Self

9 Strange Things People Say About The Way Kids Look

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People say the strangest things to pregnant women, but the buck doesn't stop after the baby is born. Suddenly the comments move away from the mama's appearance and onto the child. I'll never understand why complete strangers feel the need to make remarks on my child's appearance, but they do. Like a lot. And it just makes me laugh. We've all had someone say something silly about our child, but here are a few of the most commonly heard remarks.

1. "He's so cute!" Even if your daughter is dressed top to bottom in pink and bows, someone will eventually ask if she is a boy. Likewise, if your son is wearing head-to-toe blue with a football-print onesie, someone at some point will call him a girl. It's annoying, but try not to feel too bad if someone mistakes your child's sex; it happens to everyone!

2. "Where did she get that hair from?" The mailman? The milkman? Red-headed or unruly-haired children are most susceptible to these comments - I suggest coming up with a snarky remark and having fun with it.

3. "She can always get that removed when she's older." Here's a clue to anyone feeling like commenting on a birthmark, strawberry mark, or any other unique feature a child was born with: don't. As moms we really do not want you to bring it up (let alone suggest having it removed). End of story.

4. "He's so big for his age!" People love to tell you when your child looks big. Often it's a harmless comment, but it can come off as rude. A good rule of thumb: never provide unsolicited comments on anyone's - no matter what age - weight or height.

5. "He looks nothing like you." My children have blond, gorgeous locks. I have thick, dark brown hair. For this reason, I get the following: "They must take after their father," or "Are you the nanny?" and other random comments. And because no one is accomplishing anything by telling me my kids look nothing like me, please just stop.

6. "Oh, she'll grow into _____." Those chunky legs. Those feet. Those ears. That nose. That ...

7. "He looks like trouble." I don't know why, but this one always bothered me because people almost always say this about my son. Is it because he is a boy? How does one look like trouble anyway?

8. "He'll be so cute when he's out of the newborn phase." I got this, or variations of this, when my son was a newborn. Sure, he was a tiny, scrawny little thing, but I still thought he was perfect - and I definitely didn't appreciate the comments that implied that he wasn't.

9. "She looks so serious/mad!" OK, I'm gonna call myself out on this. I have said a pal's babe looks "serious," and I stupidly did not realize that it was coming off as rude, because I actually think serious babies are the cutest. Regardless, I'm sorry - I'm a jerk. So when in doubt, the age-old adage follows comments about children too: if you're not going to say something nice, don't say it at all.

This article was originally published at PopSugar Moms. Reprinted with permission from the author.