Ok… I want opinions on this, it is complete ramblings though so please feel free to respond with the same 😉
So the last two days have been gorgeous, sunny and 22 C… (71 f)… Sure, it is not hot but it isn’t cool either… in the sun in was actually quite toasty…
So, I get the boys ready to go to the park… I was in a sleeveless shirt and shorts and picked out t-shirts and shorts for the boys… After lunchI put baseball caps on their heads, sunscreen on and a sippy cup/bottle of water for each and we headed for the park…
There were a few other moms with kids there and though the parents were in short sleeves and pants, the kids were dressed with sweatshirts, coats and hats… At one point I took Colin’s cap off cause it kept covering his eyes and he was all sweaty so I knew that he wasn’t cold and there was no reason he would have been anyways with the sun etc…
I feel so much out of the loop when it comes to this… I seem to really underdress my kids compared to others, I mean I do the coat and hat thing when it is cold of course… But even in the winter I just don’t like overdressing them because I think it more uncomfy to be hot and sweating then be dressed for the temp outside…
Like a few weeks ago when there was still snow/slush on the ground but fairly warm for the time of year (March) about 10 C (50 f), so I had the kids in waterproof springwear (with warm clothes under) and rain boots and got to the park and I was faced with kids in heavy snowsuits, mittens, hats, scarves and snow boots and couldn’t even play in the structures because they couldn’t move…
And then of course today I get the comment… “aren’t you cold?”…
ummm no it is 22 outside and the sun is really strong… aren’t you hot?
This isn’t a new thing either… It is something that I have noticed since Xavier was newborn… here is classical example..
Mid August, Xavier about 1 month old on the right, my cousin, two weeks older on the left…
So, Is it just me? Am I underdressing? Are others overdressing? Does anyone else notice this? Why does this bother me?
So funny!! Liam usually wears less as well but I just put it down to him being a hot little boy. Even when he was a tiny thing he was regulating his temp well. Gosh I just go by how he feels and touch him often enough to see if he’s sweating or chilly. I cant stand it when I am in the grocery store and someone’s kid clearly has very flushed cheeks.
What I hate are unsolicited comments from other parents. Ex.
DS sitting on grass next to me while I pull weeds. Temp about 70. A neighbor walks by and said something about making sure he had sunscreen on. Jesus P. Mind your own business. And 5 minutes..literally 5 mins in 70 degree heat…I am not going to put sunscreen on for that. A bit of sun wont hurt.
I hate that sort of backseat parenting. Paul has always run hotter than others and tends to wear much less on any given day than anyone else. Yet from day one, everyone seems intent upon overheating him.
He was born in late August – a very big (>9 lbs) boy and still despite the heat the nurses insisted upon wrapping him tightly in blankets. We, being first-time parents had no idea and continued to do it and were driven crazy with sleeplessness form the fussy baby we had brought home. Fortunately before the first night was over I noticed that if I took him out into the cool night air he immediately calmed down. I put two and two together, unwrapped him, and we turned on the air conditioner (which until then we had turned off) and it was near bliss. Ever since then we have been having thermostat wars – Sage & Paul want it cool while I want it warm. (Sage is the worst – she can literally be in shorts and a t-shirt and complaining of the heat while I am shivering in a sweater.)
Just remember that some people are “hot” bodied, while others are “cold.” I’m one of those hot blooded people…. the first day in April that it’s above 15 degrees C, I’m hauling out all my summer clothing, putting on my sandals… and I refuse to put on pants and shoes again until there’s practically snow on the ground. So I’ll probably be in the same boat as you, with people thinking that I’m “underdressing” my kids.
On the whole underdressing topic, do what you do best and go with what you believe, it doesn’t sound to me like Xavier or Colin are even slightly cold. From my experience in daycare, if it’s even slightly warm out, most kids will play for about five minutes, then start asking if they can take their jackets and sweaters off.
What sweet-faced babies!
We were out for a few hours yesterday in just short sleeves and pants. It was maybe about seventy — slightly breezy. Six-year-old Carissa had an urge to fill bins with water, splash it around, dump it to make a big puddle, and keep refilling the bins. Of course thirteen-month-old Peggy was just crazy about this … she got rather wetter than Carissa, but was quite happy. She got tired and nursed off for a short nap in my lap — a soggy little lump, but face, hands, and upper body quite warm because of being latched on.
I really trust my girls to let me know if they’re uncomfortable. Carissa’s so active that, if she wears a jacket to the park, it sometimes comes off once her blood gets pumping fast and hot. Peg is getting there; she doesn’t walk or run yet, but busily crawls all over the place — and, as I said before, she can always warm up in a nursing snuggle.
LOL… DH pointed that my mom is wearing her ” Zig-Zag” t-shirt on the pic with Xavier and my cousin…. didn’t notice that…
My son also tends to get hot easily, so I try hard not to overdress him. He is often wearing “cooler” clothes than the other kids at the playground, though I am surprised by how much variation there is. On the same day, some kids will be in shorts and t-shirts while others have coats and hats on. My boy tends to fall in the middle, with a tendency towards less clothing rather than more.
I usually dress a little bit more warmly than I dress him, because I get cold easily. On a 71-degree day, I’d probably wear short sleeves and long jeans. I’d dress the squeaker in a light long-sleeved shirt or a heavier short sleeved one and jeans. He is extremely fair skinned, so I’d put a summer hat on him if he was going to be in the sun for any length of time.
I guess the bottom line is that I think it’s highly individual, depending on what the kid is comfortable with. But many parents probably do overdress their kids.
I’m sure you can tell when your sons are feeling cold. It’s probably just that you don’t follow the herd. Children are supposed to wear coats and hats; babies are supposed to be wrapped in blankets, etc. I remember feeling too hot in a coat when I was little, but my mom would say I would catch cold or pneumonia if I took it off.
Hey Paxye,
I just had a new thought on this. Maybe our tendency to doubt our own instincts regarding over/underdressing is rooted in the fact that many of us weren’t trusted, as kids, to know whether or not we were comfortable — not just with clothing, but with certain people or situations. If an activity was supposed to be “fun,” but we hated it, we were just being a spoil-sport or a party-pooper.
I had concerns about a babysitter who was sexually abusive, but my brother and another young relative covered for her because she promised them candy if they didn’t talk — so I was accused of having an over-active imagination. When so many of kids’ instincts and feelings are second-guessed, it makes sense that they’d start doubting their ability to assess even basic, obvious realities — like whether they’re “supposed” to feel cold or hot.
My mom once criticized me for letting my daughter dress “inappropriately for the weather.” I explained that she’d picked out the outfit and seemed perfectly comfortable. Mom then criticized me for letting her be “in charge.” Well, maybe if I let her take charge and perceive reality for herself right now, she won’t be subject to silly anxiety attacks when she’s a mom like me.