# Enough with the baby. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 14, 2008, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901 "2008-10-14T17:23:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/21 "2008-10-14T19:37:48Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > What if he really is the Second Coming of Christ though? Huh, what are you gonna do then? Feel pretty silly, I imagine. Doctor, I’m worried. He’s almost two and still not walking on water. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/22 "2008-10-14T20:03:15Z")
I hardly ever talk about my child with my friends. Hell, the one reason I hang out with my friends is because I occasionally want to talk about something else. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/23 "2008-10-14T20:13:49Z")
God, my SO’s SIL has turned into That Woman. It’s awful, all she does is spend time with the baby and talk about the baby and dote on the baby and we are all expected to do the same. I don’t even like babies. Honestly, they’re not really even that interesting until they start talking full sentences, and then only barely. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/24 "2008-10-14T20:19:55Z")
> [@batsto](#): > > This is almost as bad as the people here who seem to think we’re interested in pictures of their pets. **batsto** - just so you don’t think this little gem slipped by unnoticed, _word_. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/25 "2008-10-14T20:26:03Z")
> [@vivalostwages](#): > > In my mom’s senior computer class, the instructor completely went off the deep end re: her first grandchild, making everyone in the class look at photos and video of THE BIRTH. People can lose all perspective when a new little human is squeezed out. That…is disgusting. > [@eleanorrigby](#): > > My MIL handed me (in all seriousness) an 11 x 13 color portrait of her daughter (my SIL) in her wedding gown. When I tried to give it (on the sly) back to SIL, SIL said to me she wanted me to have it! No ego there, nosirree… I threw it away and kept the frame. OMG. We have a HUGE photo…probably 11 x 17 if not bigger…of his brother and SIL of their wedding day. What the fuck? Why would you give that to me? Do you think I’m going to hang a picture of your wedding in my house? One that big, no less? I mean, it is literally portrait size. We don’t throw it away. I figure when aforementioned child is 18, we’ll give it back to her. She can deal with it. > [@featherlou](#): > > To answer your serious question from the perspective of a childfree by choice person, rockle, I will never initiate questions about your children, and I will feign the barest polite interest if you bring them up to me. In other words, I think all you need to do is stay aware of your audience - if they’re asking you questions and drawing you out about your kids, talk away. If they aren’t, they probably aren’t interested. It doesn’t always work though. I clearly remember ignoring a kid discussion, and the woman came over and stuck her damn pictures between me and the monitor so I could tell her how pretty they were. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![rockle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/73ab20/32.png) [@rockle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rockle)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/26 "2008-10-14T20:39:46Z")
> [@featherlou](#): > > To answer your serious question from the perspective of a childfree by choice person, **rockle** , I will never initiate questions about your children, and I will feign the barest polite interest if you bring them up to me. In other words, I think all you need to do is stay aware of your audience - if they’re asking you questions and drawing you out about your kids, talk away. If they aren’t, they probably aren’t interested. Man, Calgary is kind of far away, but if we were closer, I’d stalk … er, _try to find_ you and meet up or something. I actually _appreciate_ it when people say nothing vs. the constant “How is \?” first thing in the morning. Um, _hello_? I am right here! Did I _disappear_ when I wasn’t watching? She’s fine, she’s a kid, she’s made of Jello and rubber bands like the rest of them, but _ **I** _ want to talk about _Gossip Girl_, dammit! (No, I am _not_ still having trouble adjusting, why do you ask?) ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/27 "2008-10-14T21:06:08Z")
I went out to lunch today, and saw a co-worker walk in while I was eating. I was about to wave her down and say hi, and then I noticed that she had a big 10" X 13" or so photo of her grandchildren embossed onto the front of her purse and was carrying it so that it conspicuously preceded her. Since I didn’t want to have a half-hour discussion about her grandchildren, I decided not to call attention to myself. WTF is up with that? When did people start carrying accessories advertising their kids? What a nauseating trend. ---
**Author:** ![Sticks\_and\_Scones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sticks_and_scones/32/16951_2.png) [@Sticks\_and\_Scones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sticks_and_Scones)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/28 "2008-10-14T21:14:21Z")
Heh. My best friend’s baby is about 6 weeks old now. I’ve already got 6 pictures. I actually tried to accidentally leave the last two at the house when I left. _She caught me._ I think what’s worse is that she used to be a professional photographer.:eek: Sorry, I love her and the new kidlet, but I’m just not a baby person and what exactly am I to do with all the photos? ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/29 "2008-10-14T21:16:02Z")
> [@vivalostwages](#): > > People can lose all perspective when a new little human is squeezed out. But, but, it’s a _miracle_! [Miracle Of Birth Occurs For 83 Billionth Time](http://www.theonion.com/content/news/miracle_of_birth_occurs_for_83) I think it’s funny how first kids always get this _everybody be quiet!/don’t touch/oh god, germs!/blah blah YIKES!_ treatment, but each kid after that gets exceedingly more “whatever” treatment. First kid: "OH GOD, PRECIOUS PICKED UP A BUG!!\* _full bath, aniseptic washdown, visit to the doctor to make sure no diseases were caught_ Fourth kid: “Kid! Quit washing your toys in the toilet bowl!” _mom goes back to doing whatever she was doing_ [QUOTE=batsto] This is almost as bad as the people here who seem to think we’re interested in pictures of their pets. [/QUOTE] That’s kinda not fair though, since generally people only post pet pictures in pet threads, and others do ask for them if pictures aren’t provided. Pet threads are easily avoided, as is clicking on the link that leads to the picture, so I don’t know what your problem is. ---
**Author:** ![KSO](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@KSO](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KSO)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/30 "2008-10-14T21:23:18Z")
One of my friends went through that when her son was born. Every single time I visited she asked “Isn’t he the cutest kid in the world, ever?” That is an exact quote. And what I wanted to say was “No, not really. Actually, he’s pretty average. My friend Laura’s son is much cuter.” Instead, I sucked it up and said “Yes, he’s cute,” even though he wasn’t. I’m still sort of pissed about it, especially since she spoils him rotten and treats her daughter like shit. ---
**Author:** ![Rack-a-Bones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rack-a-Bones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rack-a-Bones)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/31 "2008-10-14T21:23:27Z")
> [@rockle](#): > > Serious question: I am also a fairly new mom. My parents and in-laws are local to me, but my sisters and both our extended families are “away” (we’re in PA – they’re in Chicago and points west). I have a blog, where I post pictures of the toddler, but I don’t pimp it all the time. I think my sister handled it pretty well. She was excited to share but knew not everyone would care. She sent out an email (with no pics) and just said “hey everybody here is a web address where I’ll be posting stories and pictures. Check it out if you want.” And then nothing more. I think just let people know one time where to find the pics and those that like that sort of thing will keep in touch with you via the blog and those that don’t, well, won’t. ---
**Author:** ![SkipMagic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skipmagic/32/20706_2.png) [@SkipMagic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkipMagic)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/32 "2008-10-14T21:29:51Z")
> [@Rack-a-Bones](#): > > I think my sister handled it pretty well. She was excited to share but knew not everyone would care. She sent out an email (with no pics) and just said “hey everybody here is a web address where I’ll be posting stories and pictures. Check it out if you want.” We did that, too; in fact, I keep the site pretty well updated even though I know we’re really the only ones who want to take a peek on a regular basis. Problem was that most people didn’t bother checking; that is, they kept sending e-mails requesting photographs, so I kept telling them the site had been updated, and wouldn’t they like to see it? Not a peep. Except for a few weeks later when the process started all over again. So, I finally gave up and started e-mailing photos. It seemed much easier. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/33 "2008-10-14T21:36:52Z")
> [@SkipMagic](#): > > Problem was that most people didn’t bother checking; that is, they kept sending e-mails requesting photographs, so I kept telling them the site had been updated, and wouldn’t they like to see it? > > Not a peep. Maybe if you hadn’t asked for their credit card numbers? ---
**Author:** ![SkipMagic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skipmagic/32/20706_2.png) [@SkipMagic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkipMagic)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/34 "2008-10-14T21:38:32Z")
Fine Columbian snow doesn’t just grow on trees, you know. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/35 "2008-10-14T21:39:58Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > \ > It doesn’t always work though. I clearly remember ignoring a kid discussion, and the woman came over and stuck her damn pictures between me and the monitor so I could tell her how pretty they were. :rolleyes: Nope, it sure doesn’t. **rockle** , it never occurred to me before that co-workers would appreciate me not being overly interested in their kids. Thanks for the new perspective. ---
**Author:** ![Foxy40](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a9a28c/32.png) [@Foxy40](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Foxy40)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/36 "2008-10-14T21:49:50Z")
OMG. I am so onboard with this rant. I work in an office of about twenty five people. I do not want to see your kids latest school picture or look at your camera at the shots from your son’s first birthday party. I have wedding photos, prom pictures and copies of every month baby picture that can be taken. Come to think of it, I also don’t want to coochie coochie coo over your new babies when you bring them in every week of your maternity leave. I don’t even know what to do with all my kids’ pictures, let alone yours. Cut it out. ---
**Author:** ![Some\_FNG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/48db29/32.png) [@Some\_FNG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Some_FNG)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/37 "2008-10-14T22:04:16Z")
If people email you photos of their hellspawn, then Photoshop them and send them back with the note that you ‘improved’ them. If they inflict printed photos on you, ask “What’s that?” and point vaguely at the kid’s face with a look of concern etched on your face. When they get worried, reassure the proud parent that it’s probably not too serious. ---
**Author:** ![Rack-a-Bones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rack-a-Bones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rack-a-Bones)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/38 "2008-10-14T22:07:41Z")
> [@Some\_FNG](#): > > If people email you photos of their hellspawn, then Photoshop them and send them back with the note that you ‘improved’ them. > > If they inflict printed photos on you, ask “What’s that?” and point vaguely at the kid’s face with a look of concern etched on your face. When they get worried, reassure the proud parent that it’s probably not too serious. Pure evil. Evil genius. I think I’m a little bit turned on… ---
**Author:** ![malkavia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malkavia/32/5621_2.png) [@malkavia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/malkavia)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/39 "2008-10-14T22:29:56Z")
> [@Equipoise](#): > > That’s kinda not fair though, since generally people only post pet pictures in pet threads, and others do ask for them if pictures aren’t provided. Pet threads are easily avoided, as is clicking on the link that leads to the picture, so I don’t know what your problem is. Oh god, I hate to say this.. but that’s not true. I keep lots of pictures of my cats on my phone and my friends and we picture message funny pictures of our pets to each others phones. Oh god, I didn’t realize.. it all just happened so fast. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901/40 "2008-10-14T22:43:44Z")
I have no problems receiving pictures so long as I don’t have to look through pictures with somebody. I take them home and put them away to bring out if I need them, but otherwise it’s little effort for me to make them happy. I hate when I get emailed pictures to give to somebody else. They just seem to have never been received. Eventually the two figure out they need to transfer pictures some other way. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/enough-with-the-baby/467901.md?page=3)