Tina: “Very uncomfortable, my daughter (2) suddenly starts taking off her clothes wherever she goes”

I knew that motherhood would be a handful. You hear that from everyone. But that my daughter, Lize, would turn out to be some kind of... exhibitionist in the making? No, I had not prepared myself for that.

She feels free, a bit too free..

Lize is two years old. Two years old and a ray of sunshine in the house. Really, I can't imagine a happier child. She laughs at everything – a bird flying by, a dog barking, even my bad jokes about 'mommy moments'. But she also has her quirks. And yes, that includes the tendency to take her clothes off everywhere.

Suddenly she was there: in her bare bottom

It started innocently, as it usually does. At home, in the living room. I was just having my first cup of coffee of the day, and she was playing with her blocks. Suddenly, there she stood: in her bare bottom, her shirt and pants thrown next to her on the floor as if she had just finished a long day's work. “Free, mommy! Free!” she exclaimed, throwing her little arms in the air. I had to laugh. How can you get mad at something like that? “Okay Lize, nice and free,” I said. I thought: let the child be. Who am I to restrict her sense of freedom? Well, I quickly found out why as a parent you do have to do that a bit.

As if she wanted to show the world how amazing she thought she was

The following week we were at the playground. I was sitting on a bench chatting with another mother, while Lize was having fun on the slide. And sure enough, there she went again. Shirt off, trousers down. “Free, mommy!” she exclaimed again. With her arms spread wide, she ran across the lawn, as if she wanted to show the world how amazing she thought she was.

“Uh, is this normal?”

The other mother looked at me. You know that look, the kind that says, “Uh, is this normal?” I laughed awkwardly. “She has her... unique ways of expressing herself,” I muttered, as I stood up to gather Lize’s clothes. Lize protested loudly when I tried to dress her. “No mommy, free!”

“Look, mom! That girl is almost naked!”

From that moment on, it became a thing. A big thing. It didn't matter where we were – at home, at the bakery, visiting a friend. When the moment came, the clothes came off. Perhaps the pinnacle was that time in the supermarket. We were just walking through the aisle with cookies and sweets. You know how it is with a two-year-old. “Mommy, cookie? Cookie?” she asked, putting on her most pleading look. I gave in, as you do when you want to avoid a bit of conflict.

Just as I reached for a pack of children's cookies, I saw her tugging at her sweater out of the corner of my eye. “No Lize, not here,” I said quickly. But it was already too late. Before I knew it, my daughter was standing in her underwear between the aisles. An older lady looked around in shock. A boy about ten pointed at her and shouted: “Look, mom! That girl is almost naked!”

“Sorry, they are just... uh, fond of being themselves”

I felt my cheeks turn red as I quickly picked up Lize and pulled her sweater back over her head. “Sorry, she's just... uh, likes to be herself,” I stammered to no one in particular. Lize looked at me with those big, innocent eyes of hers. At home, I told the story to my husband. He laughed heartily. “Oh, honey, she just has a strong personality. They must get that from you,” he said with a grin. Very funny.

Lize just wanted to be free

I tried everything to teach her not to undress everywhere. I talked to her. “Lize, you can't just take off your clothes where other people are.” But she just didn't seem to get it. For her, it was simple: clothes were bothersome and unnecessary. What others thought of it didn't interest her. I tried it with rewards. “Lize, if you keep your clothes on, you'll get an extra cookie.” But she wasn't for sale. “No cookie, mom. Free.” Even a reward system with stickers – something that seems to be a miracle cure for other children – made no impression. Lize just wanted to be free.

Of course, it happened again

The real test came when we visited my friend Sofie. Sofie is the kind of mother who seems to have everything in order. Her house is always neat and tidy, her children always wear matching outfits, and she always has homemade cookies ready. We had just sat down for a cup of tea, while Lize was playing with Sofie’s daughter. And then, of course, it happened again. As Sofie excitedly talked about her latest project at work, I suddenly heard: “Look mom, I'm free!”

“Uh… does she do this often?”

I turned around, and there stood Lize – naked, in the middle of Sofie’s meticulously styled living room. Sofie’s daughter looked at her with wide eyes, as if she had never seen anything like it before. Sofie herself put down her cup of tea and looked at me. “Uh… does she do this often?”

“Yeah, I guess,” I replied. “It's kind of a phase. I think.” I got up to gather Lize's clothes, while trying to avoid a lecture from Sofie. Fortunately, she could laugh about it. “Well, she certainly knows what she wants,” she said. Yes, she definitely did.

TINA