not to go nuts over clothes for baby girls?

[Astronaut79]

I had a baby girl last Friday which was a little surprising, as I'd convinced myself that I was having another boy. I'm getting increasingly fed up with people's assumption that my greatest joy at having a baby girl is that I can now buy lots of pretty dresses and accessories. I feel like telling them that I have given birth to a baby, not a doll, and that I would like to dress her in practical clothes. And don't get me started on bloody pink...

Now, I personally like nice clothes; I dress up for work and going out. However, were I to spend my days rolling onthe floor or being pushed around in a pram, I would probably opt for jeans and a top. Apparently though, that would mean I was wearing boys' clothes.

So far I've just been sucking it up, but it is getting wearing. So, AIBU or is it hormones making me more sensitive?

Well, I must confess that after two boys I get an untold amount of thrills shopping for dd's clothes! Love. It.

However, when it comes to babies, as far as I'm concerned, it's babygro and cardi all the way...whether it be pink, blue or rainbow striped.

Congratulations

I dont think at 4 days old you need worry about jeans vs dresses just yet though!

no YANBU - My ex MIL used to buy all three of mine frufru frilly pink netty shite - it never saw the light of day - they lived in babygros and leggins

Wait until she goes to preschool and starts ASKING for the crap impractical dresses that all the others wear and which you know she wont be able to play freely in!

YADNBU. My DD (19mths) is often in "boy-ish" clothes- who wants to be crawling and splashing through muddy puddles in frilly dresses?

I would love to be able to dress my kids in something other than jeans and stripey tops, but by and large that pretty much sums up boys' choices.

So, if I was in your position I would be delighted.

I'm with you - if I had a quid for the number of times strangers have assumed DD is a boy due to her wearing blue I'd be minted!

Dresses are completely impractical for a crawler and 99% of the pink stuff people think girls should wear is fecking rank.

YANBU.

I've got two little girls and I didn't start dressing DD1 in any kind of a girlie fashion until she was 2. 16mo DD1 spends most of her life in soft jeans and a top. They are far more practical and suitable for her.

Once DD1 stopped napping in the day and started to be a bit more sensible I started to dress her in more dresses and skirts. But nothing too princessy or silly.

I do quite link pink though

Congratulations!

DD is 8mths and has worn a dress twice; at the piss up reception following her Baptism, as we didn't want to keep her in her robe, and to a wedding. She does have a few long t-shirt and jumper type dresses which she wears over jeans or leggings though. Nice and practical, very little pink and no frills. The frills can wait until she gets to the age when dressing like a fairy princess is her want.

YANBU.

My DD has loads of boys clothes. I think they're often more hard-wearing and sturdier, e.g. her boys' jeans are lined while her girls' ones aren't and have nasty pink flowers embroidered on them. Also the idea that clothes are necessarily a great thrill is a bit

Also, congratulations!

I've just remembered the 'Amish' dress that a relativ sent all the way from America for DD2 when she was 6 months old. It's pink, with long sleeves, embroidery on the front and about five layers of petticoats.

It's still on the hanger never having been worn once and still gives me pangs of guilt whenever I see it. I've always tried to be polite and dress mychildren in clothes people have been kind enough to buy them. But that one. I feel a bit sweaty with guilty just thinking about it...

Your friends are trying to brainwash your 4 days old dd.

I don't mind pink, in fact I'm not averse to a bit myself; just the deluge of it. People just seem aghast when I tell them she'll be wearing lots of ds's old clothes; even dh said she couldn't wear some of ds's tops cos they have cars on .

I was a child of the 80s, I don't remember the girl/boy thing being such a big difference. Looks like interesting times ahead with a ds and a dc!

YANBU although I do get quite a kick out of buying nice clothes for DD. They have to be practical though. She wore babygros day in day out for months, so much so, I had no idea why people needed baby socks. In the end I bought a couple of footless babygros just so she could wear all the socks she had been given as presents.

Once she was crawling and now walking and running at nearly 2, mainly she wears trousers or leggings (with or without a short skirt over them) and little tops - it is still fun buying them though, she is far more coordinated than I ever am.

Dresses are a disaster as she is not excessively tall (polite emoticon) and they all get in her way when she tries to do any climbing - even at a family Christening we went to recently, we had to tuck her skirt in her tights so she could play with her boy cousins. She is going to LOVE the photos!

We go to Babyballet now and I am amazed at the pretty dresses some of the little girls wear. I couldn't be doing with all the ironing.

Ahhh I had a whole post written and the bloody thing failed on me.

I get annoyed by the lack of choice for boys.

If you IGNORE dresses and skirts you still have so much more with girls;
shorts in winter (the wonder of tights), knee high boots, leggings, those kinda puffy trousers, different shapes/lengths of cardys, fur coats etc

Even in patterns, boys are by and large restricted to stripes, certain animals (why no cats or bunnies on boys clothes? Just monkeys, dogs, elephants etc) and vehicles.

Girls can have flowers, spots, dots, hearts, butterflies, birds, frills AND everything that boys can wear.

Like you, I had a boy then a girl (I also assumed she would be a boy ).

Anyway, they are now 5 and 3.

When DD was a baby/toddler, I always dressed her in babygros/leggings and always tried to limit the pink. Now that she is in her preschool year and chatting with her little girlfriends, she wants:

-Lelli Kelly black patent boots with free pink lipgloss
-"Party" dresses (with a shrug/coverup thing you understand, not just the dress!), like her friends, preferably sequinned etc
-Princess dresses
-Glittery/decorated shoes which are virtually unfit for walking outside in
-Tights, pink striped like her friends!

You can limit all this stuff when they are babies, but once they see what their mates have, it is a whole different battle! (I have given in to a couple of the above demands )

YANBU. Though given how many women I met were getting ecstatic about dressing up their girls or sad they were having a boy so 'couldn't' dress him up, I was surprised how much comments I got particularly by 6 months for still having my son in babygros rather than 'outfits'!

Much more veiled critcism than I got for dressing him in pink in the first place (we got given a mountain of lovely practically new girly baby clothes from neighbours, so we used them!)

I've looked at clothes for dc2 who will be a girl born soon and just keep thinking I've already got what I want. Practicality wins - she will look adorable no matter what.

Graiger you can get boys tights now...well...tights are tights but these have trains and dinos on them. Not sure what's wrong with a pair of navy or red ones "for girls" though!

My DH longs for a boy but I'm old and tired not sure I can cope with a third....so he satisfies his needs by buying the DDs boys tops and dungarees!

I understand what you mean. my mum insists on dressing dd in frilly dresses and she looks very strange - like a doll! I also get people thinking she is a boy as I dress her in a lot of green and blue.

well after four boys i am LOVING dressing my dd in pretty clothes, they are all funky and practical tho, today she had on a long sleeved stripey top and a red tutu and tights, the tutu is great as she is crawling and so its short and doesnt get in her way and it looks fab, lots of comments at playgroup this morning.

she doesnt have much pink stuff tho, lots of reds and greens, stripes, spots, etc, oh and cord pinafores with leg warmers!! she has bumble bee striped ones, ladybird pattern ones, some with strawberries on, spotty ones etc and at £1:50 a pair they keep her legs warm, are great for crawling and nappy changing, whats not to love!! you can get lots of lovely clothes that are practical and not pink! but she does also wear the boys old clothes etc as well, but i am afraid yes she is my little doll

Oh just enjoy your gorgeous new baby, I say! Keeping in mind that clothes for babies (no matter if girl or boy) are usually much nicer than those for bigger children

and re dresses for a crawling baby as long as you get short, pinafore style dresses they are fine, not big flouncy things, next does loads of cord pinafores, in red and pea green that are lovely and soft and practical :)

4madboys- where do you get your legwarmers? They sound cool!

tinynippers.co.uk and they have four pages of them to choose from, i limited myself to 5 pairs, [insert smug face here] they also have reversible dresses with ladybird print one side and flowers the other or bee print one side and flowers the others!! very cute. they mainly sell reausable nappies and wipes etc but have a few pages of clothes and lots of legwarmers