Did I do the wrong thing keeping newborn’s hands covered ?

Babies like using their hands for comfort (they aren't covered in the womb) but it's not wrong that you covered them.

Ours was a Nov baby and we kept his hands covered as long as we could. He has always has big paws though so he was breaking out of them by 12 weeks. But nothing wrong with covering them- it's cold and you don't want them scratching themselves.

Nothing stopping your MIL from having a peek- but she seems to want to be a cow about it.

What on earth do you mean ‘it must be a UK thing’?

Do people think that self-praising, pious, snippy posts make them look:

a) good, sensible and like the sort of successful, warm person that OP and the rest of us would take friendly advice from, or
b) a cloth-eared, self-regarding twat?

I used to nibble my babies nails.

May even have used an ordinary nail file on a sharp bit if necessary!

Did she never cuddle your daughter & uncover her hands then?

It’s also a U.K. thing to read someone’s posts properly before replying so you don’t make yourself look like a cunt.

I didn’t use scratch mittens with my youngest and he scratched himself at a few days old and still has the scar.
Babies skin heals much quicker than an adults which is great on the one hand, but means more chance of scarring on the other.

Everytime I tried to cut my ds nails with the baby safe clippers I ended up cutting his finger.
In the end resorted to just biting his nails off until he was old enough I could easily trim them.. Mil is batshit, my ds scratched his face like crazy when a newborn.. He had mitts on all the time.

Trust me, you did nothing wrong. I’m sorry they’re making you feel like this. X

The only sane response to their comments is to be said to the baby but clearly in their earshot - (preferably in a baby voice) - "Yes, Mama kept you from scratching everything and everyone including yourself by keeping your sharp nails away from delicate skin. How terrible I must be to have done that" and laugh at them or roll your eyes at them but definitely have a response ready for them.

I bet if she had scratched her face lots instead your mil would have made negative comments . You probably couldnt win either way .
Nail files are brilliant in this situation.
Ignore your mil I bet she will come up with somthing else soon enough .

Such mil only beg to be put on the NC list once and for all. I don't see any other way, also don't see why an older woman who thinks herself amazingly intelligent would do this to her own son ( primarily! ) and his offspring

MIL's friend came around to meet my son - 5 weeks old, and I just tucked him up and settled him as they arrived.

"Can't you take that towel off him, I want to see how long he is?"

For some reason describing the blanket as a towel annoyed me as much as wanting to disturb a sleeping baby just to look at it's legs.

You know your baby best . Some babies will scratch/touch their faces more than others.

Baby nails are extremely sharp and can grow back overnight. My DH used to have to cut DDs almost everyday. We have a friend who had to have an eye operation because their baby accidentally scratched him in the eye quite badly.

It’s also quite cold at the moment so save the news to put gloves on and off.

Mine wore scratch mitts for 3 months! Tiny nails are so sharp and difficult to trim when everything is so new and you're exhausted. MIL sounds a nightmare, take a large pinch of salt with her mutterings and see how it plays out over the next few months.

No you didn't do the wrong thing. It was to protect your baby's face. I did it with my DD too. She was always scratching herself. I know it's hard to ignore them but it seems to be built in to be a bitch if your an MIL these days. Wonder if it's something that magically happens after the marriage certificate has been signed lol (I know not all Mails are like this. I'm just being dramatic) mine was the same. Her kids are perfect... You know? Lol

Must be a UK thing. Your babies use their hands to explore the world. Nibble on their fingernails, the nothing sharp. By 12 weeeks your children are not even able to hold a toy? Because of the mittens. Sorry but i'm with your MIL here. How do they pat a pet or a fluffy toy, how do they throw things. I'll leave it there,

I think I’d have been inclined to say something in the lines of oh
Yes, it’s sad but ‘I’m sure you’ll agree that’s much preferable to a load of scratch lines all over her face like a lot of babies get …’ in a smiley way of course 😊. 😂😂

My DC is 30. I didn’t use scratch mitts for the first week and he covered himself (face) in big scratches so I certainly popped em straight on.

He kept managing to take them off - so I would pop them back on again. It hasn’t harmed him. They don’t know if they’re harming themselves, they’re just exploring.

You don’t have to parent like your MiL/SiL. Ignore them and just enjoy your beautiful baby.

‘Oh do shit up, Joyce, would you rather she scarred herself? You do go on.’ And walk off (with the baby). Don’t let her make you doubt yourself, this is your baby and her welfare is not up to your mil. Has your Dh not told her to wind her neck in?

They’re nuts, ignore them. We used the inbuilt mitt on baby grows on our boys for the first couple of months. As you say it stops them scratching themselves. My boys are now 4 and nearly 2 and have no ill effects from having their hands covered. 🤷‍♀️

I used scratch mitts for my children born in the 1990s.

I didn't know they weren't a thing any more.
What a shame as they do a great job and look so sweet.

Your mother in law should have been told not to be so ridiculous.

They sound bonkers.

I found the easiest thing with tiny dc nails was to nibble them off myself, no scissors.

I didn't cover mine- so they could use their hands to explore, comfort themselves, learn from sensory input.

It would hvae been better if she'd explained why she was concerned about it at the time, rather than use it as a stick to beat you with in retrospect!