy be a boy but let him also see that some things are no longer WOMAN only.

Amen on the spatula advice and on why getting the oven is not a bad idea.

I agree, get him the oven. But I know exactly what you are going through. My sister in law and her fam is the same way as your husbands family. I never knew that a big hollow piece of plastic that is heated by a light bulb could cause a argument :)

Your son may just want the EBO because it makes cakes and desserts. Kids don't know anything about being "gay." However, let them see an ad or something with those delicious looking cakes with the sprinkles and stuff and the gender lines are torn down.

Get that baby his EBO. By him being restricted from it, he's going to wonder why and that will open a can of worms. Like CT4 said, let him be a boy, but he also needs to know that some things are not only for women. Even though it may not be this serious, but he can grow up and believe that cooking and baking are "women" duties. You gave good examples like Emeril, Bobby Flay, etc. They are making mucho dinero for cooking.

To add on, tell him to be careful with that spatula. I lost many cakes to the bottom of my EBO. I may get myself one. Those things are down to 9 bucks. It beats making a whole cake. I'm a single gal. :p :D

I agree get him the oven....it does not have to be the EBO though. If you do your research you will see that there are several types of ovens for both genders like the McMeal oven, Shrinky dink oven, and others which all have the same concept with the light bulb and spatula theory. I suggest going to Walmart just go done that aisle with EBO and you will see tons of ovens for both genders and then you, your husband, and baby boy are all happy!


I am all for compromise and making Everybody happy!!!

I would mention mumbo jumbo about the formation of gender roles and all of that. But the truth is, we had a similar issue in my family. My nephew wanted a doll when he was about 2 (does anyone remember the show Dinosaurs---"not the momma."

Anyway, I bought it for him. He loved that thing. He would rock it and put it to sleep.

My hunny bunny is now 12, and he is sooooo not gay (still adjusting to the fact that he likes girls now...my lil hunny bunny!!) He did learn how to hold babies and the like...which is something men need to know how to do.


***Devil's advocate*** But what if he was gay...would I love him any less...NOPE!

Soror get yo' baby the oven, and like Leading Lady said, there are more then just EBO. when my baby brother, who aint a baby anymore (he is 20) was a young kid, he use to play with my sister and her dolls and would use her EBO and never at all turned out gay or had any tendencies, He can cook his arse off and know's all about fashion, sometimes puts me to shame, but it helped his understanding. He is very much a man (still my baby brother) with all the ladies after him;)

Not buying him an EBO isn't gonna stop him from being gay. If he's gonna be gay, he's gonna be gay with a mac truck and race cars. (not to say he is, I'm just sayin)

Tell hubby, it will help him pull the ladies, knowing how to cook.;)

Its just a fake stove...:rolleyes: Some people are scared of anything even remotely "cross gender" such as this or girls playing with trucks. It doesn't make sense. I've never seen anyone turned by a toy.

<hijack>

When did they get a purple shovel/spatula? I see I was not the only one who left it in one second too long.

Look at this:

[IMG]http://drs.yahoo.com/S=96062883/K=easy+bake+oven/v=2/l=IVI/*-http://www.lifestylebeat.com/images/articles/112101b6.jpg[/IMG]

I want one toooooooo :( </hijack>

Get one for the littleboyperson. Cooking doesn't determine men's sexuality, trust me. He can be versatile with that and his more macho toys.

My late father was a gourmet cook, and besides Emeril and Bobby Flay, you can also point out people like Marcus Samuelsson (Ethiopian-born, Swedish-raised chef of Aquavit in New York) as an example of cooking male respectability.

I say get it for him... I bought my niece an easy bake oven and my nephew used to use it to bake more than she did.

But if he's worried about colors (pink and purple oven) or it just being feminine there is an Easy Bake Master Chef Oven which is blue, more sturdy and looks "masculine"

and according to my nephew they have made the Queasy bake Cookerator (oven) which is targeted towards boys, and has the same concept but has mixes called like spider cake, martian cookies, or bed bugs cake that appeal to boys

Sorry, but I agree with hubby. Don't get him the EBO. Not that it will "turn him gay" but games/toys can, IMO, play a role in the early socialization of kids. Besides, it's prolly just a fad and he'll most likely play/have longer interest in the trucks, football helmets than he would the oven anyway :D

...why do I feel the Christmas season is about to give way to a flame war on this? :rolleyes:

I say get the oven. My mom taught her sons how to cook and clean (my Dad didn't like it) and now that they're married..they can do all that better than their wife. I don't think its a good idea to raise our sons not teaching them how to do so called women's work i.e. sewing, cooking, cleaning etc. Man or woman...no one should be totally dependent on their mate for these duties.

<sidebar>
I hated "girl" toys when I was younger. I didn't play with dolls..I played with Voltron and Army men! I was a Tomboy...but didn't turn into a lesbian. Its actually funny you bring this up..because my best friend growing up...we were both Tomboys. We played basketball, football, had dirt bikes...all that. My interest wained in those activities around the 10th grade. However when my friend got on the b-ball team in high school...she became a lesbian. She did this for about 8 years.. She's now married with a child on the way. I said that to say..regardless of what a child is bought when they're younger...they'll ultimately make the decision on how they want to live their life.

HOWEVER...I would draw the line somewhere....i mean if my little nephew asked for some nail polish or a little make-up kit...i'd be like naw lil homie...

In other words...get the baby the EBO!:D He'll be a hot commodity in college when he can cook and the little girls cant!

Did anyone just see the BERNIE MAC premiere!!!??? LMAO, it was Jordan doing gymnastics and Bernie and his friends teasing him about it. I immediately thought of this thread.

yep! i saw it! i thought of this thread too!

I was on the floor HOLLERING when Jordan first came out with that ribbon. I say support your kids with what they want to do, you never know how an interest will pan out in the future.

I have a son and if he asked for and EBO I would get him one. Not only for the reasons you stated, but also because my sons will not grow up thinking that only women cook and bake. They are going to be self-sufficient and won't look to a woman to take care of them and their homes. It really bothers me that society trains children that boys and girls are supposed to do certain things. It's not good to keep children in boxes. Let them learn and explore. You never know what may come of it.

Before reading this thread, I didn't know there were so many versions of EBO. I did a search and WOW!!

To compromise (and keep the peace), I would probably get the EBO for boys (same thing just different colors). I doubt if your son will care too much anyway.


I may get the EB Cotton Candy machine myself! YUM! :D

Ok, I have a 6 year old Son and HECK NO! I'm not getting him no dang EBO. I know it wouldn't turn him gay,but damn. Sorry I'm not to PC. :)

I would!!!!
 

I would get him one. My tennis coach bakes cakes and stuff for a living and his cakes, cookies, pies etc or OFF THE HOOK. He learned from both his mom and dad and would like to start a business in the next couple of years.
Dang, its just sugar, sugar, sugar, and more sugar on top of that. If I got my son one he would have to watch out for me taking it away to cook my own cakes.

I saw the Mac Man's show last night and Jordan had me on the floor laughing. I loved the ending when he realized the benefits of being on the team.

Mr. CT4 said a resounding HELL NO to EBO for his son. He told me he would put me and our son out. :( :rolleyes: :o :rolleyes: WHATEVA!!!!

EASY BAKE!!!!!!!!!
 

I say get him the EASY BAKE OVEN!!!! My little brother (he's now 23) and I used to make cakes and cookies in mine. He's now a chef and plans to study pastry making in France next year!!!! And he is so not gay!!!!! So, get the EBO...and send me one of dem cakes with the white icing on it...lol.

Oh boy.......
 

I called Mr. toocute and he said HELL NO CJ would not get an EBO...not even the male version. :rolleyes: :rolleyes: I've had this conversation with him before because CJ is so attached to me. He watches me in the morning when I'm getting ready for work so guess what he started doing? He went in my cosmetic case and put on some lipstick! He took my brush and tried to put on some translucent powder. Then he made me bend down so he could make me up! I was late for work cuz I thought it was sooooo adorable. He also put my hair clips in hair and ran to show daddy. He was just imitating me. That's what toddlers do (he's only 21 months). Well Mr toocute FREAKED. I told him to start taking him in the bathroom and showing him Man things to do:rolleyes: At 21 months he doesn't know that this is what girls do...he only wants to imitate adults. That's how babies LEARN.

*le sigh*

Marcus Samuelsson! I could not remember his name to save my life. What a cutie! Thanks Soror!

You're welcome, Soror. My sister actually has been to Aquavit a couple of times when she went to N.Y. on vacation and for a business trip. I think she's met Marcus. :D

Re: Oh boy.......
 

Toocute,

How you gon play lil playa?? Mr. toocute is 100 percent right. Why do women think this so cute??? Do yall really think the little fella is going to appreciate having that "Lifetime Moment" replayed years later, probably in the presence of his girlfriend as yall are trying to jokingly embarrass him??

Re: Re: Oh boy.......
 

Tony, don't have a cow man. :p :p

I say get the EBO. Learning how to cook/bake does not make a person gay. As stated before, most of the famous chefs out here are male and heterosexual. I have a co-worker whose husband is a chef, and is very manly.

Re: Re: Oh boy.......
 

Um, all boys do this to some extent. You couldnt tell me that I was a girl when I was younger, no dresses and frilly stuff for me. I"m like that even NOW. My daughter is a tomboy too, she wants Hulk hands for Christmas. Like she said, that is how children LEARN. A toddler doing this, no problem. A 17 year old doing that, uh...hmmm...lol


Geez. lol...

get the baby his EBO. My boyfriend can cook his butt off, so best believe that our sons will learn how to cook from daddy.

Re: Re: Re: Oh boy.......
 

Thanks Fee and Nikki for defending me. GC Mommies Unite!!! lol.

So what's difference between a girl getting Hulk hands or a Tonka truck and a boy getting an EBO or a doll??

My point exactly..

GC Mommies Unite!

Re: Re: Re: Oh boy.......
 

Really, I'm not trying to start anything (hey, hey, hey) but what's the difference? Why, in your opinion is it ok for the little fella to go "Max Factor" and yall are cool, but if he's 17 it's a problem. By yall's logic it shouldn't matter.

....why do I feel like I'm bout to be in deep water with no life jacket? :cool:

Re: Re: Re: Re: Oh boy.......
 

...well, she's probably not going to turn out to be a Marvel Comics Superhero :D

Re: Re: Re: Re: Oh boy.......
 

Because you've been around long enough! LOL

BTW: Asked Mr. Abaici...and he said yes to the EBO...but if it was Malibu Barbie...HAYLE NAW!!!!!!!

Re: Re: Re: Re: Oh boy.......
 

Because at 21 months he doesn't KNOW any better. He doesn't know make up and hair clips are for girls.....a 17 yo knows the difference.

Thank you for your responses!! I showed this thread to Hubby and he has relented...somewhat. Now he says, "If you want to waste your money, that's fine with me." Now he's gone from the "he's gonna be gay" tip to "I'm wasting my money." Ya'll know that made me kinda :mad: I ignored him and went out and bought it anyway. I feel that he and I have spent $8 on lesser things, why not spend $8 to invest in something our son could make a career of?

FIGHT THE POWER, MR. 9DSTPM! DON'T LET HER BREAK YOU DOWN, MAN!!!!

...and you probably asked him this question right when SportsCenter was coming on, didn't you? :D

I know this is late but NO! I have a six year old son, and he would never even be interested in an EBO the labor along is to much for him to handle. My reasons are so iggnorant but nope, uh uh not in this crib!

Get the boy the oven!!!
 

Your husband is overreacting, as time passes he'll realize the error of his ways -and how silly he's been acting.

Besides, the majority of people who are gay are'nt "flamboyant" anyway.

I asked a Phrat this question. He said, sure. I went on and on with a series of, "really...you would?" He insisted he would. His final answer being, "The little man will need to learn how to cook, because with each passing generation women's culinary skills diminish"

I fell out!!!!