AIBU to buy my son a dress for his 3rd Birthday

[thebadwife]

Just that really, I have always tried to dress my son in the most practical clothes for the activities of the day. The colour has never been important, which when was younger led to him being assumed to be a girl as often as he was a boy. Sometimes he wore leggings but mostly standard trousers, t-shirts and jumpers nothing particularly exciting, experimental or political.

However I have just had a daughter and my friends and family have been very generous and given us some lovely clothes for her which have included a few dresses. My son has always commented positively when I wear dresses, but has been really jealous of these tiny dresses and has asked several times if he can wear them. I told him they were too small but I would buy him a dress for his birthday in May. I have mentioned it to a few people and they have looked at me like I am crazy.

So AIBU?

Ds3 wore the pink silk dress to School on non uniform days in year one. The one I put a pic of a few pages back. He may have worn it in year two as well. He certainly wore Disney fairy outfits in year two.

But not normal days and times in school?

On normal days at school he has to wear school uniform tho they do quite a bit of dress up at school. He has worn it to parties, to the cinema and just out and about.

DS has several gingham dresses that DD has outgrown just waiting for the spring time...

No school uniform for reception at our school so DS could wear a dress if he wanted to.

He's only recently got his "utilitarian" threads, and he hasn't asked to wear it at school. Chances are as he's now in Y2, school would class it as dressing up and nix it.
It's actually not occurred to us that he would ask...it's all v led by him.
Some of the dressing up dresses were "normal, everyday", though.

my cousin wore dresses so often that i genuinely believed my aunt and uncle had three daughters. no, dc3 was a son, but he wanted to wear the same clothes as his sisters.
he's now 50ish, and as far as we know, does not wear women's clothes at all.

But Lacka would he want to?

It's never come up, probably not though as he prefers the glittery, sparkly ones...gingham's a bit too boring for him

Get a dressing up one. For indoors.

Get him what he wants as I said pages ago !
Don't let people's negativity put you off .

Like many others on here , my son had a dress phase - and this was followed by a fluffy pink phase . This carried on until fairly recently .

He is now 11 and a real lad - has a lovely girlfriend and is respected by his peers . I wouldn't mind if he returns to frills in the future . He is who he is .

Attire isn't relevant . Kids should be brought up asexual where possible . My dd loves trousers and at age 2 this week she said of a party dress ' its too fussy for me ' .
It's all irrelevant and kids should just 'be'.

My DS loooooved the wedding dress I'd bought for our dressing up box. He wouldn't wear it now (age 6) but looooved it age 3-4