Poser: Why I Don't Want Baby D to Wear Camo

When I was 18, I knew a girl who had more than one sticker on her car depicting those adorable, rainbow hued dancing bears. That was the year Jerry Garcia passed away. As a group of us sat sipping our lattes around a table (hey, it was 1995. We thought we were Friends.) the girl piped up and asked, "So, who is Jerry Garcia and why is everybody making such a big deal that he died?"
The girl was, as we say, a big ol' poser.

Fast forward to 2012. Camo is everywhere. It's all over the baby clothes made for little boys. And, I don't want to dress my baby boy in it.
Yes, I realize I live in Alabama and camouflage is considered a staple in every person's wardrobe. However, I don't think there is any in our home. Maybe the county fashion police should come and arrest us.

First of all, we're not in the military. My dad was in the Army, my cousins were/are in the Army, both our grandfathers served in WWII, and I am very proud of my former student who is now a Marine protecting our freedom in Afghanistan. But, well, we're not soldiers. Madeline isn't a firefighter, so I don't dress her like one. I don't dress like a police officer to go to the grocery store. So, why would I dress my son like a soldier when he isn't one?

Second of all, we don't hunt. I'm going to try not to get all sanctimonious about this one, because I don't have a problem with people who hunt. But, since there is a Publix roughly 7 minutes from our house, there's really no reason for us to go a-shootin' at some food. We can buy it at the store. (And, a sport is when two opposing players or teams both know what's going on and have an equal chance at scoring. Unless you arm the deer, hunting is not a sport.)
I know of several people, relatives included, who presented their little boys or young adolescent boys with firearms for Christmas. I get that they're going to use them for hunting, and will wear camo as they do it. I'm not judging. I just don't think giving my little boy a lethal weapon is a choice I'm going to make in the future. So, there's no need to get him acclimated to the camo culture this early.

If, when Baby D is old enough to make his own choices, he decides he wants to get up at 3 a.m. to sit in the woods when it's 32 degrees outside on the off-chance that he might shoot a deer that we're not going to eat because we don't like venison, OK. He can wear camouflage. The same goes for if he decides to follow in his Poppa's footsteps and join the military.

But, for now, dressing him in camo would be like me wearing a football...um, uniform? Is it called a uniform?

We try to be genuine people. No need to turn our kid into a poser.