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A Sparkly Leotard

[Blind Gossip] This celebrity parent is having a little trouble managing their child’s extra curricular activity.

They enrolled their young son in beginner’s tumbling class. The boys all wear shorts and a t-shirt. Some of the girls wear leotards.

The boy wants a leotard. A shiny, sparkly leotard. And ribbons for his hair.

[The Mom] tried to explain to him that boys wear shorts and girls wear leotards, but he wasn’t having any of that. He sat down on the floor and started crying, “I want a sparkle leotard!” I felt bad for the kid, but I felt bad for the mom, too.

Similar: Her Pinging Man

Mom:

[Optional] Would you let your son wear a sparkly leotard and ribbons in his hair?

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. beaneffy says

    Unless the mum is being a jerk about it, my guess as to why he can’t is because of dress codes. It sounds like gymnastics (or possibly ballet) and both are sports with dress code. Get him a leo with some stones on it but keep him under code with shorts too, I guess? Poor thing. I really hope it’s dress code and not mum, bc if mum is okay with it he can practice at home in sparkles all he wants!

  2. Insiderher says

    No clue who this is. But-I believe in compromise. My kids have made some odd fashion choices. Not this odd, that young-but I generally try to get them to compromise, partly out of embarrassment, but more to protect them from bullying. But if I kid decides they want to ? as the opposite sex 24/7? If they were teens, I’d allow it-but let them know it’s okay to just try something out.
    Let them know there are choices they can make on their own. With clothes? It’s super important they pick them.

  3. sayswho says

    Have no idea bout the family but why not let the child make choices? That’s how we learn isn’t it?

  4. MarAir says

    Oh Lord. As a parent you pick your battles. I have an adult son that would walk around the house in my heels when he was young. It was the least if my worries. I was trying to raise a loving, caring good man.
    PS – He has grown into everything I could have wished for and I couldn’t be any prouder of him.

  5. KCeagle says

    Gwen Stefani

    She’s a free spirit and evidently the apples don’t fall far from the mama tree.. free-loving daddy either! (Gavin is STILL fine as f*!)

  6. Blkgoddess says

    Megan Fox or Charlize The Ron.

    Only at home, in private. My son is much too young to be subject to harassment and ridicule in public dressed in girls’ clothing. Personally I think this whole thing with gender Identity/transgenderism/etc. is getting out of hand.

  7. ChattyCat says

    Why do only the girls wear glamourous costumes? They should design something flashy for the boys also. All kids like colour and shine….let them all dazzle

  8. amagod121 says

    Megan Fox’s son.

    I think at this age. we are talking about a boundary issue (“I want what I want!”) so I think the parent should say no. If the child persists, try to find something fun to wear there that wouldn’t make him a target for bullies. If, as a teen he still feels this way, then yeah, let him explore it BUT make sure to warn him about people who might try to harm him for his choice.

  9. Ellis Bell says

    Late to the sparkly party but I would think this may be Charlize Theron’s son. He loves to dress up like a girl and she indulges him but maybe she is trying to instill some boundaries when it comes to specific guidelines and dress codes like at this studio.

  10. MizGrandma says

    Oh my, folks, it is clear we haven’t come very far since I first started teaching about gender/sexual identity issues four decades+ ago. You can NOT discipline/train the sparkle out of the boy, but you CAN cause him anguish the remainder of his life if you try. Yes, you can get him to publicly suppress the sparkle, but a boatload of shrinks aren’t going to undo the damage inflicted by a well-meaning mom. What is reasonable is thoughtful compromise with the child for the situation…

  13. DenverJayhawk says

    Actually I don’t think it’s a gender identity topic. It’s a “follow the rules” thing. My daughter takes ballet and there is a strict dress code. That’s because with these types of activities, they require discipline and you must follow exact directions or you can get hurt or hurt someone else.

    If there is a dress code for the class, they need to follow the dress code. If he was born with boy parts, he needs to wear the required uniform for the boys for his safety and others.

    • DenverJayhawk says

      My suggestion for this mom is to work with the teacher and have the teacher reiterate to the son that there is a dress code for safety and if he wants to stay in class, he needs to follow it. Otherwise, he’ll have to give up his spot in the class. Then I would back her up (in a parent’s efforts to respect authority outside of the home), and support her as a knowledgeable teacher who has to run her class with rules. It’s no different than obeying a teacher at school or a coach for a team.

  17. SusieBoo says

    I don’t know who this is, but I would absolutely let my son wear a sparkly leotard. I feel like we should learn not to worry about these things, but rather the content of our character.

  18. spaceship says

    No, I wouldn’t let my son wear a sparkly leotard and ribbons in his hair, because he is a boy, not a girl, and I would tell him so, just like the mom did, and stick to it, no matter how much he cried and whined.

  19. phat girl says

    Let the boy wear the leotard. If it bothers you that much get him one with a sparkly superhero symbol on it and a cape and say he’s superman or something. He’ll probably grow out of the stage later anyway why make a big deal of it. IMHO

  20. cassadaga says

    No idea who this parent is but I think it’s disgraceful she’s trying to push the kid into gender norms. What’s the harm in letting him wear a sparkly leotard? I would absolutely let my kid wear whatever he wants. A happy kid is the most important thing in my book.

  21. Female says

    Don’t know the celebrity, but I’d let the son do what he wants – and I’m a fairly conservative person. His desire to wear a leotard might be a deeply rooted gender identity question, or it may just be a phase. Who knows, the mom might have the most fabulous fashion designer of 2047 in her home, or a brilliant artist. More damage from repressing it than just letting him follow his instincts and express himself.

  22. Brunettetalk says

    Jesus, parenting 101. And Dog Training 101. Boundaries, rules, discipline or you end up with a spoiled brat or a dog who wants to crap on every surface. I don’t feel bad for the parent. Learn now how to be the leader or forever be a follower.

  23. Silverdun says

    Sounds like Parker from the Ballinger Family on youtube lol. Ofc it isn’t, yet he is similar. I guess it would be up to the teacher of the class, if she allowed it or not. If not, might try to find him somewhere else where he can be accepted and wear what he wants. If that’s not possible, I’d buy him a sparkly one to wear at home, seeing how it means that much to him. At the end of the day he wants some sparkly fabric, it’s not hurting anyone. I’d hope others would be equally open minded.

  25. countervail says

    Big deal. Besides this idea of sorting out gender and sexuality, why do we always push girls and boys to wear “girls'” clothes and “boys'” clothes? I was listening to a podcast yesterday about this when they documented that we start slotting kids into gender roles as early as 3 years old and forcing these stereotypes on them. Why can’t we let kids grow up? If he wants to wear sparkly clothes, who cares?

  27. spookie says

    Awww. I don’t know who this is, but maybe they could get him a sparkly t shirt or something to compromise? Kids don’t really see gender boundaries at that age. My friend’s 4yr old son used to dress up as Princess Elsa on a near-daily basis (his sisters were more into sports and science).

  28. Pimpernel says

    Let him get it out of his system. My friend let her young son dress up in her nighties and wear a long wig when he was little. It was just a phase hes a happy hetero boy now. He had an older sister- thats a sometimes a root of it I think.

    This isnt anything big or shameful. I hope you dont solve it- shaming the kid would be wrong

    • Pimpernel says

      Probably let him do it at home not in public though so he doesnt get laughed at Sparkel away at home!!!!

  32. lilmama says

    This is a hard call. I would say “no,” but my friend’s son is allowed to pain his nails and wear pigtails. It was shocking at first, but it’s just a now-and-then expressing himself thing. No one says anything and he is accepted (from what I can tell).

  33. Squirrelnutkin says

    I don’t know who this is but I feel bad for the child. If it was my child, I’d want to say I’d let him wear the leotard and ribbons… People should be able to wear what they want. Why should girls get all the fun with the glitter and beautiful colors, and boys get stuck with dull black and white? On the other hand, I’d want to shelter him from rude comments other people may invariably make, so I might get him the leotard to wear at home… Tough one.

  36. Baileygirl says

    No idea on the Mom.
    No, I would not because if he is truly having identity issues the last thing I want is for him to be a target for other children or cruel adults. It is the parents’ role to deal with serious issues involving their child. It is not a parents’ role to send their child out to be ridiculed or even physically hurt. When I hear of parents making a big deal out of how “enlightened” they are regarding a child’s identity, I feel it is all about them and not the child’s well…

    • staciegrenery says

      This was what I thought. A leotard may be inappropriate simply bc his boy parts may not be held in. That being said, he should be able to be as glittery as he wants.
      It could be a number of celeb sons..
      Megan Fox, Charlize Theron, Adele, Naomi Watts, and Angelina Jolie all have kids who like to dress like the “opposite sex”.
      I love how accepting they all are of their kids. I’m in my 30s, and there’s no way any of my boy peers would have been allowed to wear a dress.

    • jasper says

      @stacie – is there a square cut or mid-thigh legging option for those? that would be ideal.

      I work with all kinds of people in a PT job and see young boys come in with nail polish all the time. heck, one customer’s name came up as male, looked female, when I questioned if it was her partner/bf’s with her, “her” voice was deeper than mine. (Sometimes ID cards will default to purchaser name, so we’re supposed to clarify.)

      I have no problem with them, as they have done me no wrong.

    • guiltywhispers says

      Staciegrenery makes a good point; or perhaps he can where the leotard as long as he wears shorts over it?