Jinger Duggar Criticized After Posting Photo Of 2-Month-Old Daughter
Counting On star Jinger Duggar is in hot water with some of her social media followers once again, after she shared a picture of her baby girl, Felicity.
During the week of Sept. 16, 2018, Jinger Duggar — who has legally gone by the name Jinger Vuolo since marrying husband Jeremy Vuolo in 2016 — posted a photo of her 2-month-old daughter on Instagram. And, at first glance, the picture certainly seems innocent enough. In the photo, baby Felicity rests in her cradle, covered by a sweet pink-and-white blanket. But it's the kiddo's accessories in the picture that had some of Duggar's followers upset.
You see, the baby dons a pair of polka dot mittens in the shot. And, according to some online mommy-shamers, that's just one big no-no.
The Hollywood Gossip reports that these haters quickly let Duggar know that they believed she was making a major mistake. One Instagram user called the mittens "so stupid" and claimed that babies "need to self soothe and they can't with those mitts." Another commenter urged Duggar to take off Felicity's mittens, as they alleged that free hands are "better for her development."
So, why did Duggar place mittens on her baby in the first place? Given that it's still warm enough to go outside without tons of layers on in September, it's not because young Felicity was cold. Rather, Duggar likely put mittens on Felicity to prevent her from scratching her face with her tiny, sharp fingernails. As the American Academy of Pediatricians noted, placing mittens on an infant may help stop babies from leaving any accidental marks on their faces. However, with regular nail trimming, the act of using mittens to keep kiddos' mugs scratch-free isn't usually necessary.
Fortunately, in addition to all the criticism that Duggar received for her use of mittens, plenty of other folks joined in on the conversation to defend her actions, calling out fellow Instagram users for sending hate Duggar's way. "If she wants to put gloves on her hands, it's entirely her choice," one comment read (via THG). Another read, "Support one another's decisions ... Gloves or no gloves, it's a personal choice."
But don't expect to see those comments — or any comments — on Duggar's Instagram post anymore. The reality TV star has since disabled comments on the photo she posted of Felicity. Honestly, we can't say we blame her. Who needs all that hate?
This is hardly the first time that Duggar has experienced some nasty Instagram comments about her choices as a mother since she welcomed Felicity on July 19, 2018. In August, fans shamed Duggar for putting a big pink bow on her baby's head, calling it a "suffocation hazard," and for not appearing to have her kid fastened properly in her car seat. But, while we're all for children's safety, we have to point out that no one but Duggar and her husband actually knows what's going on behind the camera. Felicity could have had the bow on and been in the car seat for just one second so that her parents could get a picture of her — we just don't know!
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Sadly, Jinger Duggar hasn't been the only celebrity mom to have some hate sent her way online. Jersey Shore star Deena Cortese, who is pregnant with her first child, was mom-shamed after she posted a Boomerang video of herself on vacation holding a drink. "Cheers b***hes!" she wrote in the caption. In response to the post, some called Cortese out for drinking ... that is, presumably, until she clearly things up on the post, explaining to all of her followers that the drink didn't actually contain any alcohol (via The Hollywood Gossip). "I can't believe I need to specify that in a post," she said.
Former Disney Channel darling Hilary Duff has also spoken out about the enormous amount of criticism she's been on the receiving end of online during her previous pregnancy with son Luca. Speaking to InStyle magazine in August 2018, Duff, who is pregnant with her second child, discussed how people had judged her for kissing her kid on the mouth when he was younger. "I've seen stuff on the internet a couple years back when we were at Disneyland and I posted a picture of Luca and I kissing on the lips," she said. "People were like, 'That's disgusting.'"
But she didn't let haters get to her. Duff noted, "First of all, he was three. Kiss your kids, and anyone who doesn't like it can hit unfollow. Not interested in what you have to say."
That's a pretty good way to handle it. As long as kids aren't in any actual danger, there's no reason for internet commenters to criticize celebrity parents. Instead, let's just support one another — parenthood is hard enough, isn't it?