to dislike baby photo competitions?

[Montparnasse]

I just really dislike them, I know that they are a bit of fun for many who enter their babies, but I really don't like them as I consider a popularity/looks contests totally icky for small children. I can't even articulate why. AIBU? I am genuinely curious about whether or not others share my view.

As you say its just a bit of fun, its not like you have to enter them. I enter the odd one occasionally but I dont take it seriously.

They are basicaly just a popularity contest. A mum whose child attends lots of todler groups/nursery etc and has a large family can recruit a lot of voters for their lo's pic whilst a more keep yourself to yourself mum has no chance. Nothing to actually do with how 'bonny' the actual baby is - not that that would be any better!

hate them hate them hate them. I don't need anyone else to tell me that my children are beautiful. All babies are beautiful

Not nice. And yet people aren't in the same way that they are about beauty pageants for young girls.

No, I don't like them either and. An't really articulate exactly why. Why would you want perfect strangers comparing and contrasting your baby with others, and as often as not, deciding they're not as god?

I know my babies are perfect and beautiful - I don't need further validation from faceless randoms. :)

Sorry about all the typos - one-handed typing while feeding DD!

am the minority then. ah well!

I don't really care either way but I have observed it always seems to be the parents of quite troll like babies who enter them.

Perhaps if you have a good looking one you don't need the validation, but if your mother goggles are slipping having other people say your baby is cute helps?

The only reason I took my son to get his picture taken for a baby contest was because it was the only way I could afford a nice professional photo of him. The pictures are beautiful and if he happens to win the money will go in his trust fund.

YANBU
When I was in my last job, there was a baby competition in the local paper, and I got 9 emails from 9 different people (7 of them I barely knew) with a request asking me to vote for their child, and ?kindly? including the link to assist me - me and EVERYONE ELSE in my department. I mean, what is the point?
Also, my sister?s SIL entered her son a few years ago, and he won - but the reason he won was because she worked out how much the first prize was in money and goods/services, and worked out how much it would cost her to make x amount of phone calls, and realised that if she recruited as well, she would end up with a ?profit? (I swear, these are all her words) - and so she spent half of every day on the phone and ended up winning.
I wouldn?t judge anyone who entered one of these competitions, but I too struggle to understand the point. Either you get everyone you know to vote, which just seems completely pointless, OR you hope that complete strangers will assess your baby?s looks (ugh) and go to the bother of voting. Both quite odd outcomes, IMO

YANBU.. I have a friend who won't put pics of her kid on FB, but asked me to vote on her bonny baby

They are popularity contest anyway... just look at some of the "winners" that sounds horrible I know, but you've all thought it..

I have never entered eithe rof my two babies for this type of thing, I thought everyone know their own babies are the most beautiful and so there is no need

Also does anyone find it creepy that someone who hasn't been told they have to vote would go thorugh a list of baby photos then pay a premium rate numnber to phone or text in on which baby is the best looking?

LithaR, I agree with you.

I have entered my DD into a few of our local competitions but only because every entrant gets really discounted professional copies of the shots. I have never won or have any desire to win. I know my baby is gorgeous anyway :o

I don't think the OP is BU when we refer to the pageant parents who know their DC is gorgeous and feels the need to flaunt it and tell everyone and expect them to tell them so back.

YABU
these competitions provide a source of entertainment and material for snobs like me

I like the bald girl babies with huge headbands and double barreled first names the best

YANBU, but I do rather enjoy them tbh. Only because some of the bloody awful names, but enjoyment none-the-less .

Our local paper does this sometimes and I agree that it must be just a popularity contest thing really.

Mind you, can't really be judgey about it. They also did a Pet Idol ccompetition and we bought seven copies so that we could vote out guinea pigs in to the second round of the competition. They didn't win though the final though. Someone's cat got 48 votes.

YANBU. I dislike them too. Our local paper does it and you should see the queues!! Honestly they line up for a couple of hours (not much fun for a baby). What a waste of an afternoon. It's funny what's important to some people.

My sister puts my nieces in because it's a cheap way to get nice photos. She doesn't give an arse about the competition and has never asked me to vote. I expect that goes for quite a few of them.

My mum's friend entered her baby in one years ago because her friend kept bugging herand her baby boy won first prize! Think it was holiday for 4 to Euro Disney. She didn't take it seriously at all but her mate did and sulked because her daughter was "even a runner up" but she's still beautiful so who cares if she won a prize confirming it?

Personally I don't have an issue with them like you say it's a bit of fun I've never entered my DD in one but that's mostly because I have better things to do ...

Hate them. Girl in the office tried to get us all to vote for her baby in the local paper so she could win £250.
Couldn't possibly bring myself to do it.

Eh? Surely if her baby was truly beautiful she wouldn't have to beg/cajole/remind people to vote for her dc?

"YABU
these competitions provide a source of entertainment and material for snobs like me

I like the bald girl babies with huge headbands and double barreled first names the best"....Emo,