Are you allowing your child to do this?

[PeacchhLemonade]

I’m just interested if this is ok, am I crazy, too relaxed parent? Do other kids do this too?

So whenever we are outside, walking somewhere my 2 year old likes to pick up things from the ground. I’m taking about “harmless things” - coins, hair ties ( he calls them black circles ),those black zip ties. He never puts them to mouth or anything just carries really until home or until he drops it somewhere without noticing.

I never allow him to touch any actually rubbish if that makes sense, you know papers and plastic bottles and such stuff.

We come home, we always wash hands but is this ok? Am I too careless of a parent?

My middle son was terrible with it. Pockets always full of stones and sticks and rubbish. Once he picked up a dog poo because he thought it was a rock. I'll still find sticks stashed around and he is 9 now.

Dropped by a human - no. We walk with a litter picker sometimes and toddler is now great at pointing such crap out for me to bin...

Feathers - not while we had avian flu warning as we keep chickens
Everything else - yes unless I spot it first, I love shiny conkers, interesting pebbles, pine cones, wild flowers, seed pods jist as much as him..!

Some of the stuff you describe does sound like litter to me though so no. Nature stuff like rocks and sticks of course

We called it street treasure.

We had a special place under our hedge in the garden to store all the treasures. Sticks, pebbles and anything shiny were very popular finds.

Just wash hands afterwards and all is fine.

There's plenty of other places to get immunity from, rather than other peoples nasty heads.