This is to serve as a public service announcement to anyone who comments on or asks questions about strangers' babies in public!
Please, if you are going to be nice enough to note out loud how cute someone's baby is or inquire how old they are, etc., don't negate your kind sentiment with the assumption that the baby is a boy! The days of only boys wearing blue or shirts with animals or PANTS are over, ok? YES my daughter's stroller is green. Yes she plays with toys in public that are blue and yellow. Yes she is basically bald. These things do not indicate a particular sex.
I understand that sometimes it is hard to tell if a baby is a girl or a boy. If you find yourself in that predicament, it is ok to ask the parent "girl or boy?" The parent will not be offended. The parent might well be offended if you simply assume it is a boy, at least if the baby is, in fact, a girl. The parent WILL be offended if the baby is wearing THIS:
and you STILL say, "he's so cute, how old is he?" Which is exactly what happened to me this past weekend.
Our daughter is called "he" literally 9 out of 10 times we go out. No, she doesn't wear dresses on the regular, and no, she doesn't wear a ton of pink. So, we let it go A LOT when someone calls her a boy. But when she IS wearing pink, I expect people to call her a girl for crying out loud. Open your eyes, people!
But even when she's not decked out in pink and hearts, as above... don't assume she is not a girl! I know some of you are thinking I should stop complaining and invest in some lacy headbands with pink bows. Well there are baby bow people and there are no baby bow people, and I fall into the latter, and that's not going to change.
I realize this is a whiny post, but I can't tell you how OLD it gets to have to keep repeating, "she's actually a girl..." every time we go out. I am grateful that people think she is cute or care enough to ask about her, but as her mother who thinks she has a perfectly sweet girly little face, I would appreciate a little thought before assuming she's a boy just because she is holding a yellow pacifier or something. Like I said earlier, if you're not sure, just ask. You do that for me, and I'll assume the four jumbo size tubes of Preparation H in your cart are actually for your elderly neighbor. Deal?
