To put my son in leggings with kisses on them?

[changedmyusername6]

The comments today have included:

"Oh X I normally love what you put him in but those make him look so camp" (camp??? I was shocked)

"Are those your DD's?"

"They're so feminine, he looks like a little girl with short hair"

AIBU to think it's ridiculous? He's not in a dress and tights.

Ugh some responses on this thread are depressing.

Omg.....OP are they Fred and Noah. If so and khaki kisses I think they are more masculine than feminine and I am getting for my 14 month old boy. People take these stereotypes very seriously nowadays 😁

Seen the picture, cute outfit ! Let him rock it x

They're fine!

Ty pp, I just googled Fred and Noah leggings and I’m in love.

I think they are more masculine than feminine. Don’t be silly, fgs.

I'm not quite sure what you're asking. You can dress your child in whatever you and he like and there's nothing wrong with discouraging him from wearing nothing but tractors and dinosaurs. Would I assume that a 4yo child wearing leggings covered in a lipstick kisses print was a girl? Yes I would.

I like them.

I'm all for gender neutral clothes at that age. And lord knows it's hard to find boys stuff that's not blue or sludge and covered in trucks/superheroes/dinosaurs.

HostaFireAndIce
It's just disingenuous through and through and like the older child version of 'I dressed by baby boy in a unicorn princess costume and it's outrageous that people assumed he was a girl' aka 'I'm so trendy and with it and gender non conforming that I've picked a stereotypically opposite sex outfit for my child and then to prove how much more woke I am I shall stamp my feet should anyone react with anything other than congratulations'.

When a child makes their choices then cool. I'm all for not buying into limited stereotypes, but when a parent makes the decision for their child then I think it's more about the parent than the child.

I’ve had a look at the Noah and Fred leggings and they look more like PJ bottoms.

If a saw a child in the green leggings with pink kisses and a pink t-shirt I would assume it was a girl.

He looks super cool. Love them!

@formerbabe responded to @muchalover 's post much more succinctly than I was about to: utterly batshit indeed. Especially the tigers bit.

I'm all for breaking down fixed gender stereotypes, but do feel a bit off (not sure why) when I see parents actively dressing their child in things clearly designed for the opposite sex when the child isn't old enough to have decided.

But how do those stereotypes get broken down if we don't bring children up to have a choice? If you only dress your children in 'correct gendered' clothes then they will see those as the 'right' clothes for them long before they are old enough to express a preference.

The leggings look cute and comfortable. I think that the use of the word "camp" to describe a child is all kinds of wrong OP, and can see what you weren't impressed.

it's a bit disingenuous for a parent to decide to dress their child in line with the opposite gender stereotype

Eh? Do only girl children get kisses then? Or do you mean the lips should be blue not pink? You do realise that actual lips are pink, yes? Are the lips of a male blue? Can you see how ridiculous you sound?

@Tomorrowwillbeachicken they are such good quality too. Wash and wear really well. I have several pairs for DD and ds. I can only apologise as you may end up poor!! There is a great FB group too where info about new releases goes and Pre loved sales 😁

DoJo
Breaking stereotypes is more than clothing. It's about giving access to different things, clothes, activities etc. It's about seeing dad tidy up and mum mow the lawn. It's books about women in science and men showing their feelings.

It's not a case of either dress boys in typically boy clothes or girls in princess clothes, but about choice. If the child liked a pair of typically girly leggings then cool. But a parent making the decision to by more typically girly clothing for a boy and then claiming (somewhat disingenuously) that it hasn't even crossed their mind that anyone would possibly see a pink and kiss themed outfit as girly is more about the parent than the child when the child didn't male that choice.

There's loads of great unisex clothing out there so I don't really get the 'dress boy in typically girly clothing' as a way to break stereotypes.

I'd completely understand some of these if I had randomly chosen to put him in a dress, but leggings and a t shirt. All because they're pink?

@QuilliamCakespeare

@formerbabe responded to @muchalover 's post much more succinctly than I was about to: utterly batshit indeed. Especially the tigers bit

The government should definitely refocus when it comes to violent crimes...I blame the number of tiger t shirts and dinosaur babygros...it's a slippery slope into gangs and violence...

Not because they're pink. Just the whole package is more stereotypically girly and to me there's enough lovely unisex clothing out there until a child is old enough to make their own decisions about what they want to wear.

Child chooses to wear whatever is different to parent choosing to dress their child in the stereotype of the opposite gender. I don't get why anyone would think 'there s loads of awesome unisex clothing out there but a pair of kisses leggings is just the one for my boy who hasn't expressed a preference to wearing them'.

This trope that ‘clothes are just clothes’ is just BS. How many posters claiming this dress in the first comfy rag that comes to hand for all and every occasion?! We choose clothes to send messages of all kinds.

The OP is clearly sending a message in her choice of clothes for her son and starting a thread on here about it proves the above:

I really dislike people challenging societal norms through small children. Why doesnt she ask her husband to wear that outfit if she wants to make a point?

Finally, those kisses are clearly sexualised, not cute kisses to give a child. I hate sexualised imagery on children of either sex.

larrygrylls
To a point clothes are just clothes but people make a decision about their image when they dress themselves.
It's the reason I wouldn't wear ripped jeans and a tank top to work because it doesn't reflect a professional image.
Someone else might love being glammed up whilst another may be more sporty. Some girls hate dresses and want tracksuit and trainers. Some boys prefer pink.

There's nothing wrong with any of those things. It's parents choosing to make a statement via their children whilst pretending that it's nothing. If a parent opted to style their child in full goth gear with piercings then people would rightly say that it's the parent living through the child. If a parent opted to have their w year old dolled up in fakery like toddlers and tiaras then people would acknowledge the parent is pushing their views on their child. Same for parents deciding they want to dress their boy in typically girly clothes or vice versa.
When the child can make their own choices then it's a different matter.

Because he has every singe pattern of this creators leggings. He has tractors and monsters if that makes you happier? He just also has these. He also has butterflies on some OMG

I don’t personally like that design as I wouldn’t use that print on a young child.

Absolutely nothing wrong with leggings or pink for boys though! Baby ds has these ones and has often been referred to as a girl whilst wearing them when I would say they are very unisex

My DD doesn't want him to wear aggressive type images on his clothing (T Rex, tigers or superheroes)

The world has really gone mad.