Toys, Toys, Toys!!

It's getting near that time when I am beginning to think about what presents my daughter would most enjoy for her birthday. Like most little girls, she is obsessed with Disney princesses and anything that goes with them, so the likely choice is to get something along these lines. However, I'm not completely at peace with that decision. Now I will state, that I am well aware a lot of you reading this will in a moment or two, begin to think I am a completely over the top mother and I need to chill out! But I do not apologise for what I am about to say, nor am I seeking to inflict my view upon anyone else, this is just me!

 So, I have obviously been reading the Disney princess stories to my daughter, a lot, recently, and I have come to feel very uneasy about them. Is this really the right thing to be encouraging my a daughter to invest her time in? Let me give you a brief outline:

 Ariel: involves a crystal ball, a wicked witch and a desire to be someone different than who you were created to be.
Sleeping Beauty: involves a wicked fairy, the promise of death and a demon army.
Rapunzel: involves a child being kidnapped at birth, a lying old woman, spells, magic and violence.

 Are these really the thoughts, images and lifestyles I want my daughter to be reading, learning about, going to sleep remembering? Am I just overthinking things? I remember once my mother saying that what we fill our lives with, must come back out in our actions and words! Is magic, spells, kidnapping and witches really what I want her dreams to contain and therefore come out in her actions and play? I know all toys probably have there downside, but should I be a little more careful about the ones we have in our home - I am coming to the conclusion that my answer should be yes! I want her play time to be wholesome and fun, rather than filled with things I genuinely don't believe will be helpful to her.

 As a Christian, I do not believe we should engage in things such as, crystal balls, magic and spells, far from being the "wicked" side of a fairy tale, they are a dangerous presence in our world today. I want Kezzia to know they are dangerous and things to hold caution against, not simply part of some fairy tale.

 All these things, have hence been challenging my birthday present list and it is looking very different to how I first imagined... I hope and know my daughter will be excited about whatever she opens on her birthday, princess or not! And as a mum I look forward to hours of play, knowing her mind is being kept pure and wholesome! 

 But it gets me thinking about what we allow our children to fill their minds with - and do we really believe that what goes into our minds and thoughts must come out somehow?! 

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