# My little nudist



## KnitLady (Jul 6, 2006)

I'm feeling so desperate, frustrated, and angry right now. I am pregnant and I think that is very much contributing to my lack of patience and creative problem-solving.

My DS is refusing clothes. If we are going to stay home, I don't care if he wears clothes or not, but he has to wear clothes if we are going out. It is a huge fight every single time. It's a struggle just to go to the grocery store, and even more of a struggle when I have to be somewhere at a specific time (like today when I had a dentist appointment). Once he is wearing the clothes he is fine. He will wear the clothes without any, or much fuss the rest of the day, but getting them on him has been pure hell.

I'm feeling like a mean mom. I hate forcing him to do things, and I rarely, rarely force anything. Carseats and brushing teeth are the only things that I have ever had to force in the past. Today I finally just forced his diaper on, and let him wear only a diaper in the car. I did put a blanket over him and it was pretty warm. Once we got where we were going he was happy to put his clothes on.

I really think the issue is that he just doesn't want to go out. He knows that he has to wear clothes if we go out. He often tells me he wants to just stay home. I do try and honor that, and we do stay home most days, but it isn't possible to stay home all the time. He does love being out, so I don't get what the problem is. Today he didn't even want to leave home to go see his grandma (while I was at the dentist). He loves his grandma and usually will do anything to see her.

I have another appointment tomorrow and I'm already dreading the battle it will likely be in the morning.

Oh, and although I don't really care that he doesn't wear clothes at home, he does keep complaining that he is cold. He will wrap a blanket around himself, but will complain that it keeps falling off. I offer to get him some warm clothes and he refuses.


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## f&p'smama (Sep 3, 2006)

I was where you are last year. My twins are about a year older than your son & I was pregnant. There were times we would miss things because they would flat out refuse to get dressed. They ran around naked all the time. Now they wear swim suits all the time. Literally.

I don't have any magic solution for you. Just wanted to let you know I've BTDT & it was very hard. Those were the times when I'd get very angry and frustrated. I tried Playful Parenting solutions, but they weren't all that helpful, honestly. They just sort of outgrew the phase. I'd start early, well before we needed to leave so I wasn't in a huge rush then.


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## aschmied (Apr 22, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *f&p'smama* 
They just sort of outgrew the phase. I'd start early, well before we needed to leave so I wasn't in a huge rush then.

We've had some of that. Not rushing is key. If I got in a rush when DD was 2 (and into the beginnings of 3) I could GUARANTEE that I would get no cooperation. She would not be rushed. This was hard. I tried to develop a zen like approach, and when I succeeded, I got places much faster. When I failed, I had power struggles, and was later....

DD still does the bit with the blanket and refusing clothes, but bit by bit she's spending more and more time dressed. Giving her total power over what she wears when she's interested helps a bit.


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## InDaPhunk (Jun 24, 2005)

We're in the same sitch, my DS hates to get dressed, wear clothes, etc and going anywhere is a huge battle. Course, once he gets where we're going he's totally fine. Getting out of the house really bites. We just moved here and don't know anyone and we can't get out of the house to meet people so I feel pretty isolated. It's awesome







. Maybe it's just a coincidence but this mostly started after we got here- though he's always been a little nudist- so I can only assume it has something to do with our move.

I've more recently taken the approach of not leaving the house unless DH is here to help faciliate the getting dressed process. I'm flat burned out- and I'm not even pg so I really feel for you.







I mean, the kid doesn't want to go to the park, wth?

But yesterday I _had_ to leave the house to fax some papers regarding the closing of our house, so I had to get him dressed. I don't force him anymore, I go as slowly as it takes for him to decide to get dressed, talking, cajoling, begging, pleading, speaking firmly, stating empirically what he needed to do to get dressed







and eventually it will work even though he's never happy about it and still cries and freaks out and by the time I'm all done with the production I'm so drained and on edge that I don't even feel like leaving the house anymore, but yesterday I just didn't have it in me so at one point I actually said "If you don't help me get you dressed I'll leave without you and leave you here by yourself because I _have_ to go do this". Yeah. Good times. Not my proudest parenting moment at all but my head was seriously about to







. This was a last minute thing and it had to be done for our house to close. At least he didn't cry after I said it but he must have known I'd reached my limit because he let me dress him without much fanfare.

I have no clue how to remedy this issue. For now, I'm just focusing on staying calm and keeping my stuff together. He's not doing it to drive me insane







, there's some reason for it. So I breathe in, breathe out







. Hopefully, it'll just pass.


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## azmomtoone (Aug 30, 2008)

.......does he take his clothes off or just not want to get dressed in the AM? If it's the latter, could he sleep in sweatpants & teeshirt/sweatshirt and wear that out in the morning, just add a jacket & shoes?


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## elizawill (Feb 11, 2007)

no advice. i totally understand though. my son is not modest at all and loves to be naked. i think he has a bright career ahead of him as a chip & dale dancer,


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## SeekingJoy (Apr 30, 2007)

I have a nudist, too. Dh showers with the kids, and I have started sticking him with the job of dressing DS. For some reason, it goes over better with him dressing DS while DH gets dressed. Sometimes.

No advice. Sorry.


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## everettdaddy (Nov 5, 2006)

My two youngest boys are nudists... Especially the youngest one. But, my 3 yr old is very sensitive to weather... So during the summer he is bundled up. During the winter he doesn't want clothes on.

Sorry, no advice.. except that it is normal..


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