How old is too old for footie-pajamas?

This may surprise you, but I ask myself this question a lot. Currently, my boys are 21 months and 7 months, well within the range of appropriate footie-pajama wearing years. But on occasion the question arises in my mind and I wonder at what age I should stop dressing my children in a fleece unitard with a zipper. But the answer escapes me. I just don’t know.

And then this happened. A few days ago while doing some last minute Christmas shopping at Target I saw this wondrous sight on my right: enormous hot pink fleece footie pajamas with puppy dog feet…for women.

Okay ladies, let’s get real for a moment. Would any husband want to see his wife in these things?

Imagine your husband’s face as you get ready to go to bed on Christmas Eve and you whip out these bad boys and step into your soft pink pajamas all ready to hop in bed and dream about sugar plum fairies. No need to snuggle up to him at night for warmth, you’ll be putting out more heat than a menopausal woman in the Sahara. And can’t you just picture yourself as a family on Christmas morning? Your hubby opening gifts with the children while you flip pancakes in your pink jump suit. Priceless.

Somewhere in my tween years I had a pair of footie-pajamas. Pink. No dog feet. Apparently I had outgrown the footies prior to this because these were like a new “cool” thing, or so I thought. Either they were making a comeback or I was a huge dork–still not sure which. Anyway, I wore them unselfconsciously for a while, but somewhere in there I began to think I looked a little odd being over two feet tall and wearing a one piece. I’m sure I did.

Thirteen, I think, is too old for footie-pajamas.

I remember shopping for baby clothes when I first found out I was pregnant. All the little jammies, onesies, rompers and the like, were adorable. Moving through the newborn section I’d accidentally wander into the toddler and finally the kid section. After oohing and ahhing over the tiny clothes, seeing three foot long footie-pajamas for kids swaying on pause points looked absurd. They were huge!

But alas, when my kids turn five I’m sure they will still seem like babies to me and seeing them in unitards will look normal. After all, that’s what I’ve dressed them in for the past four years of their lives.

So how does it happen? And who decides? Do you look at them one morning as they are eating breakfast and think, “Wow, we really need to retire the footies?” Or do you let them wear them (although you still have to buy them) until their hearts content? Until they wake up one day in their fleece zip-ups and think “I look ridiculous in these things?”

So what do you think? I’m curious to know. I just hope you’re not wearing your footie-pajamas at this very moment.