Anyone having people come over and touch their belly?

[Amys1st]

Its starting again. Anyone and I do mean anyone coming up and touching your belly.

I do not mind kids since they are curious (last time I might have, but having them softens you). But someone will come up and touch, hug, pat, stroke your belly!!!

Please share!!

[mommy2girlies]

i haven't really had a stranger do that yet. but they did w/ the girls and it annoyed me so much. its like being pregnant allows strange people to caress your tummy only my close friends have done it so far and i don't mind that..

i do remember right after i had carson my dh, whose habit it was to rub my tummy when we were sitting next to each other, rubbed my tummy out of habit and i said "hey babe that feels weird, cuz now you're just rubbing a fat, flabby tummy" :

[grace's voice]

No one did it in my last pregnancy. Only one person has done it this time, but she's a friend (and pg too) so I totally don't mind a bit. What I hate is when strangers feel the need to reach out and touch my newborn... its like hello, did you wash your hands? Maybe I'm paranoid, but what is it like only 1 in 6 people wash their hands after going to the bathroom? Eww.

[BundleFishMama]

Originally Posted by grace's voice

No one did it in my last pregnancy. Only one person has done it this time, but she's a friend (and pg too) so I totally don't mind a bit. What I hate is when strangers feel the need to reach out and touch my newborn... its like hello, did you wash your hands? Maybe I'm paranoid, but what is it like only 1 in 6 people wash their hands after going to the bathroom? Eww.

: Oh, I am so with you on that one - so far only friends have touched my belly so I'm OK with that - but I hate hate hate when strangers think it's OK to come over and touch your baby (on the head, face, HANDS!! Which go right into their mouths!!!) This is a serious pet peeve of mine, I'm kind of a germophobe but hey, we almost never get sick because, among extended bfing and other things of course, I am very careful about washing my kids' hands (or using those hand gels if we're not near a sink) constantly and watching what they touch/who touches them. So I'm kind of aggressive about keeping people's hands off - unless of course they ask and I know they're not sick, the type who wouldn't wash after going to the bathroom, etc.

It's hard though, I don't want to offend people! Especially the nice old ladies at church (but usually they're blowing their noses into used tissues right before coming over to touch my kids - ugh!!) What's worse is my own relatives - my 85 y.o. grandmother was cooking once and I saw her handle raw meat and then just RINSE her hands quickly in water and then go over to play with my baby!! I was like, sorry to offend you grandma, but here's some SOAP, now scrub!

Oh yeah, one more reason to love babywearing - when your baby is all tucked in a sling tight against you, people feel less entitled to just come up and touch than when they're just sitting in an infant carseat!

[Amys1st]

Oh yes, I do remember people coming up to dd as a 4 week old with hands that were just in the garbage, catching a sneeze, etc and wanting to touch her hands etc! YUCK!

I agree, the sling or anything along that line keeps people away.

[coco4cloth]

I still just look fat.

[Amys1st]

Originally Posted by coco4cloth

I still just look fat.

[*guest]

I am so geared up to touch a belly in return if a stranger tries that on me
So far, only my husband and a close friend have touched the belly, and she made me touch her belly all the time when she was pregnant, so fair enough. I don't know what it is about pregnancy that makes people think women are public property for touching and unsolicited advice and all that good stuff. It just never occurred to me to do that to anyone.

I never thought about the sling as a baby-touching deterrent, but that's a big plus!

[CaraboosMama]

I HATE that! Hasn't happened yet this pregnancy - and I don't mind if a friend asks & puts a hand on my belly or if a child does it...but strangers...I slapped a woman's hand in the grocery store & told her to stop touching me or I would call security! : ok...crazy pregnant hormones might have played a factor there! but I would still ask firmly for a stranger to take their hands off of my body.

[cymbeline]

Coco, you are KILLING me!!!!

[grace's voice]

A friend of mine said some people would pull back the edge of the sling and peek in, but her baby was usually nursing, then the person would turn red and appologize. Serves them right! I look forward to that.

[mimid]

At first I was counting them now I'm not. When people ask I totally don't mind it is just that people that it is okay to do it that drives me nuts. The cutest are the little kids. They have a hard enough time with the idea that there is a baby, much less 3. We have a friend whose 9 year-old daughter (skin and bones) likes to help pull me to a standing position and loves to kiss and hug my belly. Then an 8 year old boy came over and was asking questions and then he was so polite asking if he could touch my stomach and the girl threw herself between us saying that he was hurting the babes and she could hear them crying.

I have noticed more people doing the "hand hover" as I call it. They just put their hand about 4 inches over my stomach and act like they are rubbing it. It some ways it is weirder than a belly rub. I feel like saying "go ahead" because the actual rub is short compared to the big show. I love the idea of touching their stomach in return. That would probably throw them off.

The newborn touch will be a big issue for me. I've told dh that as soon as the ped says they can go out, we will be. I also don't have an issue with friend sand family holding them as long as they are healthy and wash their hands. We need to come up with some good comebacks for this.

[kittyhead]

Originally Posted by CaraboosMama

I slapped a woman's hand in the grocery store & told her to stop touching me or I would call security! : ok...crazy pregnant hormones might have played a factor there! .

lol, that sounds like something i would do, pregnancy hormones or not. maybe it comes from growing up in a big city...

[mommy2girlies]

Originally Posted by CaraboosMama

I HATE that! Hasn't happened yet this pregnancy - and I don't mind if a friend asks & puts a hand on my belly or if a child does it...but strangers...I slapped a woman's hand in the grocery store & told her to stop touching me or I would call security! : ok...crazy pregnant hormones might have played a factor there! but I would still ask firmly for a stranger to take their hands off of my body.

i would have paid to see that!! good for you!!!