My friend I have sons of the same age (hers a a couple of months older). I feel she wraps him up in cotton wool to the point he's very soft. Everything makes him cry, even seeing rain outside! He's turning into a bit of a snowflake and my son is asking me to stop inviting them over to our house for playdates. I'm bringing my son up to be used to play in all weather (just ensuring he's dressed appropriately, like wearing wellies and hats when needed). But friend won't let her son play in the rain, in the cold, in the snow, when there's any frost and so on.
The boy is quiet, withdrawn and just looks vacant most of the time. I know he has asthma (but so do a lot of kids these days, it's not particularly unusual). She uses that as a reason to be so withdrawn from life and playing with friends. "Oh..he can't go out in the rain, it will aggravate his asthma..". He's a very sickly child and I think so much of could be avoided if she just allowed him to be exposed to things to build his immunity.
My son moans about this boy coming over because son just ends up playing alone everytime as the other boys isn't allowed to do anything. Just sits on my sofa quiet and withdrawn. Every single time. It's getting a bit much for me too. Kids should be kids not snowflakes.