What do the cloth addicts/babywearers/BLWers etc do when their kids get older???

[BabyofMine]

Having a small child I’m fascinated by how obsessed certain parents (ok, honestly it’s mostly mothers) get with certain aspects of parenting. To a crazy amazing degree. So far I’ve noticed the complete fanaticism with:

Cloth nappies
Baby wearing
Breastfeeding
Baby led weaning
Wooden/open ended toys
Certain brands of children’s clothes (Scandinavia/ethical brands)
Prams (having so many and getting new ones all the time)
Car seat safety (rear facing, some people I know seem to know every seat on the market!)

I can’t believe how obsessed some are with the above! Just to clarify I have an interest in most of the above and think there’s nothing wrong with any of the above! I just wonder, if you have older children, do you know anyone who was fanatical with any of the above (or were you yourself)? And if so what do they/you DO with themselves now those things aren’t important?! It just seems an all encompassing part of some of my friends/acquaintances lives I can’t imagine what they will do when our children get older!!

Especially wonder about the “cloth bumming” mums when their children toilet train!!!

What’s a bespoke activity?

Activities that isn’t the “standard” stuff on offer v locally, after school (eg music lessons, football, dance, drama) and/or is very expensive. Eg fencing, ice skating an hour away, outdoor rock climbing, riding, theatre workshops in London.

Often done during weekdays (enabled by the homeschooling).

You need a hobby to keep you busy.

"bespoke activities"

. Well that's given me a good laugh on a rainy morning!

The obsessions just move on. Helmet and pads for scooter riding, helmet, pads and stabilisers for bike, what the teachers do, tutors at 4, how many clubs you can get your kid into, working on senior school testing from the moment they start primary, the right brand of clothes, gelling boys hair and taking a photo before they go in (not just on the first day) ... As a mum and working in a school you see a lot of regular and bat shit crazy obsessions!!

I was more interested in finding things out with my first, had cloth nappies, sling, organic homemade food, breastfeeding, excellent pram as I had spine problems and found loads killed my back. By the second I had found the things that worked for me so half the learning was already done, just needed to find what suited bubs. Plus time is more limited when you have more than one so cloth nappies were swapped for biodegradable. Slings didn't work for my son or my back but gave them another go with the second as she had severe separation anxiety and they were the only way I could get meals made! Certainly had no time or cash to get more than one pram (had my stokke for the whole time and it was the best!). I'm not the obsessing sort though but I know plenty who are, for some it just replaces the high levels of organisation and research found at work while on Maternity leave, for some it's just parenting instincts are set to extra high. As long as kids are fine and it's not driving anyone insane it's fine and also useful as they are like an encyclopedia of baby stuff!

Maybe they're just natural over-sharers and would wax lyrical about whatever interests they had at the time?

Usuall their kids hobby - they will usually get them into climbing/skiing/cross country running - karate and football are for commoners - and become fanatical about kit/driving them to competitions/harassing the coaches

Oh and 11+ prep. Private school is a no no, but grammar school is life dependent.

Blimey, this thread has certainly been used as a platform to have a dig at parents that do the things listed... Obsessed or not. (by the way I didn't even do half the things on the list).

And referring to their children as snowflakes?

By the way OP I wasn't aiming to my post at you, more at some of the responses... Some have certainly used it as a chance to insult others parenting styles and stereotypes.

I confess I have moved on from using slings to using and wearing accessories from my favourite sling manufacturers. I'm currently wearing a firespiral scarf and drinking from an oscha travel mug. The scarves started when I went back to work at 9 months and wanted to make some nod to how much the previous 18 months had changed my life that still fitted with a work outfit.

I think I've managed to keep it under control though there are so many gorgeous preorders with custom designs and colourways that make it difficult!

The scarves started when I went back to work at 9 months and wanted to make some nod to how much the previous 18 months had changed my life that still fitted with a work outfit.

I get the combustible rage over 'baby led weaning '.

It's finger food FFS.

And there is absolutely nothing wrong with the odd puree, especially if it means little Tarquin isn't going to end up trashing the local pizza hut with 500 slices of abandoned pizza and an avocado chucked on top for good measure. 😤

I will say I did do a mix of traditional and blw to start with... I was in a group on Facebook book and if you mentioned you were doing a mixture you would get a couple of "blw extremists" would get their knickers in a twist saying you couldn't do both it had to be one or the other They were quickly shut down though. But I'm guessing they are also like that in other areas of their lives too.

Don't know why I put Facebook book

Oh the BLW groups on FB I’d forgotten them - they were like a sport!

This thread is hilarious.

People not being able to differentiate between simply making some of the parenting choices that the OP listed and being an obsessive bore over them. This is MN- most of us will have done multiple things on that list!
Absolutely.
I've done quite a few on the list and recognise the obsessive types that the OP mentions.
A couple of people I know in the obsessive camp have set themselves up a small scale Instagram influencers who feel the need to share lots of photos "boobing the baby", how they've had a healthy pancake Day, their children are 'nature children' etc. There's the photos of the Grimm's toys and how much better they are developmentally and so on.

I'm not obsessive about breastfeeding/babywearing and think the clothing obsession with Frugi is insane, but I've laughed on this thread about comments that these mums become Parkrun mums, forest school mums, woodland play mums. I definitely tick some of those boxes.

Agree with a pp that blw is finger food.

Of course, at some point every single parent does blw...if they didn't, we'd all be spoon feeding teenagers.

It's a ridiculous label for a perfectly ordinary thing to do.

Quality plastic toys are every bit as durable as wooden. Our DD's plastic play kitchen from the ELC is nearly twenty years old and still doing sterling service with my nieces x

@peaceanddove I miss the elc, some of my best memories as a kid with their kitchens and Velcro food !!

You just sound mean and judgemental. Different strokes for different folks.

What do you think parents who use reusable nappies do when their babies toilet train? Why do you think it's any different than those who use disposable nappies? What an odd attitude.

What do you think parents who use reusable nappies do when their babies toilet train? Why do you think it's any different than those who use disposable nappies? What an odd attitude.
You're missing the point here. The OP isn't asking about "people who happen to use cloth nappies etc" she's light-heartedly wondering about what the people who OBSESS over certain baby approaches do.

The OP has already said herself she does many things on the list and is wondering about the obsessive people and yet loads of posters ignore this and still have a go at her.

It is interesting that mums (over dads) tend to see their kids as more of an extension of themselves.... If DC excelled at a sport or 'got into oxbridge/medicine/a highly competitive grammar school I'd be pleased for them (if that's what they wanted) but it wouldn't boost my sense of self worth at all. I mean I have my own rather fabulous achievements . Maybe you're talking about people who see 'mumming' as a potential source of self worth/achievement and that's why they get obsessed? Otherwise it just a thing you do isn't it (breastfeed or not/cloth nappies or not)?

See also: Weaning/BLW.
Mums love to obsess.

DS is cloth nappied/breastfed/carried in a sling (or at least he was - I find him way too heavy now) but I can’t say I’m too fanatical about any of it. We mostly buy wooden or second hand toys but have plenty of plastic shit too. I think a lot of it is for show tbh.

But equally I don’t think it’s any different from your modern type mums who have to have the most expensive pram, the Mrs Hinch style nappy caddy, the fancy changing bag etc. It’s all wanky consumerism.