In many toy stores today, products are often separated by gender -- "pink stuff" and dolls are classified as "girl toys" and boys are directed to play with action figures and trucks. But that doesn't mean parents are on board with the gender stereotyping.
Joe DeProspero, a father to two sons, wrote a blog post for Parents Magazine about why he encourages his boys to play with toys that are traditionally marketed to girls. He spoke to HuffPost Live's Dena Takruri about his point-of-view and why he's happy to see his sons with dolls.
"If we're not encouraging our children to explore all sorts of toys, both genders, then we're not really expanding their horizons or enabling their creativity," he said.
But DeProspero admitted that sometimes he notices cracks in his open-minded approach, even if he doesn't intend it.
"We are all men, so it's entirely possible that even though I'm telling you that I think it's great that boys play with girls' toys, I will almost push him towards, 'Maybe you should try baseball,' or 'Maybe you should try basketball,' only because that's what I've heard my entire life," he said. "And if we only push them into that one direction, I don't think we're giving them the full breadth of life of what they're capable of doing."
Catch the full conversation about gender-neutral parenting at HuffPost Live HERE.