Is it normal for toddler boys to wear girls clothes?

Parents of sons with older sisters, my two 1/2-year-old son loves to wear his older sisters’ nightgowns and play dresses; any anyone ever experience this? Is it a phase? It doesn’t really bother me but drives my husband crazy!!!

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Help a mama out and respond anonymously on our forum. Is it normal for toddler boys to wear girls clothes? - Mamas Uncut

Haha completely normal, they idolize older siblings and want to dress like them and the lot.

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My son did the same thing. It was just because he wanted to be like his older sisters. His daddy hated it but it passed

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Soooo what I hear is your husband is ether a closet homophobe, is very gender nominative or seriously insecure in his masculinity?

Let the boy be who ever he wants and tell your man to sit his ass down.

Boys can wear dresses too, why can girls wear “boys” clothes and it’s okay, but if a boy wears " girls stuff" it’s not okay.

Dresses are fun and freeing, live it up little man

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My nephew wore a tutu like his sister til he was 4 lol grew out of the phase tho

It’s normal play but even if not. I would hope he would accept him for who he is.

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My son does this too. He’s 2 and she’s 3 almost 4. And he always wears her play heels, dress up clothes, play with dolls, pretty much does everything she does. He looks up to his big sis and copies everything. Totally normal and I’m sure it’ll pass as he gets older.

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Well years ago boys AND girls wore gowns as babies. And why wouldn’t ANY toddler not love gowns? They are open and breezy and allow them to move their legs more freely.

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Yes because they are more colourful and fun my son is the eldest and once my daughter started playing dress ups he wanted to ask well

Totally normal, my 4 year old son plays Elsa dress up and does make up with her.

My 2 year old loves my 1 year olds dresses and shiny mermaid outfits. They’re beautiful, and visually appealing.

Both my boy did - one is gay and one isn’t. I don’t think what they do at such a young age has any bearing on it. Kids that little don’t assign gender to anything. Clothes are just colourful, fun, feel nice, copying an older sibling or a parent. Dad stops needing to think it means something else and if it does than you need to start learning about parenting an LGTBQI child.

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Perfectly normal. Tell your husband to relax

Clothing is for everyone. I’d remind hubby that men have worn dresses forever.

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Even if it isn’t normal, which it is, your hubby obviously has issues if he’s starting to lose it over something as innocent as that. Think that’s what you should be addressing.

If a girl can play with cars and not get labelled, so too should a boy be able to play with dolls. Or dress up in this case.

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My son did he’s 16 and still does with certain things

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Totally normal. He idolizes his older sisters & wants to be like them. At that age male or female & the so-called norms don’t exist.

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They are explorong their world and learning a sence of self. No diff than both playing with cars and dolls

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My boys like to wear make up and have their nails painted (they’re nearly 5) it’s normal for them to want to play with “girls” stuff. I just let them be. It drives my dad insane. He reckons “they’ll turn gay” if I allow it… I just tell him to stfu. :woman_shrugging:t3:

My son (4) loves playing with his lil sisters doll and dress up clothes, and I said to him jokingly shall we put a dress on wen we go to Skool and he looked horrified and his words ‘no mummy im a boy i wear trouser and boy clothes :joy:’ and still wants to be a fireman wen he grows up coz his words fireman r boys :rofl:

My son (about 4 yrs) loved wearing a bright pink dress at the daycare he went to. Twirled around constantly. Wore it everytime. No he’s not gay… now 30…

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Probably a phase but may not be

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I would get him some boy dress up stuff for him to play with

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My 6yo will squeeze himself into his you her sisters clothes lol it’s totally normal!!

My little brother did it and he’s perfectly normal lol

Sounds VERY normal. For most kids it’s a phase. If you keep making it a big deal in front of your son he may either do it more or hide to do it because he thinks it’s wrong. Let kids be kids and do kid things

I think it completely normal but if it really bothers hubby get him some little boy dress up outfits.

Don’t label things normal. Normal for you is not Normal for all. Let him be.

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My son is 2 and a half and he is similiar. He likes puting on his sisters clothes, his older and younger sister. I think it is a phase. the way I see it is that he doesn’t see things the way we see it, he is just having fun dressing up.

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You husband needs to stop projecting his insecurities and issues on a boy innocently playing dress up. Children’s minds aren’t tainted by societal judgment yet. It’s perfectly normal.

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Totally normal. My 3 year old son still wears his sister’s dresses. My 6 year old daughter will even do his makeup and paint his nails. He spends most of his time with his big sissy and looks up to her and copies everything she does, so it’s really not a big deal.

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Clothes are for everyone. There isn’t a gender/sex tied into the fabrics. I would take him shopping to pick out a thing or two for play.

Your husband needs to get a grip. Your son is just being a kid. He’s 2 and a half. There is no “boys stuff and girls stuff” at this age. It’s just stuff.

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Both my boys did. My youngest (2) still does. Just a phase normally.

His just copying his sisters and doesn’t want to miss out on the fun.

I used to cover my younger brother in make up, nail polish. His 100% fine and I hate make up so :woman_shrugging:t3:

Completely normal! My 3 year olds favorite outfit right now is a pink tutu dress that says princess because that was his best friends dress. And my boys paint their nails and do makeup. It drives my husband nuts too but I’m trying to raise my boys to not be insecure about being to “feminine”. What’s going to happen? They are going to be GREAT fathers to their girls or I get son in laws. Either way they are happy and that’s all that matters. Not society’s views and how boys should behave.

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My boy will want want his sister has
It’s normal for kids to want what the other sibling has
And look upto older sibling weather same sex or not
So yes it’s normal but can we stop asking that and just let kids be kids please
Jeezo
My son was jumping about with my daughter’s dress up heals on coz she was doing it
Then he had a race car and race track out she wanted to play with cars with him
Would I stop either of them doing either activity no
As they can do what they want and play how they like as long as there playing nice doesn’t bother me one bit.

He’s just copying his big sister! It’s definitely normal.
My 1.5yo son loves wearing anything of his big sister’s, particularly her sparkly shoes! :heart:

Well tell your husband wait til he starts playing with kitchens and hoovers and dollies one day he could be a father or uncle this is normal part of a child’s development glad your so supportive of your son x

Ive mostly raised my boys on my own and I’m super girly …All of my boys did the oldest is 19 and hes all boy so are the others I’ve seen little boys who didnt grow out of it but we pretty much new that little boy wasnt going to from the start moms just know I think

Yes it’s normal, my nephew no big sister, used to love pretty shoes, he’s got a lovely girlfriend and baby now. It’s a normal phase boys go thru,

I know two boys who would did this. One is now a very successful drag artist and looks fabulous.

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Your husband needs to get a grip.

Even if it “wasn’t normal” or “a phase”
It shouldn’t be an issue.

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My little boy and his sister run around in princess dresses and my daughter will wear her brothers clothes🤦🏻‍♀️ hubby needs to get over it they’re kids

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My little brother would wear ours with mom’s high heels. Dad didn’t like it one bit. He has been happily married to his wife for 7 years now (he’s 35 now) i think it’s absolutely normal. I’m sure he’s pretending when he wears them therfore being creative. Let him use his imagination as long as possible.

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Very normal and if he’s shamed about it I believe a lot of behaviour stems from it.
He is exploring his own sexuality (as in gender interests and curiosity)

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Yes it is one of my boys preferred to wear my daughters dresses, PJs etc and at school he’d wear the princess dress up his reception teacher used to tske her heels in for him to wear too. Hes 9 now and seems to have stopped now xx

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All kids like to play dress up at that age
And wear girls or boys clothes
It’s very normal
So don’t stress about it

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I have 1 boy and 4 girls. My son never put his sisters clothes on.

My son loved dress up at that age (no sister either). He loved this green tutu that drove his sperm donor crazy and despite the fact I was miffed at him then (for getting into my makeup), now does his makeup better than I do. lol Kids are creative and have vivid imaginations! I encouraged my son to explore and dream and be whatever he wanted to be at that time. The real world crushes hopes and dreams fast enough, they grow up so fast and society puts labels on everything. My son is a happy, healthy going on 27 year old with a lovely wife and two kids.
Let them be kids while they can still be kids.

Let’s pretend it’s not “normal”. Seems like you need to have a sit down with your husband and follow the line of questioning of why it bothers him. I know if I were married to someone who loved/supported my child conditionally (only if they’re “normal”), I’d want to know ASAP.

Yep! My son dressed up all the time as a toddler. And today, at 8 years old, he called me wearing an Elsa dress. Because he wanted to. It may be a phase, it may not… who cares? As long as your boy is happy and thriving, who’s to say what he can and can’t wear.

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He is a child - let him be a child :woman_facepalming:t2:

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It’s totally normal. It’s just clothes to them. It’s not boy or girl it’s just clothes. I personally drew the line at wearing it out the house.

My little brother did this with my clothes he lived with mom and I it was all because he looked up to me and mom, at 40 he is as normal as any typical male. He likely does this to fit in with hiscsisters. Let him have his fun. You can get his own dress up clothes think Halloween costumes for boys let him be pirates, superheros, sports figures.

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Normal my 6 year old loved dresses and dressing up he dosent do it now but loved it till he was about 4

Little siblings will always copy their older siblings. They want to be just like them. It’s been that way since the dawn of time. Your husband can get over it.

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Picking at a child for petty things like clothes is too controlling. No need to argue with a child over clothes there are bigger battles to fight with kids

My son adored my red heels and would clip around in them every chance he got. Kids are attracted to colors, textures,

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My 2 boys(2and1) are always wearing their older sisters(4) clothes. It is normal, she also likes to wear their clothes. Children using their imagination is always a good thing.

Completely normal. My 2yo is always trying to copy his sister. Especially with her jewelry & play shoes. He also loves messing with my makeup🤷🏻‍♀️
I use to run around in my older brothers clothes all the time. Because I wanted to be like him.
Let kids be kids without trying to pick at every little thing.

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There are two stages for boys between 1 yo and around 4. clothes or naked… lol doesn’t matter what clothes. We can’t wait for Halloween to play dress up right? Toddler girls also like to dress up like older brothers, helmets, jerseys, overalls, and so on.

My 3 & 4 year old boys are always wanting to wear my 5 year old daughters clothes. Not doing any harm at all. I dont see any issues with it either… they also play with dolls & prams, barbies, any other girly things… if my kiddies are happy im happy :ok_hand::blush:

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yes it’s completely normal, they are just the clothes he sees his older siblings that he adores wear so he wants to wear them as well. tell your husband to take a chill pill and maybe see a therapist about that fragile masculinity of his. They are literally just clothes and won’t change anything about who your son becomes as an adult other than maybe being more accepting of others and having better emotional maturity since he could actually freely express himself as a kid instead of being shamed for stupid pointless stuff like this like your husband most likely was

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Absolutely! They arent born with boys or girls…

My son is a only child. He was giving a bunch of hand me down toys. In that box was a couple of play dresses. My son loved them. His father didn’t blink an eye. While he has grown out of those and we haven’t bought anymore because he hasn’t saw one that chases his eye, he still plays with his babydoll and kitchen set.

It’s perfectly normal they don’t understand its girls or boys stuff it’s just fun to them dosent mean anything when they do this there to young to think any different

Definitely normal my son use to put on his sister’s tutus and even stuck on fake nails

The problem here is your husband having issues with it. Your son is just playing around and growing his brain, using his imagination. Tell your husband he needs to sit down and grow up, or, join in with his son, encourage all acts of play.

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He’s two for God sake.

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My son is 4 yrs younger than his sister. I have a picture of him with makeup/hat; dance tights; and he insisted once at 2 to wear a swimsuit like his sisters. :joy::joy:

Haha my son is 4 an does this he has 5 sisters it’s harmless

My 2 year old does the same thing and his older
Brother used to wear his sister socks and paint his toenails. They live in a house full of women with a heavy female presence in their entire families. They also play with dolls and the oldest boy changes diapers, makes bottles and reads stories. So I think they’re just gonna be good dads, your husbands needs to quite literally sit down somewhere and shut up because he’s projecting his insecurities big time

I used to do that when I was a kid, i was just having fun. There is a difference in kids having fun and kids being pushed to do something. If ur hubby makes a huge deal it will only make it worse, let him be a kid.

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he just wants to play with his sister

More than likely it is a phase . He is mimicking or copying his sister . Many kids have a special
Blankie but my son like satin/ silk . He had a pillow case he took everywhere . One time at home he couldn’t find it so he got a clean pair of my nylon undies. I had answered the door when he came walking up rubbing a pair if my non panties on his cheek :hugs: Embarrassing .:pray::purple_heart:

Absolutely. We have two older girls and they would dress up their brother a lot. He also played dolls and house with them.

Absolutely. His just playing around / dressing up :joy::woman_shrugging:t4:

For many years my younger brother would be a witch for Halloween because us girls (his the only boy with 3 sisters) all was witches :rofl:

Yes it’s normal. My son is an only child so no dresses here but he has a dress up wall that’s old Halloween costumes he picked out and dresses up daily. He had a play kitchen and baby doll when he was younger. He’s since traded those in for Legos but when he asked Santa for those Santa brought them.

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My grandson is always wanting to wear his sisters things . They both like to do make up and hair . Then turn around and she is playing warrior with him and she wearing his boxers . Kids will be kids . It’s just cloths to them . It’s society that has put these labels on things . They will grow up and will have had a non judgemental child hood. With parents that let them be who they are and enjoy play with imagination .

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See what social media and tictok has done to normal development stages - it’s sent parents round the twist. It has always been normal

I have 3 boys and the bigger 2 (the youngest is still only 19 months) have tried on my makeup and nail polish and even my bras :joy: they’re just curious bc it’s something new.

They love dressing up don’t worry at all no different than little girl wanting to dress up tell dad let him it’s no big deal x

It’s normal play. My oldest is 6 and LOVED my nightgowns and tshirts to sleep in when he was younger. To kids, clothes aren’t specific to gender… just playing dress up is all.

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My 5 year old does his sister is 10.5 …

It’s the “younger” sibling thing. I only have boys…but my youngest is constantly stealing his brothers shirts or wearing the “same” shirt. 🤷

If it bothers him too much, they sale a boys dress up clothesline. Try that!

It’s as normal as my 3 year old who has 2 brothers, one is her twin and the other is 2 years older. She wants to wear what they wear. She doesn’t want to be different from them. She’s not a pretty princess, she’s a dinosaur, and I’m gonna leave it at not screaming and happy and let her wear what makes her comfortable. It’s a struggle to keep 3 little kids happy I am not fighting them on stuff like this.

I mean tell your husband that he should sit with why it bothers him, it’s a him problem so he needs to deal with it internally. Also, screw hetero normative gender roles.

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Sometimes it’s a phase, sometimes not, either way let your kid be who they want to be…
My boy used to wear dresses all the time, would love doing his makeup and nail polish
Now he says “it’s too girly”

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My son use too. Its so funny how it drives people crazy to see boys or men in girl/women’s clothes. But we do not hesitate to put so called boys clothes on little girls. Or let girls play with so called boy toys. Who cares what we wear as long as we are happy, healthy, and kind. This world is so upside right now. We have to stop doing things to please others that don’t matter in our world. Let the kids be happy in a world that is telling them it’s not ok to be yourself. My exs was the worse. Hated it when our son played with dolls, but it was ok for our daughter to play with trucks. Doubt standed or what. My son is gay and once i stopped caring what others thought. Well i can tell you that my son is exactly who he is suppose to be.

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I’ve a son is 3. He was curious about his older sisters make up there 16,19 he put a small bit with a brush on his face and puts on there slippers too he’s young and learning what’s what we only laugh :joy:

I think the only logical question here is why is your husband so triggered by clothing? I feel like it’s a much deeper issue than just clothes. Maybe he should deal with that internal homophobic bs.

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Yes absolutely normal

We allow it in classroom play… it’s normal development. Why does it bother your husband so much is really the question for concern.

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My son is two and does this, he follows what his sisters are doing who are 7 and 6. It shall pass

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My daughter wears boys clothes. :woman_shrugging:

Our middle was simpler when he was that age. He has a older and younger sister’s. He wanted his nails done when he say me doing his sister’s nails. It’s normal.

My 5 yr old saw me putting press on nails and wanted to do them… so he put them on without the glue and swore up and down lazers were coming out of them … they just like they play with whatever you have they don’t see what “gender” it’s specified for.