Other people and your dc(bad influences!)

[Strong Mama]

This is just a vent but I kinda want to know where other people stand on this, or how they handle things. I live in the south. My son is almost 3 and NO i dont let him run around barefoot as there are 10000 fire ant hills around here, not to mention black widows crawling around, snakes, etc. People say I am making him a (sissy) because I dont let him run around barefoot, dont let him climb up trees(hes 2!) play with the toy machine guns that my 4 yo cousin is playing with, ride the 3 wheeler with his 7 yo cousin, etc etc. OH. My. My son is only TWO. Plus the kids around here run wild with even a THREE year old, yes, you heard it, over at my house yesterday on his own. He lives down the road. All the adults around here want me to slack off, let my ds do these things. I THINK THEY ARE CRAZY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!: How can I handle this constant badgering?

[Marsupialmom]

Sweat heart I grew up in SC. I was once tramatised by my mother because she pulled me up, violenantly yanked my clothes off, started hosing me off, and screamed at the neighbor to drive us to the hospital. I was completely covered in fire ants. My dad was military and was wearing fatigues or BDU's (can remember which) when he climbed into a crawl space and got covered in fire ants. Going barefoot isnt' going to hurt your child. Might actually help him http://www.barefooters.org/faq/08.html

Other than that I agree with you 100%....Even if you make him wear shoes you aren't making him a sissy. Just softer feet

How to handle the badgering.....pass the bean dip.

[Strong Mama]

oh, i grew UP here, I went around barefoot EVERYWHERE...still do! but i just dont want ds to experience all the hurts I have going barefoot at aged 2. when he is older, and knows how to watch out where he is going and stepping i dont mind then!

[Marsupialmom]

Originally Posted by FEDUP

oh, i grew UP here, I went around barefoot EVERYWHERE...still do! but i just dont want ds to experience all the hurts I have going barefoot at aged 2. when he is older, and knows how to watch out where he is going and stepping i dont mind then!

(((((HUGS))))) Not trying to down play it but he will get over. Unfortantly you can't bubble wrap your child. Toughing up his feet now is "easier" than later.

[cinnamonamon]

I know how you feel with the fire ant thing -- we just moved here from FL last fall & ds1 has swarms of them up his legs 3-6 times before we left. And this was WITH shoes on. He would walk over to the hill in the back yard at my friend's house, step on it & watch as they crawled all over him. He would start yelling/crying when they started biting... he was 15-18mths the first time & it took him several times to learn not to step on the hills. He learned, though, and after the first 1/2 hour the bites never bothered him.

I still breathe a huge sigh of relief every time I think about how I don't have to worry about them...