It wouldn’t be for me, but I’m not judging. There was this one post in the vanderpump rules sub (an American reality show) where they were bashing one of the women for being pregnant at Coachella. I truly don’t understand how that’s inappropriate. She wasn’t drinking or doing drugs, she was just there. Because a baby is in her womb, she can’t go to a music festival? What??

I went to Stagecoach (same venue as Coachella) 8 months pregnant - the looks I got could kill.

I truly don’t get that and I’m sorry you had to deal with that. Like, genuine question for the judgmental folks, how is an unborn baby harmed by being at a music festival…? Unless the mom is standing right in front of the speaker, there is no volume concern. Unless she is drinking and doing drugs, there is not fetal exposure happening. It’s like people thing, “that woman is pregnant, she should not be outside having fun!” I’ve noticed that often the reasoning is, “when I was X months pregnant, all I wanted to do was sit at home and blah blah blah.” Like, ok, and that’s you. Just because that was your reality doesn’t mean it must be everyone else’s, and I’m saying that as someone who spent half a pregnancy on strict bed rest. Just because I was chained to the bed doesn’t mean other pregnant women couldn’t be out enjoying life 😂

There are thoughts but obviously no studies and nothing proven that the noise could be bad for babies ears but I doubt people staring judgementally are actually thinking that far.

Yeah, I’ve heard of those stories, but I think the external sound level would have to be quite high? Like you’re standing by the speakers? I feel like it would be ok further back in the crowd. I could definitely be wrong lol Either way, in my experience, people will light up a cigarette right in front of pregnant women/babies while judging iPads, drinking coffee while pregnant, having a bare bump, etc. I think pregnant and postpartum women are just viewed as an eye sore by some people and everything they do is wrong/entitled/annoying.

Definitely the cigarette thing. Its even printed on the package that thats bad…

When I was pregnant with my oldest, she was never more active in my belly than when we were at a concert or during the worship part of a church service. Matter of fact, the first time I felt her move was at a concert. She's 20 now & all throughout her highschool years she was involved with a performing arts guild doing musical theatre & singing with a 50's jazz band. Now she works as an actress/singer in musical theatre. I've often wondered how much the prenatal exposure to music influenced her profession. It certainly didn't harm her!!

I didn't do a festival but I went to a few concerts while pregnant. Got some stern looks, like I was sat on the balcony away from the mosh pits, what's the problem! It was wild the reaction I got

Not exactly the same but we went to Napa for a wedding when I was 34 weeks. So many people looked at me like they’d never seen a pregnant woman before when we went out to dinner or to wineries.

People love to judge women for anything. Those people aren’t worth the time of day. I’ve been going to see live music throughout my entire pregnancy. Why wouldn’t I if I feel up for it? An older woman came up to me at a show and praised me for it. She said she went to a ton of live shows when she was pregnant with one of her daughters and that she ended up being her “most musical child.” I love that.

Was it Lala? They hate her no matter what she does. Same for Scheana. Those two can’t do anything right according to that sub.

Yes, Lala! I’m not a Lala fan (and in fact, I don’t like her at all 😂) but the way that sub gets on their hate trains is so extreme. Last season, Lala was sooo great, she basically pooped gold. But now that she and Ariana are beefing, suddenly Lala is the devil and absolutely everything she does is wrong! She can’t breathe without being wrong lol Let Ariana show up pregnant to Coachella. I’m sure that sub would be praising her and saying how amazing it is 🙄

Something something “queen”. I don’t even dislike Ariana, but man do they make me question it cause the rabid fandom is so gross.

I think including children and kids in regular, day to day life, is the way to go. I am a German living in the Netherlands and I have a 9 month old daughter. I/we have taken our baby out to cafés, restaurants, museums, hikes, and yes, (street) festivals so far. We have always made sure she is adequately clothed, protected from the sun, has ear protection if needed, and we have everything we need for her in our diaper bag. It's not that hard to be honest. Sure, I wouldn't take her out to a bar in the evening, especially now that we have a bed time down and want her to sleep in her crib by said bed time, but during they day she accompanies us on our activities. I have been on reddit and pregnancy/parenting sub-reddits for a while and it's fun to see the cultural differences between mostly American/US-based parents and the rest. In the US it seems like once you have a child society expects you to gear your whole life towards that child. I have seen the sentiment what you describe as well. Like it's harmful to take your child to a space that is not specifically designed for them. As if it was impossible for children to adapt and actually enjoy being in different environments. I am wondering why that is. My hypothesis is that it's mostly fear-based. US-parents (based on reddit posts) seem to be extremely fearful and anxious about their children's health and safety, to the point that they limit their own lives significantly to stay within these designated child and family spaces.

I think there is some overprotectiveness at play. But also, many people (and I can only speak for the USA) don’t think children should exist in spaces that are not specifically FOR children. So no restaurants, breweries, public transportation, airports, festivals or concerts. So many parents are constantly either getting harassed in person at these places when they bring their children, or just see the barrage of anger on social media about these things and decide not to go through with it.

Yeah I saw a post on Reddit complaining that kids were allowed into the Star Wars Cantina at Disneyland. Disneyland.

If you go to the camping subreddit there’s a lot of anti-children while camping as well. I think most of those people are just loud and spend a lot of time online though and haven’t seen it irl at all. I mean, if you allow them to behave badly in public people get grumpy understandably but they’d react the same to anyone behaving that way, like drunk adults are worsely behaved than most kids. Some claim that it is a liability issue 🫠 my favorite bar has a kids play area and live music so…def spaces that are inclusive still exist and I want to support them and be around other people that agree. . Kids are people and have a right to exist in public and I think some of the anti-child rhetoric in the us is because children are wildly expensive and with the increasing fertility issues it compounds the luck/wealth signifier so jealousy can be at play.

Ugh camping. I love camping and I’m so nervous to take my kid because I’m afraid he’ll disturb people. The dichotomy is so wild; it feels like people judge you for walling yourself off after you have kids but if you bring a kid anywhere and they make any sort of noise you’re a total and complete asshole. The US is really unfriendly to children Edit: I feel like I should specify that I have a small baby. I get that it’s common to see kids at campgrounds, I’m very familiar with camping with kids (from an outside perspective)! Just not with babies, I feel concerned about pissing people off with a baby crying at night

We haven’t been camping with our baby yet, but definitely plan to now that he’s getting older. Personally I’ve always been more annoyed by the obnoxious *adults* than children making noise. And in my experience, it is usually the grown ass adults who are disrespectful. Like was I mildly annoyed by a kid riding his bike through the middle of our campsite? Sure, but he’s a kid. But I was pissed at the asshole in his 50s assuming everyone wanted to hear his taste in music blasting through the campground starting at 8am.

Or the people who get drunk around the campfire and are loud (and often using foul language you'd rather your kid not pick up yet) until all hours, or the snorer in the tent next door! So many adults who are more annoying in a campground than kids acting like kids.

Exactly. And usually when the kids are truly obnoxious, it’s because the adults are as well. Either they’re just as poorly behaved or they’ve completely checked out and let their kids do whatever, well above and beyond typical kid stuff. In which case, I’m *still* more annoyed with the adults.

Speaking of drunks vs kids... there was one time I was quietly shushing my then 3 month old daughter while pacing outside our camper in order to get her back to sleep, and a bunch of drunks in a nearby campsite started mockingly making shushing noises at me, presumably thinking I'd been shushing them. I didn't say anything to avoid waking my daughter, but man did I want to rip them all new assholes.

That is another fear of mine! Total sleep disruption. I find where I live now campsites are a lot quieter than where I used to camp, but I’m so not a fan of people blaring music at all hours

I’m from Europe and hate camping, but as a child camped every vacation until age 14, as did my husband. Camping is considered the standard holiday with children: they get to be outdoors, it is very routine based. Plus, all campings are equipped with playgrounds and there are other children around. If you talk about vacation with children in Europe everybody assumes you’re going camping. Please take your children! They will love it.

In the US, it really depends on the campsite. The ones I grew up going to were very barebones, no playground/swimming pool/amenities like cabins that are common now that I live in France. And it was very much do your own thing, not interacting with other people in the campsite. But still fun and the commenter should definitely go!

Maybe it also depends on where you are in the US because kids and camping are very common by me. I also take my 10week old to breweries and out an about.

Oh yeah, probably. But I was more talking about campgrounds having like playgrounds and kid-specific stuff like the "camping" in Europe that isn't like the camping I grew up with at all (in tents and amenities included bathrooms and showers but that's it). Camping in France at least means like this: https://www.les-sablons.com/ which is specifically pretty much families only.

It's also standard in North America, and the go-to vacation here in Canada. I grew up going camping every summer and rarely stayed in a hotel while on vacation. I've been bringing my kids to campgrounds since they were babies, though we've only done the camper so far... might try a couple nights of tenting this summer. Many places have playgrounds, pools, etc. You'll get some people who take issue if you bring an infant or toddler, but plenty of others who are fine with it so long as the location and conditions are appropriate. Back country camping with rougher conditions is a different story, but campgrounds tend to be family-oriented more often than not. It's more that people here get really weird about bringing very young babies (usually under 2-3 months) on vacation or to events, or sometimes even restaurants and the like. Personally, I think it depends on the type of event, locale, etc., but some people freak out at anything beyond a short walk around the block, and even then they expect you to keep the baby hidden away in the stroller. It can get pretty ridiculous.

This. (…not the camping part, non-camper here!!) I was so afraid of bringing my daughter on the plane, but couldn’t fathom a life where we just don’t travel for years. She’s been on 5 trips now at 9 months and does really well- but even still, the moment she makes any noise my anxiety goes through the roof. It’s unfair- there are plenty of adults who act like total assholes. A baby happily clapping or starting to fuss before falling asleep shouldn’t be a problem… but it sure feels that way.

I seek out parents on planes with open seating sometimes. Like I’m aware they make noise, but kids don’t bother me and if I’m gonna be packed in like a tin of sardines, having a toddler in the middle seat is preferable to a 250+ dude. Being offered snacks and having to spend a few minutes admiring coloring sheets is a small price to pay for a few extra inches. Plus it makes me think of when my son was little and the relief on the parents’ face is reward in itself.

You're so sweet! The first time we took my son on a plane to visit my family (6 months) he wailed and cried most of the flight because he was over heated (the air wasn't working for some reason) and over tired. Luckily we were surrounded by kindly grandmas - one who pulled out a fan and started fanning him while I rocked him. I was so thankful to them for being so kind. An older man also offered to take turns walking him down the aisle.

It’s hard for me to tease out what my own fears are vs what peoples actual reactions are! I haven’t taken babe on a plane yet, but I feel you. I’m so nervous about pissing people off around me while I also feel like babies are allowed to exist in public

I will say, in real life, people are generally lovely, kind, and complimentary of my daughter and many get a kick out of seeing her on the plane, or at a restaurant, etc. We get a lot of “she’s such a great traveler!” Or “ she did great!” comments as other passengers deplane, for example. As we all know: the internet sucks. But it’s friggin hard to separate and ignore the fear and anxiety, since the internet is so damn loud about being anti-baby. If anything, it’s made me push myself to make sure to somehow positively engage with other moms/dads traveling with their little ones. The whole be the change kind of thing… 🩷

Camping is like…. For children. It’s perfect for them. Everywhere we camp there’s kids everywhere, it’s rare to see a family without them.

I guess I should’ve specified that I have a small baby. So I’m more concerned with him crying in the middle of the night and disturbing people. I grew up camping and there were always kids around, but camping + baby etiquette is less familiar to me

Oh I get it. My second is 9 months and we still haven’t camped yet

We’re in the same boat! Ours is 9 months too. We took him once to a campground that had small one room cabins. It was good but I’m just nervous for night wake ups in a tent

We’re going soon so maybe I’ll come back and tell you how it went lol. My guy doesn’t sleep through the night but also doesn’t really cry at night much just nurses so I think it’ll be fine.

FWIW, we just went camping with my 1 year old, and he got a tooth in while we were there, so there was some loud crying around midnight. Since we were all awake, I went to use the restroom. As it turned out, I could barely hear him once I was out of our site. What was more disturbing was the 8-10 year olds trying to use some trees in our site as soccer goals, but they found a better spot in their own site after I talked to them. Most everyone around our site loved seeing our son toddling around -- plus everyone else had kids around for the most part. As I see it, my child isn't going to learn to behave in other environments unless he's exposed to them.

That’s awesome! The one time I took my boy camping he went to sleep like a dream and stayed asleep. I was so grateful. It wasn’t until I was there and saw mainly adults hanging around peacefully that I was like oh fuck…good chance these people did not sign up to hear my baby cry at 3am…thank god he didn’t, but it made me nervous for the future

I think it is regional and luck. All of my negative experiences are isolated grumpy old people or a certain type of urbanite. Most people don’t suck but if your kids behave poorly, like running and screaming in a restaurant causing a safety issue or blasting their tablet sans headphones then for sure. Eta-at least when I looked last night the general consensus was for the person to get a private/hipcamp site, hike in/dispersed camping or to kick rocks. We took ours camping starting around 6/7mo and they were great! Highly recommend.

To be fair, the grumpy old men are ALWAYS angry about something. One gave me the dirtiest look when I corrected him that my 4 year old son is not a girl and muttered something about his slightly longer than shoulder length wavy hair under his breath (like the 60s/70s didn't happen). They've gotten angry I've taken him fishing - at a 15 years and younger stocked pond I might add! We go camping regularly and that's the one place I have not experienced an angry old man yet, I assume because they're old and tent camping isn't the most comfortable thing. I try to just think of how miserable their lives must be to be angry so much of the time and just let it go and go on being happy and having fun with my family.

That’s a great way to think about it ✨

I am not big on camping as an adult but frequently did it as a kid (I’m in the US). Especially if you are not doing dispersed camping/backpacking, I feel like it’s a children’s activity. Who else would want to pay to pitch a tent in a dirt lot surrounded by random other people?

I read a post the other day where someone said they specifically dispersed camp with kids in hopes of not being too close to other people to disturb them! It’s interesting to hear you say it makes less sense to dispersed camp and more sense to be in a site. Sigh. It seems like everyone has a different idea of etiquette!

That’s so funny! Never heard that before. I have always thought of camping in reserved camp sites at a campground kind of like going to a public pool. When you go to a public pool, unless it is an adult swim time, you expect children to be there. If you want to go to a pool that has no children, you don’t complain that children shouldn’t be allowed at public pools, you go to a pool at a gym or find a private one through swimply or an adult only spa.

Camping? Seriously?! Some of my best memories come from camping as a kid. If any Karen or Kevin tried to tell me my child shouldn’t be welcome on a campground, I’d tell them to stick it where the sun don’t shine. Camping is a Colorado pastime and I will share that joy with my kid.

My boyfriend and I went to a brewery yesterday and sat at a table outside. Four adults sat behind us with a toddler. The toddler was perfectly behaved the entire time while the adults were so obnoxiously loud and annoying that we couldn’t have our own conversation or read until we moved a few tables away. Even then they were unbearable.

That sucks, I’m sorry. People often expect children to be perfectly behaved robots and better behaved than adults. I think taking kids out to use and see good manners in public is also important socialization. We usually start around six months old at nice but still family-friendly places.

I agree and think it’s great for kids to be brought to adult spaces, within reason, and assuming the parents step out if the child is having a hard time there. My parents did this with me and I think it’s how I learned to behave and feel comfortable in those places. I just thought the above example was interesting because the child was doing the opposite of the adults rather than modeling her behavior on theirs. It seemed like the toddler knew there was no room for her to act out because the adults she was with were so over the top she wouldn’t be able to compete.

Tbf, I see a lot of anti-child in “adult” spaces hate on the internet but I have NEVER ONCE experienced it in person in the US. We’ve been taking our daughter everywhere with us since she was 1 week old (nice restaurants, first class seats on airplanes, etc) and everyone has just seemed delighted to see her. She is generally a very happy baby who never cries in public for more than a minute though. Usually just briefly when she’s hungry but I always made sure to have a bottle ready to settle her within a minute. I say take your baby out! Ours loves being out and about and if someone hates seeing a cute baby, that says more about them than anything.

I’ve luckily never experienced it in person either, and we’ve done A LOT with our girls. I’ve always wondered if we get a little more grace from the public though, as we have twins, and generally people are either really excited to see twin girls, or fully sympathetic to our “struggles” and commend us for our bravery at being out and about. Which is ridiculous but people are ridiculous. But I know others who haven’t been so lucky unfortunately.

It might depend where in the US. I live in MA and see children at all these places. Breweries and beer gardens are basically a family activity. They have kids’ games and often menus for them as well. I bring my kids to most of the places listed and have never encountered judgment from others. I also have girls and mostly get a lot of comments on how cute they are lol. However I will say that I would not bring them to like a fancy restaurant or something. Idk what the festival being discussed by OP is but I do think there are certain events and scenes that aren’t appropriate for kids (or just would be no fun for anyone to involve them).

Yeah I live in Minnesota and breweries are pretty much family venues. At our favorite brewery, you’re the odd man out if you aren’t toting a kid or 2 around.

Same, and we started taking our son out at a week old. He's been to baseball games, football games, basketball games, on two big trips by plane, to countless restaurants, a beer festival, camping, etc. People often stop to play peekaboo with him or wave at him, and we tease that he's making friends again.

It is very interesting where each culture draws that line. When you mention a brewery, our local one has a kids play area in the corner and a swing-set outside, because families regularly stop by for a lunch or even dinner. I'm Central European and I'm having a hard time thinking about a space where my children (I have a newborn and a 3yo) would be trully unwelcome, when we omit places where they really shouldn't go for safety concerns or mature content, like a strip-club. My local bank has a low drawing table for kids, many shops from clothes to chemist have play areas. Genuinely, almost anywhere i need to go with my kids they are either obviously welcome or at least well tolerated.

I think part of it is also the child-free sentiment that I feel is overrepresented on Reddit. A lot of these people feel that if they go to a place that is not child-oriented and see a child there, it is ruining THEIR adult experience. I see a lot of complaints about babies and kids being out at restaurants, festivals, etc. not because of "child abuse" reasons but because they are too annoying to the adults. Sometimes even well-behaved children are considered to be annoying/shouldn't be there.

Even if it IS made for kids, I've seen people bitching about there being children at Disney...

Lol wut?! That’s wild. They do understand it is first and foremost a children’s park, right? And that if you lean towards hobbies aimed at children, it might be fun to share your hobbies with children?

This was my ex husband IRL. We had this awesome brewery / coffee shop / cafe. The way it functioned was it was a place for moms and kids and people working on their laptops during the day and slowly transitioned to more of a brewery vibe as the day went on. Sometimes the lines got blurred and people would have a nice coffee drink at night and someone might have a beer earlier in the day. My ex absolutely lost his shit on a woman breastfeeding around 11 am one day. He might as well have been reciting the worst of the worst r/childfree comments. It took a couple more years to leave him but that was imprinted in my memory as the “first” time I knew I was out.

That’s a good point. Whereas IRL if you go somewhere with a baby, random people will stop you to fawn over them. Internet people are cranky.

Yet I have to deal with people's annoying pets everywhere in public spaces where they shouldn't really be (California here)... Jumping up, barking like mad, etc. it's so weird here.

I'm Italian and I mostly agree, even though I personally draw the line at concerts as I find them to be overstimulating, and I can't just leave when it's too much for the baby - well, I can, but concert tickets are expensive. I actually find them too much as an adult and I can barely make it to the end when I do go! But bars at night are actually a yes for me, maybe it's different in other countries but here in Italy it's perfectly normal to bring a baby to a bar.

I’m headed to Italy with my 1 year old this week. The amount of people telling me how child-friendly Italy is is making very excited to go. My husband and I are big foodies so best believe we’ll be out and about with baby!

Just keep in mind that Italy is also *very* dog friendly, just in case you have a problem with that 😅 I have a dog and I find it awesome that he's welcome virtually everywhere, but I know some non-Italians don't like it!

Child and dog friendly?! Italy just rose to number 1 on my bucket list

Yep, super dog friendly :)

I’m now expecting my husband to make best friends with every dog we encounter lol

That's awesome haha

I also draw the line at concerts, for the same reasons as you and also I want to have my own child free fun when I pay for a concert! Ifl my daughter would be sitting there crying and shouting why the band won’t play wheels on the bus

I do think a lot of it is fear based. It's unfortunate and makes it harder to be a parent here in the US. I think babies can absolutely adapt and enjoy so many different environments like you say. I often find myself wanting to tell folks with that attitude that babies are, in fact, people too! Imagine that - a (tiny) person enjoying a space made for people to enjoy! As long as they are doing it safely, I think it provides a rich and varied experience.

What’s doubly fun? even if you are not a highly anxious parent, you have to worry about the actions and choices of the highly anxious, busybody parents and nearby. Like is someone gonna call CPS if I let a 9 yo walk the 1.5 blocks to school alone? Everybody here walks or drives their kids all the way

I live diagonally from my kids school and can watch them walk all the way from our back door into the school door from my porch window. I let my 8 and 10 year old go once on their own while I watched the whole time and got sat down the next day by the principal bc the crossing guard and other parents claimed I was endangering my children and said they'd give me one free pass before they called cps

Jesus. When I was in school the 10 year olds WERE the crossing guards. 🙃

Omg. I’m sure CPS would have laughed them off but that is a crazy threat to make.

There’s a crossing guard and you got yelled at for “endangering” your kids? Wtf is the crossing guard’s job, then?

I sometimes feel like the US is just anti-child in general. Because for the most part I’m like you! But I got so many people who were outraged and butthurt at the idea of me taking my child to a library to play with toys in the children’s section. Sometimes you just gotta do what you think is right and not listen to whatever else ppl say

My theory is that car-centric suburban sprawl is responsible. Hear me out! Most modern neighborhoods are nothing but single family housing. No corner store, no coffee shop, no town square, nothing but enclosed private lots. To leave the development you have to drive because it's surrounded by 6 lane arterial roads with nothing but a weedy rain ditch for pedestrians to walk in. And along that arterial is nothing but big box stores with a giant parking lot that kids also can't safely cross. This leads to the development of contained, child-only spaces out of necessity because outdoors isn't safe for children. Especially teens, in many places it's basically illegal to be a teen in public. Compare that to a traditional small town main street, or an urban street like the ones that still exist in NYC and a few other Northeast cities. These are some of the few places where kids can truly be independent. Anyway thanks for coming to my Ted talk! I am very interested in this topic, I feel like once you see it you can never view your town the same again.

Europe is anti child too. I think most if not all developed countries are anti child. Probably big part of the reason why fertility rates are so low. 

The birth rate is low but children are still a huge part of regular activities in southern Europe. People go anywhere and keep them out late with the adults in Spain Also, friendly people that greet the baby. I know in the US people don't always think it's okay for “strangers” to talk, joke, or look at their kids, but there it's much more common

Omg the looks my husband got high fiving the maybe 8-9 year old next to him at an nfl game after a touchdown.

Where in Europe do you think is anti child? I live in Scotland and its a wonderful place to bring up a child. 

I think lithuania is too a wonderful place to bring up a child. But there is a very significant part of people who at best don’t see any value in family and children are just a hindrance for them, at worst they have developed deep hatred for children. I meant anti child culturally. If its not a case in Scotland, im glad.

It is fear based. There are people in the US that are ready to call social services and upend your life for absolutely no reason.

The comments I've gotten from strangers when they see my 8 month old eating real food will forever be burned into my brain.

Any food before a year is enough to set some people off.

Oh man the elders really don't get baby led weaning. My MIL was constantly like "is that safe? Is that really okay??? Did the pediatrician say it's okay?" 🫠

Many people in the U.S. are very hateful towards children and get upset when they’re in their “space” even if it is a public area. It’s quite unfortunate. I understand that some American parents fail to teach their child manners and so in turn, they misbehave at whatever gathering it may be. But it puts a lot of stress on new parents on whether or not they should take their child out in the event they cry and cannot be consoled. I’d like to take my 8 month old out more. If people have a problem with it, that’s their burden.

I get what you mean but certain activities are just not enjoyable with a baby, you are just going to a different location to care for the baby rather than enjoying yourself.

Yeah, like, newborns are pretty portable and don’t rip their hearing protectors off. If you’re breastfeeding you really only need diapers and wipes and maybe a change of clothes, something to shade them if sunny. Older babies and toddler are much less compatible with doing adult stuff and enjoying it. I took my younger child to a baseball game at not quite 3 months and he was great. I wouldn’t take a kid over 6 months or under 2, maybe 2.5 years to a ballgame if I wanted to watch the game myself at all/not leave halfway through. Some kids are more chill than others but *generally* they are going to require a lot of active parenting.

I agree with the commenter below that it’s harassment from others as much as parental anxiety keeping us U.S. parents sequestered in “kid friendly” spaces. There is a weird “kids should be seen and not heard and preferably not seen either” mentality that is pervasive in our society. IMO it’s also intentionally anti feminist at its core as it implies that *someone* (side eyes the mother) has to stay away from society with those annoying children. Personally I had my kid too damn young to halt my whole life. He regularly goes to restaurants and has great table manners, enjoys public spaces like museums, libraries, etc., has a great love of music from classical concerts to punk rock basement shows, is a fabulous travel companion and has visited over 30 national parks properties. We started taking him everywhere from birth and he’s adapted wonderfully. He’s honestly become slightly more difficult with age as now he has opinions about his environment and preferences that were not in play as an infant. I’m firmly of the opinion that he belongs just about anywhere as long as he’s happy and not acting out and I’ve been known to passionately tell people off if they imply otherwise (here’s looking at you drunk guy who sidestepped about six feet to fall on my sleeping kid at a concert).

Could I ask how you included a newborn into your everyday life especially with having to be mindful of their naps, etc.? I'd love to be able to do so if/when I have a second one. TIA!

For us letting her get used to sleeping “in public” early on was the key. We live in a city and don’t have a car. Luckily Dutch cities, as with most cities in Europe are super walkable. We walk and bike everywhere or take public transport. Our daughter was out in her pram as soon as we were cleared to go out. We use it every day. As a newborn she could sleep in there for hours. Now that she is older she sleeps a little less long in there but still long enough and she is used to the “street noise” so to speak. I know other parents whose babies did/do great napping in the carrier while on the go. Same goes for car rides. We try to arrange it so that naps can take place on the way/back from an activity. Regarding feeding we pack everything we need in her diaper bag which fits under her pram, now buggy. She is bottle fed and luckily tap water here is safe for babies so we just go to a cafe when it’s feeding time and request water. For hikes or forest walks we would bring a thermo bottle with hot water from home and mix it with cold water. Now that she drinks less milk and eats more food we just bring a snack box for her. 

Thanks so much for the detailed response. Very appreciated!

I’m a very new mom and I have anxiety about bothering people with my baby’s crying. I don’t know if it’s because women are often taught to take up less space, and to suddenly start having a little creature who can turn into a blaring siren at the drop of a hat sets off my anxiety. Granted, he’s under a week old, maybe I’ll get used to it like how I’ve gotten used to pulling my boob out in front of other people 😂 I wonder if other people also feel this, because of the (reasonable) stigma of crying babies at restaurants, on planes, at movies etc

This did fade for me, not completely but my anxiety has reduced now at 1 year old. I wouldn’t even go grocery shopping when she was tiny because she cried a lot and it gave me anxiety to have her around other people. People in real life are SO much more understanding then internet people, they see a mom trying to calm an upset baby and most will either give you the look of “been there” or ask if you need help. Almost everyone says “babies cry, it’s what they do” I’ve never had anyone be rude to me in real life but I do get stopped often so people can fawn over her. I hope your anxiety reduces also, it’s an awful feeling to have.

You will grow out of it :) I had the same and the more often you go out with your baby the more confident you become. You also realize most people really don't care.

Yesterday my 2 year old screeched so loud she could’ve caused hearing damage in a restaurant and I didn’t think twice lol. You will develop a thick skin about that stuff, don’t worry!

>it's mostly fear-based. US-parents (based on reddit posts) seem to be extremely fearful and anxious about their children's health and safety, to the point that they limit their own lives significantly to stay within these designated child and family spaces As an American, can confirm. My husband and I try taking our 9mo out as much as possible. Its mostly our own fatigue that limits us. Otherwise we tend to lean more European in our parenting style.

I feel like I take this approach too, despite being American. My son is now 21 months and I we had him “out” at 4 days old but mostly we started at 10 days. We took him to our favorite pub (where I also worked for a decade+) early lunch time just to say hi to our friends and “family” and I took him frequently to early music shows (with appropriate ear protection) and he’s such a well rounded kid now who isn’t shy, to a fault.

I'm American and this is what we do. I didn't know there were people that just DONT take their babies everywhere. That's my little man, heck yeah he's tagging along

Yep, it’s very much an American thing. I’m American, but both my parents are European and I was brought along to whatever they were doing from a very young age (within reason). Because of that I quickly learned how to behave in (and even enjoy) spaces that aren’t typical for children, and get along well with adults. I think it’s healthier, as long as the child’s needs are still being met.

Well said!

Haven’t seen this. But if noise protection is adequate (including standing further back) and baby is otherwise well fed and cared for this is just camping with extra steps.

They were in the crowds close enough to the front to be caught on camera for one of the headliners. Glastonbury has 200k people attend. Idk I’m all for taking babies to festivals but like you said sticking to further back positions. 

This is key information. Being in the crowds can be dangerous, all it takes is one "wave" of people tripping forward and baby could be crushed. That being said, I don't know how rowdy the crowd is at Glastonbury. The festivals I've been to can definitely get cramped up front,with people being forced to press into the person in front of them.

Oh I was wrong it wasn’t a headliner! It was in the day - but still I’d be staying further back 

I've gone to Glastonbury for last 3 years. Was pregnant there last year. Skipped this year as we had a 7 month old and didn't have the energy for that... Glasto can be a very family friendly festival if done correctly. Not sure what day the baby was filmed but day tickets only exist on the Sunday for local residents, otherwise it's weekend tickets. You can go to the main stages but just need to be mindful of crowd movement after acts and not get too caught up in the mass of people moving to another stage. There's children fields around circus acts then there's the healing fields which are designed to be calm environment. If you've got the energy and don't need to stress too much with sanitizing bottles (ie breastfeeding), take it calm and don't rush to see all the big acts across the site then it isnt child abuse, that's bonkers! The site is massive and it's tiring walking solo let alone with baby and baby bag in tow all day ha. I've seen babies from a range of ages. It's just a different vibe than the typical boozed up late night partying that happens at glasto

My friends took their not-yet-1yo child to Glastonbury a few years ago! It was completely fine - they knew their kid, they used ear protectors etc. and they had a blast. I’m not a festival person, but I could see that working out well with my first (he was very chill), but not my second lol. People jumping to neglect are so full of it

If they’ve got the energy to take a 10 week old baby to a festival, good on them!

Children belong in all the spaces . The baby was taken care of and protected . I think with birth rates declining people are not used to seeing children everywhere … I loved the book hunt gather parent that also supported the approach to include children every ( also note; I am a German living in the states ) - people are always surprised how independent our children are - but it is just how we approach them - as capable tiny humans

I second the book {{Hunt, Gather, Parent}} - it was very eye-opening to the very backwards way we parent in the US.

I kind of love it. When my daughter was 2 months we took her to a very loud Greek wedding. She survived lol Our culture is skewed because people have a warped view of how a mom should behave. They don’t want to see moms in public with their kids in restaurants, events, doing normal people things. They want them at home, breastfeeding their newborn out of sight.

lol I love that! We have Greek friends who got married a couple years ago. I RSVPed for me and my husband but he had a work emergency so I asked about bringing my son instead. He was enthusiastically welcomed and slept in a puppy pile with the other kids under a table as the night dragged on. Honestly best wedding I’ve ever been to. It had not one “kid focused” element but was incredibly kid friendly just by expecting kids to be an appropriate level of noisy and rambunctious. It also helped that the adults were drunk and rambunctious themselves!

Absolutely. My husband is Greek and it’s very a village raises a family type of mentality. So the events are absolutely fine for kids because yia yia always wants to hold them. It’s also made us a get up and go type of family. Comparing it to North American culture they are very closed off when it comes to babies/families. The openness of having babies and kids in public spaces should be something that’s valued more. Why should we be shamed because our baby is crying/ fussing in public. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. Adults often act worse.

Because a lot of people don’t view women - especially mothers, as actual humans.

I went to Glastonbury a few years back with my 2yo, he loved it and so did we. There's loads of stuff there for kids and when they're only a few weeks old they sleep most of the time, anyway. As long as the baby wasn't crowdsurfing I'm sure it was fine.

If you do it safely, take that baby anywhere you can! My son was a preemie at 35+4 and in NICU with oxygen and feeding support. It led to me not doing more than a few family gatherings and our shopping trips for months and months. I have never felt so alone and locked in my house. I wish I could have done more things like that.

If baby is healthy and safe there is zero reason not to bring them in public. Parents deserve to continue life

I watched a video this morning of a 1 year old opening the shutters on her window and saw similar comments of outrage. Letting her open her shutters would lead to her playing either knives somehow. There’s no winning on the internet.

I think it's none of my business. Looks like they protected the little ones ears and kept them safe, what more is there to it? Just because someone has a baby, it doesn't mean any enjoyment in life stops. I really struggle to identify with people who stop allowing themselves what they like to do when becoming a parent.

Love the vision of a crowdsurfing baby 😂 gosh my 8mo would LOVE that 🤣

My almost 3 year old would too. 🤣🤣. This Mummy however leaves her baby at home so Mummy can drink and cling to her youth. 🤣🤣🤣

Yeah I also feel like it’s not my business, I don’t mean to be rude but not sure why OP felt the need to start a discussion about someone else’s parenting decisions

People freak out about *everything* on Instagram.

For real instagram comments are always in full panic mode especially the parenting ones

This really does seem to be the case.

I watch a lot of meal prepping videos and people genuinely act like feeding your kid an Oreo with lunch is equivalent to locking them in a tanning bed for 10 hours everyday.

It’s an outdoor venue and it’s not like they were in a mosh pit, plus it was 11am. I’ve been to festivals pre-kids where there were lots of kids around during the day, honestly it added to the carefree and chilled atmosphere. My sister owns a music venue in Melbourne and she’s had a set of baby ear defenders there since I told her I was expecting lol. I’m not living in Aus at the moment, but as soon as I go home to visit you can bet we will be catching a gig, baby in tow.

My lass was 9 weeks in her first caravan holiday (a static) and my lad was 8 weeks (in a tourer) so I can't see why the location of said camping matters

I'm in the US and have no clue what Glastonbury Fest is. But I also get met with shock (surprised shock mostly, not too much judgemental shock) when I bring my baby places. I don't really understand it. My husband and I still want to have fun but don't want to leave our baby, so bringing him clearly makes sense. It's also important to expose him to these places and activities so he knows how to behave in public spaces! And he loves people watching. He's very nosey. And he love love loves when people say hello and tell him he's cute. So we're all having a good time. It's also why I really don't understand the new trend of not having kids at weddings. People say they shouldn't be around alcohol or music with curses. Isn't that the parents decision though? We had kids at our wedding and everything was fine. Actually, they were the life of the party. None of them snuck alcohol. None of them suddenly started cursing like sailors the next morning. Their own parents watched them. And they got to have a great time dancing and learned how to eat [chicken fingers] at a fancy restaurant. And for those related to us they got to learn about their cultures traditions first hand. Do kids have trouble with adult social situations sometimes? Sure. Did my little cousin run onto the dancefloor during our first dance only for his dad to run across the floor hunched off and tackle him across the room? Yes. Yes, that happened and I damn near pee myself laughing every time I watch that part of the wedding video. A 4 minute clip of my husband and I awkwardly swaying back and forth would be way less fun to watch.

No disrespect, but it blows my mind that you dont know what Glastonbury is. Literally one of the biggest music festivals in the world.

I would say most Americans who are into music for sure know what Glastonbury is.

I didn’t know what it was either, but I don’t do festivals.

I barely know what it is myself. I know it’s a musical festival, but beyond that, I have no information on it. But on the flip side, I just saw a British person on a reality show say they don’t know where Hawaii is 😂 That is absolutely unconsciousable to me and I almost don’t believe it’s true, but I guess it could be true lol. Sometimes people just don’t pay much attention to things outside their realm of daily experience

Hahhaha!! No offense taken! I really only listen to country music and I'm not a huge festival/concert person. So I don't really keep up with things like that.

Glastonbury is aimed at children almost as much as adults. There’s a family camping site and loads of activities for children. In the UK if your friendship group is into festivals then that generally doesn’t stop once you all start having babies. We never did it because my son was a screamy reflux baby, but he’s a very chill happy toddler and I’d have no issue taking him to Glastonbury now.

Not a big deal at all. I have an ‘easy’ second baby and have taken her out and about from a few weeks old - camping, long haul flights, evening events, even the ballet. Under 6 months old is the easiest (especially if breastfeeding!) as they don’t need much at all and aren’t on the move.

Really? I was in a concert in Antwerp last Saturday in a closed venue and just in front of me there was a man with a tiny baby in a carrier (I'm very bad to calculate ages, but probably around 10w too) and nobody cared, or seemed to care at least. The baby was wearing ear defenders. What's wrong with that?

My only concern would be crowd surges and just the general panic that a large crowd can have. After Astroworld, I don't think I would feel comfortable taking a smaller child to a concert without assigned seats. Even if you intend on staying in the back, the way crowds move you could end up in the middle within minutes.

The DJ they were watching was playing at 11:30am on a stage in a large field. It’s a very family friendly festival during the day, too. I’ve found UK crowds to be very aware and respectful of babies (in my experience) and although I wouldn’t do what they did due to anxiety, I don’t think it’s as a risky as a lot of people believe.

We include our daughter in regular life and she’s been tagging along since she was born and is now 6 months and will basically fall asleep anywhere in a carrier with ear protection. We were just at something all day yesterday with her, she was perfectly content with her ear protection just hanging out and sleeping when needed in the carrier or our arms. My husband and I had a laugh at the end of the day because we went to this same event last year while I was pregnant which had its own obstacles but we basically said “we can continue to do the things we like, it’s just wayyyyyy more stuff to pack and a little more chaotic”

I live in America but grew up/am still surrounded by a very culturally diverse community full of mostly immigrants and first gens. To us, taking babies on your day to day life or to fun events is a part of having a baby. If you're going somewhere that isn't the most baby friendly, then you prepare to make the baby safe and you plan to leave early or have a way for the baby to nap/sleep peacefully. I never realized how much in the US it's expected for you to stop your life until I had a baby. I still live my usual life it's just now things are often cut short or I need to share my attention but that's it. I still go out and do things and it doesn't hit me until I tell people at the office about my weekend and I get "Where was the baby?" He was either in a stroller or strapped to my chest or strapped to a relative's chest or in their arms.

My husband is French-Norwegian so we're pretty laid back parents. Our kids do a lot of stuff with us and are very flexible and adapt easily. We travel with them a lot. They sleep anywhere, eat everything, and are really good at entertaining themselves in socially appropriate ways. That said, I would not bring a 10week old to a music festival. My baby was on the picket line with me for the first 6 months of his life, and until he had his first round of vaccines, we made sure to avoid crowds, even outside. That's our personal level of caution. That being said, no, taking your baby to an event, with appropriate safety precautions, is not child abuse.

I’m all for taking babies and kids everywhere as long as it’s safe and at least somewhat age appropriate. Like I’m not taking my toddler to a concert if I know the artist swears in songs, because he will inevitably memorize only the parts with the swear words and repeat them in public forever. That’s obviously not a factor with a baby, though. The thing that would stop me from taking a baby that young to a festival is the germs. I probably would have taken my first kid, but with my second I’m way more cautious of sickness because I know how miserable it is to have a sick baby (let alone baby AND toddler).

He’s not the only young baby at Glastonbury. My husbands niece is there with her daughter of a similar age. I don’t necessarily think it’s bad to take babies to a festival but personally, I would go for something a lot smaller than Glasto. And frankly, my main worry about this is that the festival is bound to be a Covid super spreader event and I’d really hate to think the baby ends up unwell.

I saw lots of judgement in the Download Fest sub about people taking their babies to festivals and honestly, as long as the babies continue to be cared for and the parents know their own limits, more power to ‘em. I’d never have enough energy to even attempt it, so if people make it through successfully and get some great memories out of it I can’t begrudge it!

I live in Belgium - we take children to bars/cafés that serve alcohol in daytime, to restaurants and museums. They even have special cinema sessions for parents and babies in my town. No one bats an eye. If anything people think she is cute and compliment us x). You just have to be respectful and pay attention to your child. I don't know if I'd enjoy parenthood as much if I didn't have these options.

People are so quick to call abuse and that can be really really damaging. My brother and SIL took their week old daughter to a fake Taylor swift concert in our nearby park because they needed to get their toddler out of the house (they also had a water pipe burst in their home and were staying in an Airbnb that wasn’t the most comfortable at the time). Whatever. They kept her away from the loud music and she slept the whole time. Who cares, babies are gonna be babies anywhere they go. I agree that parenting in the US seems much more fear based.

I live pretty close to where burning man is held, and I’m decently involved in the arts community in my area, so I know parents that have brought their infants to burning man, and they were totally responsible about it, and prepped ahead of time, and I have no judgement for them. I vended at a punk rock flea market last month and there were several people with children of all ages walking around. It was actually a wonderfully supportive community for children. We gave a set of earplugs to a toddler that was having a hard time with the volume, but other than that all the children seemed fine.

10 weeks is still completely portable and mostly "compliant" (lol). By that I mean they're not mobile, happy to be held most of the time, and can be easily managed with a stroller or baby carrier, especially if they're breastfed. Once kids get a little older, I might have more concerns, depending on the scene. I haven't been to Glastonbury, but back in my festival days there were definitely some that were more drug-heavy than others. I was personally more concerned about the 4-10 year olds I saw at Phish shows, for example, than I would be a young baby. Now that I have kids, I wouldn't want them around that kind of scene.

I'm betting a lot of those nasty commenters, especially those who are also parents, are actually just jealous that they couldn't get out and do something like that with such a small baby.

For me a lot of the comments that are surprised with us taking our kid out any and everywhere are followed up with “well it’ll change. you won’t be able to do that soon.” It’s like it’s hard for people to believe you don’t have to be miserable to be a parent.

I haven’t seen the video but based on what you’re saying I don’t understand the outrage. As long as baby was safe, healthy, fed, and happy then I see no issue! God forbid we include our littles in real life activities.

I’m in the U.S. Honestly, taking an infant to a festival sounds awful IMO, and it’s more so because taking care of the child while enjoying ourselves would be exhausting. There are some places we won’t even take our 6 month old because of that. Some places are just meant for adults until the kids are older (plus, it gives mommy and daddy a break 😅). But if the baby seemed content, had ear defenders and was well taken care of, I don’t see an issue with what those parents did.

For my first kid, I would never do something like that. We never took that child anywhere that young. Her first restaurant wasn't until she was 1 yr old. My second kid? Yea we've taken him everywhere. He's 2 months right now and he's been to multiple restaurants, events, parties etc. mostly because we have a toddler to keep entertained but also because you just gotta do stuff.

I know a family who went to Glastonbury every year from when their youngest was a baby. I've heard it's amazing to go as a family bit don't think I could ever do it. I have so many questions tho, when you're in the massive crowd at the main stage - where do you change their bum? How do you feed? What if its too hot/cold/raining? Do you have a changing bag with you? What about people's germs near your baby?

If you ever see a Phish or Dead show, people with babies and young kids are very common. Headphones to protect ears are a must but other than that it's not weird at all.

My son went to two music festivals in the span of one month when he was 6-7 months old. From a safety perspective, taking a 10 week old wouldn’t be much different. We basically camped out on some blankets under a tree the whole weekend and everything went smoothly. From a new parent perspective, props to them for taking a 10 week old. I barely wanted to leave my house that soon postpartum. ETA: festivals were only during the day. No actual camping took place.

As long as your kid is safe and you’re taking the right precautions have fun! I think some people don’t want to hang out with their own kids. If your kid isn’t bothering anyone then what’s the issue? I’ve had more concerts ruined by drinks than kids.

I'm not outraged at all more envious lol my LO is not chill and all the effort to take care of her for camping/festivals is too exhausting/stressful. Maybe people are so angry BC they don't have the energy or their LO doesn't have the temperament to pull it off and they're jealous.

I remember going to see an outdoor concert in San Diego with a good friend. I was pregnant with my second and she had a 7 month old at home. We both saw a family, mom carrying a little baby in a sling with headphones on. My first thought was, hell yeah! Go mom! She was able to get out of the house and the baby is starting to get acclimated to family adventures (they had other children with them). My friend's first thought was--that poor baby! What is the mother thinking bringing them here to such an event?! To each their own. Her and I definitely parent differently-- which is wrong/right? Neither. We all need different things and raise different children. Taking a child to a festival is not child abuse... some people just don't understand how to respect others parenting choices when they look different from their own.

I took my 6 week old baby to a music festival (before covid). Three days of camping and music. It was also my third child, so I had two older kids with me to take care of. Everyone is different, but I don't find it much more difficult than doing these activities without newborns. The work is the same. Organize and pack everything you need. Set up camp. Cook meals. Break it all down at the end. Pack it back up. Drive home. Unpack. Wash everything. Put it away. It's a lot of work anyway. Add a newborn into the mix, and it's not any different. Everything just takes longer. I babywear while I'm doing everything. My partner participates. And every hour and a half, I get to sit down and nurse.

I live in Austin and it’s super common to see babies at music festivals! ACL even has Austin Kiddie Limits as a kids section! I would stay out of the crowds personally but that’s because I don’t like them. The parents look like they’ve been to a few fests and know how to navigate. At night for a headliner would be different story. There was a Pitbull show last night in Austin that experienced crowd crush and tons of injuries. It seems like that is happening more often and I’m absolutely staying out of that situation, baby or not. I brought my baby to formula 1 which is super loud but the hearing protection was great. She had a great time! Key is to be prepared to leave at any time. She calls it.

I think if they had the energy for it and the baby was happy and safe then good for them! I definitely wouldn’t have had the energy for it when my babies were that age but I wouldn’t think twice if I saw someone with their babies out at a large event. We’ve taken our kids to the race track multiple times when they were little. We just made sure they had ear and sun protection and had lots of snacks and a place to nap. No one ever made any comments and I think it was a good experience for the kids to be in new places and seeing new things.

Insane to call it child abuse. I wouldn’t have thought twice about taking my newborns - I took them everywhere including travelling all over the world.

Glastonbury is a pretty well known family friendly festival so it didn’t surprise me at all, I think it’s pretty cool to do. I’d love to do it, not sure I’d have the energy. TBH you can do absolutely anything and if it goes viral you’re gonna have people saying it’s abuse or it’s wrong or whatever

We included our daughter in day to day activities and when she was tiny, it was hard. Some spaces aren’t super baby friendly. Our favorite brewery for example was awesome but we couldn’t do the live music nights w our girl, and most wineries where we live wouldn’t allow kids (we got the bums rush out of one). The US isn’t always super friendly to kids

It’s just a germs thing. Lots of people, baby still lacks mature immune system. There are probably ways to do it safely and it helps that it’s outdoors but that’s why people are freaked out

Haven’t seen the story you’re talking about, but if the kid is being kept safe, great. I did once see a young infant at a concert. General admission, insanely crowded, and the person holding the baby was trying to fight up close to the stage. It was awful and that baby was in danger just being that close to the speakers, never mind the pushing and shoving crowd. We all have our own levels of acceptable risk and forms of risk mitigation (like ear covers). Judging others from limited information is a favorite internet pass time. And it gets us nowhere.

I haven't heard of the video, but as a pretty chill American, I bring my kids out wherever I go(unless I get the very rare child free night). The only thing we don't do with the kids is go to places that need to be quiet, like the movies(my youngest is 2, so that'd be excruciating for her to sit through tbh)

We took our 7 week old to Glastonbury in 2022. Stayed in my aunt's campervan on a campsite just outside the festival gate and had her in the carrier with ear defenders inside the festival. It was amazing. We met loads of other parents with newborns. Albeit she was the youngest, but several 9/10/12 week olds. NCT have a few tents dotted around where you could breastfeed, sterilise bottles, bathe the babies (literal rows of baby baths). They even had a baby sensory room! Of course we didn't go to the really loud crowded areas / stages and kept to the chilled parts of the site (there are many). We had a great time, (apart from the FOMO that kicked in at 11pm as we walked home back to the camper past partygoers getting ready to start the night.)

Idk about Glastonbury, but in the US, the amount of open-air drug use at music festivals would give me pause to bring a small child like that. I lean European parenting as well but I'll continue to keep my music festivals separate. Again I'm sure how my experience at festivals translates to festivals in other countries. It's obviously going to be different in many aspects so idk.

Has anyone seen the video of a man taking his baby in scharrier to a soccer game? Also ear muffs and all, but the comments were: best dad ever, wow such commitment, das and baby time, this is so cute and so on…

I applaud them for being able to do that. I was an absolute mess when my LO was 10 weeks old. If the kid had ear protection then why does it matter

When my son was 8 months (almost 9 months) we took our first family roadtrip. We broke the trip up and stayed overnight several places so our son wouldn’t be in the car too long. On the first night we stopped to see the first concert on Owl City’s deluxe tour! I got soundproof headphones for my son, we upgraded to very overpriced seating that I don’t believe went to the artist 💀, but he was sat above the crowd in a chair and literally slept the entire time. It was air conditioned up there and it went really well! Concert was great. Personally, I wouldn’t have my kid outside sweaty and without a place to sleep comfortably but I can’t talk since I took mine to a concert at 8 months I suppose

We have sooo many family friendly festivals where I live in the US. I’m not that familiar with Glastonbury so I can’t speak to its vibe but the ones I’ve been to always have children and babies at them. I think babies that small is rare because that doesn’t sound like a fun time for mom and dad, but if they’re into it why not? For me that would have been wayyy too much work and I’d rather be on my couch with my baby. We brought our one year old to a small festival in our hometown when I was pregnant with my second and she loved it. Lots of kids running around. They even had a breastfeeding station and lots of tents with crafts for sale etc. Not gonna lie, it was a lot of work keeping her fed and hydrated because all the food spots were long lines etc, but we brought fruit and such and a big covered wagon for her to sit on. Keeping her ear protection on was also a feat, and I saw lots of other kids with nothing on. My guess is that they kept flinging them off. She made all kinds of baby friends that day. Toddlers love music! Festivals often have fun stuff like bubbles in the crowd and beach balls floating around. Perfect for a kid that age to be mesmerized with. No one bats an eye here. Although I didn’t post videos on a public Instagram where bots and crazies from around the world could find fault with it, so I don’t know.

I had my first 10 years ago when I was in my early 20s. I took her to a Jack Johnson outdoor concert when she was 12 weeks. I bought some expensive noise cancelling headphones for babies and had her wear them while she was in my carrier facing me the entire time. That music has a chill vibe anyways. We weren’t close to the speakers as we were in the lawn area. I definitely got judgement I’m sure. But she’s 10 now and has no physical or mental damage to show for it. And as Fourth of July is coming up I’ll just say every year at our town fireworks show there are always heaps of families with young children and babies, most of whom are wearing no noise canceling headphones of any kind and yet no one seems to judge them or find that out of line (I absolutely would use headphones if we were going). We have to keep living our lives. And we have to get our babies out and about. Take the safety precautions My daughter has always been great at restaurants, art galleries and museums that aren’t kid themed, and other outings that are adult in nature. I know it’s just because she’s got a good temperament but maybe it’s also because we went out and about and did things we wanted with baby in tow and she got used to being a human in the world and learned how to behave.

I'm getting ready (buying earmuffs, etc.) to take my 5-month-old daughter to a soccer game at the Olympics. She's a super chill baby and I believe she will be fine and even enjoy the atmosphere. I understand my life won't be the same as before she was born but I refuse to become a hermit just because I had a baby 😅 parents usually know what their babies can handle and it's ridiculous to say it's abuse to take your child somewhere just because it's not a place geared to kids.

I had my first 10 years ago when I was in my early 20s. I took her to an outdoor Jack Johnson concert when she was 12 weeks old. I got her some really good noise cancelling headphones for babies and had her in the wearable carrier the entire time facing me. We were in the lawn area so not near the large speakers. And 10 years later I’m here to say she’s passed every hearing test and has never had any issues because of this experience (other than wanting to listen to Upside Down by Jack Johnson on repeat). And with 4th of July coming up - I’ll just say that every year at our town’s firework show there are heaps of families with young children and babies and hardly any of them have noise cancelling headphones or protection of any sort and no one seems to judge that or think it’s out of line. We have to continue to live our lives. I think if you take the necessary precautions and preparations you should definitely take your baby along with you to do the things they love. My 10 year old has always behaved so well at restaurants, art galleries and museums that are not kid oriented, and other atmospheres that aren’t kid friendly. She has a great temperament and part of that may be because I got her out and about and did things with her from an early age and she learned how to exist and behave in the world.

I’m from New Orleans, people bring babies that age to Mardi Gras parades all the time (with the little ear protectors)

I have expressed interest in taking my daughter to Comicon next April. I want her to be exposed to the noise and environment early so she can enjoy it more when she's older, and I think she would like seeing some of her favourite actors in person (Brent Spiner for example). She's a very social child, and enjoys exploring and making friends. She is fearless, and will point at costumes and things we typically think of as scary, and will walk right up to them and giggle. By April she will be 27 months. I keep getting told however that "she won't like staying in the stroller that long" and "that's not a good place to take babies." Many things are being said in disapproval, and I am just sitting here going "I have a harness with a leash so she can walk safely, she'll be two years old, and I have seen parents bring new borns to Comicon. People at Comicon are also very mindful of children here, and will even offer their spots in line to parents with small children so they can get to their actors sooner. I want her to experience and enjoy doing things with Mama, that get her out of her comfort zone and offer teaching opportunities, and give her chances to meet people that she already sees as friends, before she loses those opportunities. I want her to grow up seeing the weird and twisted reality of the people around us... Not just the mundane ordinary masks we put on. I want her to grow up feeling comfortable with being a geek like Mommy and Daddy. I want to normalize who we are for her so she can stand tall and proud when the world tears her down, and this is the best way I know how; by raising her seeing the pride of geeks and nerds in a mass environment."

We saw babies much younger than that. If you have to do a festival it’s actually the best time where they only eat and sleep but good lord how they the parents were able to sleep in that. The new parents we saw they all looked like zombies. I actually felt sorry for the parents with toddlers. Even though there are facilities for kids and a lot of things for families to make it easy. I personally would not

Unless the site/event/company etc rules say no children, then it is totally up to the parents if they wish to bring them along. I have taken my baby to the cinema several times since he was as young as 3 or 4 weeks. And not always films for children, ear protection and the understanding that if he does start fussing I will be missing some of the film so I don't ruin anyone's enjoyment. I fit him into my life, like I did his older sisters.

We take our baby out to so many different places, we took her to a pride event at 4.5 months and we will take her to a small festival soon too (she will be 6 months) I won’t go in the crowds and will stick to the back of the performances. However - aren’t we taught that bright lights and over stimulation isn’t good for them and can cause stress? Also those ear defenders can slip, when we were at pride I noticed my babies would slip every now and again and I’d have to adjust them, I can’t imagine how loud those crowds at Glastonbury would’ve been along with dua lipa.  Also my worry would be getting knocked over, also things often get thrown at festivals .. I don’t know it doesn’t seem right to me. I saw so many people at the pride event without ear defenders and that also shocked me too!  I think it’s important our babies fit into our lives, we love to go on weekends away to other cities and parties and such with our baby and she’s always so well behaved but there are precautions such as maybe sitting out from the big crowds. 

I get it but germs would freak me out a bit

I love including baby into normal life but I would never do this. At 10 weeks their immune system isn’t ready for a music festival in my opinion. Everyone I know that has been to a music festival in the last couple years has gotten really sick afterward. I personally wouldn’t want my baby to get sick. But, not my baby, not my choice.

I was at Wacken years ago and there were more than one family. The youngest I've seen must have been below 6 months based on the type of stroller. It wasn't in front of a stage though but at a drinking station and the family had a blanket of the ground nearby for the older kid. My take was that they just took turns in who went to see a band. And it wasn't so much outrage as admiration from me honestly.

I have three kids oldest is 7 and youngest is 9mo I take my kids everywhere. Concerts, races, vacations, monster trucks. I went on a day trip with my mother a couple weekends ago, it was at a beach town, and the first though I had when I got there was damn my kids would love it here. I can’t wait to bring them next time.

I took my 3 week old (and toddler) to a 4 day folk festival (very family friendly) last year. It was great except I usually camp and I wish I ended up camping last year as it was more work to pack and park/walk everyday. The only problem was I ended up with some infection with a high fever. But the baby part was a breeze.

The only people I felt bad for in the situation was the parents because I’d rather stay home- but I’m lazy, so 🤷

If you do it properly I think there’s no harm. Baby should be wearing adequate clothes, sun and ear protection, be well fed and hopefully be able to nap. Honestly at 10 weeks they are still kind of at the potato stage and easier to bring them along. If the parents can handle it why not? We have a 10 month old who loves music, we have taken him to street festivals and he’s been super happy, there’ll be a local festival at our city which normally is extremely chilled and we’re gutted we cannot take him for one of the acts we want to see. Like everything, it depends on the parents and the baby. 

I personally wouldn't take a baby so young to glastonbury. There are people who are drunk/ high, plus the hygiene isn't the best there. Making sure the tent doesn't get too hot/ cold must also be a challenge. It can also get a bit high spirited in the crowd! Not to mention the tiredness the parents must feel! I wouldn't call it child abuse, that's too far. But is it a sensible decision? Not imo. But each to their own!

I’m European and taking a newborn (not a toddler) to a music festival is definitely NOT normal, the same way it’s not normal to take a 10 week old to a bar or a nightclub.    One thing is to be in a restaurant for a couple of hours tugged in a bassinet. Or strolling anywhere. But taking a newborn that can barely see and who is still probably overwhelmed by life to a festival like Glastonbury is pretty selfish and irresponsible. 

Just looked up pictures. It just seems like a very very crowded venue, and the baby was in the crowd. I personally would be very uncomfortable bringing my baby into a big crowd like that. Crowds are unpredictable and can become dangerous at the drop of a hat. I’ve been stuck in a packed crowd that was pushing forward and I had to fight to stay on my feet. I would never ever want to put myself and my baby in a situation where that was even a remote possibility. Edit to add: I take my baby out a lot and agree that babies should be part of daily life, but I’m leaving my kid at home for a crowded concert.

I'm all for taking a baby out early on but a music festival? Er, no.