My air conditioner is broken. And if you haven't noticed, it's late June.
Which means the same thing in upstate New York as it does the rest of the country — humidity, humidity, and a little more humidity.
It also means by the time we're done with the first bedtime story of the night, my daughter has shucked her nightgown and is lying in bed in the buff.
Usually she keeps her underwear on.
Not always.
Despite the open windows on both sides of her room to give her a breeze, we're stuck just waiting out the heat.
For us it's just a fact of life — and a quick poll of my Facebook friends proved we're not the only ones.
A few said their kids have never thought to sleep naked, but they have (working) air conditioners in their rooms. Others put the baby in a diaper and the older kids in clothes — only to have them disappear by morning. And the moms who demand their kids wear at least underwear have given up on actually finding the undies ON said child at wake-up time.
It sounds like our house is the norm, not the exception.
So I was sort of surprised to find a CafeMom worrying about whether her kid was normal for asking to sleep naked.
Most moms weighed in to tell her it was just fine, especially considering 31 percent of American men and 14 percent of American women are still sleeping in the buff come adulthood.
Although those statistics might show the root of moms' confusion: It was slipped into a "sex" survey, trotting out our puritanical roots to scare parents. OMG: naked = sexy!
Except a 4-year-old schvitzing in the heat is not sexy. They're just miserable.
Do your kids sleep in the buff?
Image via Just Taken Pics/Flickr
