to be taken aback by a total stranger telling me off for not putting shoes on a 4 month old baby?

[peedieworky]

Okay! So I had lifted the wee fella out of his buggy and footmuff & he was on the "lying down" style trolley in Asda. He was wearing a winter jacket with hood on top of his day clothes, mittens and thick socks. Having chased his socks & mittens round the shop floor an effing squillion times on more than one occasion, I was waiting at the till when I was approached by a woman in her late 50's/early 60's who exclaimed that it was "a sin that boy's got no shoes on!".

I have to confess, I have no shoes for my 4 month old child - thought it was just another thing to pick up off the floor and best left till he was at least crawling.

sunshine that is very sweet. Did you keep the fiver?

DD is almost 3 and hates clothes on, never mind shoes, as soon as she is somewhere under a roof she thinks she is justified in removing them and runs round shouting 'I'm naked I'm naked!'. That old biddy would love me!

I kept shoes back until all 4 dc's could walk. The youngest (14m) still isn't walking confidently so it will be after winter by time she gets her first pair of shoes. She also hates socks and pulls them off all the time.

I would think it is much more of a 'sin' to put tiny feet in awful tiny filas/addidas/nike trainers which are clunky and look ridiculous.

Some people get hot feet and can't bear socks or shoes or a duvet covering them so it might be the same for the babies. As long as the toes aren't going blue then they aren't really cold

Cheers all - just logged on and giggling at all the comments (though laughter wont keep my poor son's feet warm...) Tights tip is noted though! Worryingly, as a pathetically proud first time Mum optimistic soul, I had expected her comment to be a nice one. Something along the lines of "Ah, hello little man! Aren't you cute". As such, my response to her stone casting comment was to beam like an idiot & gush "Oh, lovely!".

Anyways, I'm off to make a mug of tea and rewatch Se7en while my blue-toed son has a nap. Clearly I have forgotten the part where Kevin Spacey commits murder by shoe-removal...

AKMD - yes. I was so shocked I stood there with it clutched in my hand for about 30 seconds while he wandered off and then came to my senses and ran after him, mumbling about how wearing shoes kept me from communing with nature etc, to which he looked very confused (presumably because the whole shopping centre was completely tiled or concreted ).

X-posted with Debs75 there. Was joking about the blue toes, honest!

we need a Mumsnet ID card. Hold it out Warrant Card stylee and exclaim

FUCK BACK OFF, I'M ON MUMSNET!

Communing with nature? Communing with broken glass and doggy poo more like... So glad I didn't grow up in the 60's :o

They aren't needed. Baby shoes are just padded socks anyway

Pagwatch yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.

Those little soft bootee things - Daisy Roots or something they were called - were very good for keeping ds's feet warm.

When babies are tiny they're capable of pulling socks off, but they're also incapable of appreciating that pulling your socks off means your feet get cold. They can learn that lesson later. In the meantime it's a kindness to help then stay comfortable.

I know this is an old post but I had to laugh when I read mousyfledermaus' post. My lovely 14 month old DD won't wear socks, shoes, hats, etc, etc. Her German granny obviously despairs of us and sends socks and tights in the vain hope that she will change her ways...fat chance at the moment!

I always thought it wasn't advised to put shoes on children until they started walking. That women obviously doesn't know what she's talking about.

Very rude to comment in any case, but ignore, ignore, ignore OP!

Those Daisy Roots type shoes are good for that age, and they don't come off easily. I also liked Baby Bloch too.
I'm not sure they serve any real practical purpose at that age, however.

a sin! lol

Im a good catholic girl and I can tell you it most definitely is not a sin.

shoes arent really there for keeping feet warm. Their main purpose is to protect your feet from the various crap on the floor. If you arent walking they aren't needed. As long as the child has some socks on which in my experience is actually a miracle (lol) then there is no issue

tell her to fuck off.

Just ignore. There is no need to interact with these people-just say 'really' and pass on. You are unlikely to see her again.

I was though at seeing a 2 year old at the weekend out in the buggy early in the morning so it was just above freezing with totally bare feet.

Lame to say they take their shoes and socks off. When DD at that stage Clarks did some fab little sheepskin shoes with a drawskin thing that no toddler could remove. Voila.

You should have told her that babies aren't supposed to wear shoes at that age. It's bad for their feet.

My 6mo old has never worn shoes, just has those footmuff things sewn onto his snowsuit.

Everyone has an opinion when you're a parent though, don't they? It took me a while to come to terms with that.

My DD did't wear shoes till she was 18mo. I never saw the point, as she wasn't walking and she got past the point where I could buy 'ornamental shoes' as her feet are so big . She still likes to take them off at any opportunity.

Was she Scottish? Just that where I come from we would 'a sin' and it wouldn't mean an actual sin, its meant more like 'it's a shame'.

And like everyone else...she was talking nonsense

My 3yo DS didn't have shoes until he could walk at 14 months. Waste of money otherwise.

sorry but YAB a bit U. It's normally freezing in supermarkets!
The best thing yoy could use is baby tights; you can find them in navy blye, red or cream so they're ok to use on a baby boy and will save you the hassle of picking up socks all the time.

Shes talking out of her farter, babies dont need shoes, but maybe next time stick a blanket over his feet as I notice their lil toes can get a bit chilly around the freezer bit.

Hellboy, obviously the lady didn't mean baby needs shoes to walk but to keep its feet warm. So, yes, a baby needs shoes or whatever can do the job of keeping its feet warm.