S/O: Kids: Clothes on or off in the house?

[rabbitmum]

As a spinoff from the shoes thread I am wondering: Do you have rules about wearing clothes inside the house? Do you prefer your kids to go naked all day or to wear clothes all day? Do you let them choose? And does the rule change if you have guests?

[urchin_grey]

DS chooses to stay naked at home. I try to put clothes on him every now and then but he strips within 5 minutes. So I choose to just let him stay naked instead of having to wash extra laundry. My nephew will wear clothes sometimes but he'll eventually strip down to nothing too. We don't have visitors very often but when we do, its close friends so I don't care if they see the kids naked. They are only 2 and 4 after all.

[Shera971]

In the winter time I insist that DS wears clothes in the house because we keep the house pretty cold. However, in the summer the only thing he has to wear is his underwear. I really don't like the idea of his butt on the furniture and carpet... he's just learning to wipe so yeah.

If we have guest come over then yes, he needs to put clothes on. If he was 2 or younger I wouldn't mind but he's 4 now and I think that's old enough to understand that you don't run around naked when friends are over.

[Bellabaz]

DD1 chooses what she wants. If we have visitors than we prefer she at least has underwear on. If its repair people, she needs to be clothed. Sometimes if her feet are cold I make her put on slipper socks but she can stay naked. She like to be naked at home and why not? dd2 is only 7 weeks. She goes diaperless/bottomless at home but I prefer to keep ehr shirt or onesie on top for warmth.

[Mama~Love]

Kids stay clothes, except the youngest who is learning to use the potty. She prefers to be naked all day.

[ann_of_loxley]

My son does not care what he waears. I pick out his clothes and iron them every morning when I pick mine and iron mine. Hes never expressed an interest (slightly steriotypical, but perhaps thats more a girl thing? - I mean, most of the girls I know are super fussy about what they wear, insist on picking out their clothes in the morning, etc - whilst the boys just wear whats there! lol).
The only thing is weather stuff. I mean, it could be a toss up day where short or trousers are just fine either way so I will ask him if he wants to wear shorts or trousers or a short or long sleeved top. And really just to make conversation lol - he wouldn't care if I didn't ask him.

If he doesn't want to wear a jacket (or hat or whatever) he doesn't have to! It is his body at the end of the day and we also vary in temperature (so I can't decide for him based on me - even as a baby he used to get heat rash if I bundle him up too much, he would be in a tshirt in winter at 3 months old because of this -and he was fine, he was pretty warm and happy!). It could be 5 degrees out there and he is fine in just a t-shirt as he is so warm blooded but I would suffer like that and bundle up a lot - even when its 15 out there! lol (my circulation is apparently not as great as his - but he gets that from Daddy who also can be found wearing a short sleeved t-shirt in the dead of winter! lol) So I trust him to make his own decisions regarding his body heat/cold and how comfortable he is. If he fancies being out in the winter in shorts and a t-shirt - thats fine! If he were truely uncomfortable and cold, he would put something warmer on! Its certainly not something I have ever felt the need to be authorative/controlling and create power struggles about (cause I see that far too often with friends who are insistant on what their children wear). This doesn't mean I wont suggest something 'Its a bit cold out today, would you like to wear your jacket?' - but thats where I leave it.

Usually, as soon as we come in the house - DS gets naked! lol He is fine to go naked in the house and in our back garden but he must be something on to cover at least his penis (so at least his pants) if he goes out front.

I have no problem with nudity and am often naked in my own home as well (Dh prefers to wear clothes but doesn't try to hide if he is naked for whatever reason - usually like in the morning when hes getting ready for work)! For me, I see clothes only need to protect our bodies and keep us warm/shaded. Neither or those things are needed by clothes in the house. You may also see me in my back garden naked on a warm summers day hanging out the laundry! lmao - But society, laws, rules, etc - govern that I have to wear clothes when I step outside my front door. (unless we go to the beach - I think the UK and europe in general is a bit more lax about stuff like that).

I respect other peoples wishes though. If I have friends who are uncomfortable being around nudity, then I put clothes on. I have a few friends though who would not mind coming over and be perfectly comfortable with me roaming the house without a top on. No one cares if my son is naked though - as it stands, he has never taken his clothes off in public or at someone elses house (and that is never something I have gone over with him - I am sure if he wanted to go naked at a friends house they wouldn't mind).

I am not exactly sure how modesty comes out. But when and if it does, then I will respect my sons wishes if he prefers me to be clothed around him in the house. Until then, our bodies are natural and beautiful!

[BroodyWoodsgal]

My feeling is...it is my job as a mother to supply clothing appropriate to the season and I will make sure these clothes are clean and available...I dress DD every day and make sure she has all the "warm stuff" she needs now that winter is upon us.

HOWEVER....

Once a kid is old enough to take thier own clothes off and expresses an interest in the type/color/etc of clothing they wear and/or whether they wear clothes at all...it's up to them to decide!

I simply refuse to fight with her about it...and at 17 months old, yeah, she;s going to put up a fight! If she likes the way it feels to play naked, well, I can't say I blame her. If she wants to wear PJ's all day...well, if we're not going anywhere, who cares?

I try to keep a hat on her when we're out in the woods because it is chilly...but if she takes it off repatedly...like, over and over again...I stop fighting and let her go a while without it and her ears get cold and then a while later when I try again, it goes on and stays on.

I don't want clothes to be about ME...I don't want it to be "I have to wear clothes because mama says so" - I want it to be "My little bottom is freezing off, I better put something warm on" - and certainly, while she's still so young...I offer the warm clothes if I think she might be cold...but if she says no, I don't force her. Sometimes she accepts my offering of warm duds...but really, she's like her dada...she runs hot. I'm the cold one around here! Even pregnant, I've been more cold than hot!

[BroccoliBabies]

My son loves taking his clothes off! He wears a diaper or underwear but sometimes that is it. He runs around and says he has to do "naked yoga".

It is much cooler here now, so I am trying to make him wear at least one piece of clothing. We have some of the toddler leg warmers so I try to convince him to at least wear those.

He is almost three; I generally let him make his decisions about clothing as long as they are within reason.

[LizLizard]

If we have guests, then yes they need clothes. If no guests, then I don't care. Our only rule is that the oldest needs to wear underwear when we eat meals.

[riverscout]

We are a clothing optional household, but my daughter (as well as me and her dad) chooses to wear clothes most of the time. We don't really have any rules about the issue. If someone wants to walk around in his or her underwear all day or stay naked for awhile after a bath, then so be it. If we have guests, then everyone has on clothes...well generally speaking anyway I guess, but I can think of a few exceptions.

[ollyoxenfree]

All clothed here except our feet . So we don't have to worry about guest's reactions.

In winter, we keep our home pretty chilly - below 65 F. It's a matter of survival, lol.

In his younger days, DH would sometimes arrive at breakfast without a shirt. I wasn't fond of the look across the table. I don't recall ever saying anything about it though.

Now how about cooking while naked? I think nudity while frying bacon shows something interesting about personality - either a great love of adventure or a worrying inability to assess risk .

[savannah smiles]

We're all clothed, all of the time. The kids have never tried or asked to go around naked (w/ the exception of dawdling after a bath before getting dresse) so the issue hasn't come up.

[Alyantavid]

We don't really have any rules about clothes. If we have someone else over, I do encourage clothes on but underwear at least.

Other than, whatever.

Oh and dh rarely wears a shirt in the house. Every single time he makes bacon, he has to get burned once before he remembers to go put a shirt on.

[Llyra]

I am clothed in the house, except for bathing and getting dressed and stuff like that. I do let my kids see me undressed, though.

DH is pretty careful about being private, because DD1 told him she doesn't like him to be naked around her, and he respects that.

But my kids are free to wear or not wear whatever the heck pleases them, in the house. My oldest wears clothes-- she's developed some modesty about nakedness lately, and will only undress in front of me and her siblings, but nobody else. The younger two are potty-learning age, and frequently run around half-dressed or not dressed at all, although when certain guests come I do require underpants, just because I don't like people to feel uncomfortable and some people do.

My house is plenty warm all year. If they get cold, they can put clothes on, but I let them decide.

Right now DD1 is at school, but DD2 is wearing an outgrown bathing suit skirt and nothing else, and DS is wearing a sweatshirt and socks, but no pants.

Outside the house I have clear rules-- infants may go out in a diaper and shirt. Toddlers may go into the yard with a long shirt or dress and no undies, or in just undies and a shirt, but must be fully covered if we go out someplace. Kids older than 3 should wear clothes outside. Yeah, they're arbitrary rules, but they're what we decided on.

[newbymom05]

Clothes on in the public areas of the house for everyone, everyone must be appropriately dressed when eating at the table. Babies are the exception w/ clothing optional, although must wear dipe. But no shoes!

[AutumnAir]

DH and I mostly wear clothes, but DD prefers to be naked most of the time at home. She's PLed, but has a hard time getting her clothes on and off by herself in time and likes the independence of not having to ask me for help all the time, so naked is fine by me. If she feels cold, I'll offer warm clothes/socks for her feet (I run cold so can't imagine how she could be warm but she is!) and she can wear them or not as she likes. However, if we have someone come around to the house - repair-man or delivery or whatever then I make sure she's dressed for that short period of time.

[Pepper44]

My DD 3 year old usually wears a shirt but she doesn't like to wear panties or pants/shorts/skirt or socks and shoes. It doesn't matter to us. When guests come over I do make her get dressed, panties and a shirt for sure and preferably pants. (By guests I'm thinking of people like our parents or grandparents who are offended by her naked bum, if it's just close friends who have kids her age then it's not as important to be clothed.)

For babies, diaperless is ok for periods of time. Various levels of naked are ok too depending on the season.

My DD has always been hot blooded. Right now it's about 65 degrees in our house and she's wearing a thin t-shirt and nothing else. She insists she's not cold. Her body feels all warm except for her hands. I often fully dress her and a few minutes later she asks if she can take her pants off because, "I like to get cold!" Whatever floats her boat. She won't sleep with covers on at night either!

[mamazee]

My older dd is constantly taking off her clothes. We ask that she wear underpants, but we don't force the issue with any other clothing. She has been wearing more since it's gotten colder. But her preference is undies only.

[OkiMom]

I prefer DD1 and DD2 both be clothed during the day. Makes it easy to go do things. Instead of saying "lets go to the park" then having to spend 20-30 minutes gathering clothes, dresses, putting shoes on etc all we have to do is pick up and go. Now DD1 isn't a fan of being clothed all the time so I don't force the issue. I would say its 50/50, 50% of the time shes clothed and 50% she isn't.

[Cativari]

The kids get to choose most of the time when we're at home. (I do have a diaper and underwear must be worn rule, mostly because I don't feel like having to worry about stuff being used as TP) We don't have many visitors but when we do it depends on who is visiting whether or not the kids have to wear clothes. For example if MIL is visiting they have to wear clothes (she's pretty much of the mindset kids need to be need and clean at all times...) but if my mom comes they do as as they please. As DD is getting older she's keeping herself dressed more but I don't make her.