Are you a princess parent? Does your baby girl have more princess paraphernalia than you can fit in your mini van? As a parent, it’s nearly impossible to avoid the inevitable onslaught of princess culture. In this episode of The Lab, Daddy Brad and Daddy Clay compare who is the bigger princess parent by adding up their daughters’ princess gear. From Disney games and Disney princess toys to princess costumes and unicorn stuffed animals, the two Dads compare who is the bigger Cinderella father. Author Jeremy Adam Smith discusses the impact that princess mania is having and the steps to maintain a healthy father daughter relationship. Whether it’s Snow White. Sleeping Beauty, or Cinderella, Disney’s hold on the girly girl market will find your children. The guys from DadLabs are here to ensure you have a healthy father daughter relationship. DadLabs Ep. 534 is brought to you by BabyBjorn.

Princess Parents

Daddy Brad: As fathers of daughters, Daddy Clay and I share a common concern.

Daddy Clay: Are we becoming Princess Parents?

Daddy Brad: Today’s episode is brought to you by BabyBjorn. This Baby Carrier Original Spirit comes in lots of colors. Including Pink Passion.

Daddy Clay: And pink is the story of the day. I came across an AP article that quoted Jean Twenge, one of the authors of “The Narcissism Epidemic” talking about the dangers of raising little princesses, and it sort of set off alarm bells.

Daddy Brad: Sirens. Klaxons. Because we don’t want to raise princesses.

Daddy Clay: No.

Daddy Brad: Because that entail that they are on a pedestal, that they are privileged or very materialistic.

Daddy Clay: We want to raise girls that are independent, strong, responsible.

Daddy Brad: And you’re taking on a multi-billion princess industry on. They’ve got whole aisles at Walmart dedicated to princesses.

Daddy Clay: I think the first thing, in determining if we are princess parents, we should do a princess inventory. We should go to our houses and collect all the princess related items that we find there and bring it into the studio.

Daddy Brad: Man, I’m gonna need a bigger minivan.

[Daddy Clay and Daddy Brad raid their houses]

Daddy Clay: Okay, so maybe I’ve got an issue.

Daddy Brad: What’s average for princess stuff?

Daddy Clay: I don’t think it’s time to freak out because an average normal girl is going to have some amount of princess gear, but how do you know when you’ve crossed over and become a princess parent?

Daddy Brad: Let’s ask an expert, Jeremy Adam Smith, author of “The Daddy Shift” of the Greater Good Institute. He will be able to help us.

Daddy Clay: Yeah, I’m disappointed by this.

Daddy Brad: You are way over the line.

Daddy Clay: I was sure you’d have more than me.

Daddy Brad: Look at you!

Daddy Clay: This is normal.

Daddy Brad: Normal? This is not normal!

Daddy Clay: that was a gift!

Jeremy Adam Smith: Playing princess is not going to hurt your little girl or your little boy, for that matter. There is no scientific evidence that playing princess will turn your child into a helpless narcissist. The problem is that our little girls are confronted by a tsunami of commercialized pink. In many situations it’s the only option for play they have and the overwhelming message of all this stuff is that there’s only one way to be a girl. So what can we as parents do? First of all we can encourage our girls to not be so girly to take risks and get dirty and to go off script with the princess dolls and finally if you don’t approve of princess gear, don’t shame your kid. That will do a lot more harm than playing with princesses ever will. Instead talk to them in an age appropriate way, express your concerns and encourage them to ask questions and that’s the best antidote to princess mania is helping our kids to learn to think for themselves.

Daddy Brad: You know, Daddy Clay, being a father to a daughter is difficult because we want our daughters to feel special, magical and we have an impulse to give them everything they want but you really have to resist that.

Daddy Clay: Obviously you have to and particularly in this economy. Another thing that makes the princesses to me feel very out of step is image, obviously tough economic times, do you really want to be encouraging your girls to be participating in something that’s supposed to be about glamour and luxury? It seems an inappropriate value to be espousing to. Obviously Disney is the lightning rod here. I don’t really watch the hardcore Disney princess. Really, the only one we watch is Mulan and she’s a warrior for crying out loud. I think overall they do a good job of making their princesses be self-reliant and plucky but they’re still princesses.

Daddy Brad: And they have a new one coming out with an African American princess in their new movie “The Frog Princess” and we hope she’s going to be independent and strong.

Daddy Clay: But let me say this, the power of Pop is greater than the power of pop
cultue.

Daddy Brad: Interesting coming from a guy in pink. If you have thoughts about the princess parent controversy, about whether your worried about your daughter being too much of a princess, or not, please join us on DadLabs dot come to share you opinion. I know I’ll be there because I have a three year old girl.

Daddy Clay: We want to thank our sponsor, BabyBjorn. Sure the BabyBjorn Baby Carrier Original Spirit comes in pink. But it’s for boys. Thanks a lot for joining us here in the lab.