My sweet, adorable, very friendly neighbor has mentioned to me TWICE already (and once to Zach, separately) that she thinks we're not keeping D warm enough when we take him outside. She even suggested that perhaps he got the UTI b/c his feet were too cold. As in, this is apparently a saying she knew about, that babies whose feet get too cold get UTIs.
How do I politely tell her that I think my son is plenty warm, thank you? Oh, and in French, please?
There's been a couple other women who've said something like that to me before. It kinda makes me worry that maybe I am letting him get too cold, except I try to monitor him pretty well, and I follow the rule of keeping him in one layer more than I wear, and lately when I've taken him out in his Bundle Me he almost seems too warm if anything.
This is also a place where, when we took him walking by the lake in Geneva one afternoon when it was 60-70F, all the babies were wearing friggin SNOWSUITS.
I guess I need to get used to the everyone-will-question-or-criticize-you part of motherhood, huh?
seems like old-school superstitions abound. :)
ReplyDeleteI guess you could get used to that. But obviously you know what is best for him. The only advice I have ever heard my parents give other parents is "in case you haven't heard- honey is potentially bad for babies under the age of 2 or 3. It is the only thing that they have linked to SIDS. Other than that- you know what's best."
ReplyDeleteAlso, I thought I would share a short convo I had with my little brother the other day...
"Dave, why are we constantly sick?"
"We're so good looking. Can't have it all."
So my new theory is that Donovan has had a bit of bad luck health-wise only because he's the most beautiful baby east of the Atlantic.
I think Lacey's theory is fool-proof.
ReplyDeleteAs far as your "helpful neighbors," I think I nice "Merci" and a smile as you nod and walk away should be good. If that doesn't work, go with, "No hablo ingles."
It's an old lady thing ;) My mom is always saying the same thing. It's a little easier to tell my mom what I think than it is acquaintances. Interestingly enough, a lot of baby books say one of the common mistakes new parents make is overdressing their babies, worried they'll be too cold.
ReplyDeleteOh, and it's true honey shouldn't be given to kids under 2, but that's due to infant botulism, not SIDS.
What about taking an extra blanket you can throw over him when you walk out the door (and neighbor sees you), then discard once you're out of eyeshot?
ReplyDeleteUTI and cold feet- That is a new one. People always way overdress babies. I am constantly tellng my mom Eliza is plenty warm. I just nod and and smile. It seems to work..
ReplyDeleteActually if you google "cold feet" and "UTIs" you will come up with a number of results indicating that there is a connection between the two, including this published study providing evidence of a connection. http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.3109/02813439209014054
ReplyDelete