‘When you're a mum, you just can't be nude around your sons.’

My sons no longer want to see me naked. In fact my oldest hasn’t wanted to see me naked for a very long time. It makes me sad because it’s like they are all grown up and the innocence of our bond is gone.

“Mum can you, like, cover yourself up?”

And with those words I realised my little boy was gone, forever.

I didn’t grow up in a nude house, like celebrity Kate Hudson, 36, who now has two sons of her own – Ryder, 12 and Bingham, four. She says she’s more comfortable being naked, as mother Goldie Hawn always was and says it may have something to do with being a dancer.

I’ve had to change our entire morning routine because of this. Very inconvenient, especially not being able to do nude runs to and from my bedroom.

Here’s how the showers used to go in my home each morning before my son vetoed my nakedness. I’d get up and jump straight in, then as I rinsed the conditioner out of my hair I’d call out for Philip to jump in as soon as I got out. No big deal. It worked. It was efficient. Often as I dried myself we’d have a talk. Then he’d jump out and call for his little brother to hop in.

Since my son decided my nudity was no longer acceptable I have to get up EARLIER. I have my shower, turn it off, do all my bathroom things, put on a robe and then call for him to come and have a shower. Then I leave him alone to offer him some privacy.

Privacy, from his own mother.

But apparently it’s okay for him to spend 20 minutes doing his hair in front of the mirror in the nude. “How about putting your undies on first,” I suggested this morning, not that I’m offended by his cute little body. It’s just not fair if he gets to be naked and I don’t.

“No I can’t Mum. I’m still drying in the air,” he explained before coating himself in Lynx (to the point of suffocation).

Now his little brother is picking up on his older brother’s sentiment. He prefers me to cover up but he says it with less outrage, in more of a token way. He often doesn’t notice if I am half-dressed because I’ve just jumped out of the shower.

My daughter doesn’t mind my being naked. However she’s started to cover up in front of her brothers which has also made me sad.

Hudson talked about growing up in a nude family on US talk show Conan recently. Article continues after this video.

I don’t mind that my sons are setting limits for our relationship. It’s part of growing up. I don’t mind that they are expressing to me exactly what they are and are not comfortable with, regardless of my feelings. That’s a good thing.

Respect – for themselves and others – is really important for me to instill in all of my children and I suppose that’s exactly what they are doing.

It’s a shame really because when the weather is really hot and I have to blow dry my hair I now have to do it in a robe instead of in the nude as I prefer. It can be sweaty work.

I’m not the only one coping it. I heard my son ask my husband to, “Please put some pants on Dad”, because for some reason my husband takes off his pants as soon as he walks through the door, living his entire home life in a t-shirt and undies. As you do.

That’s why he can never answer the door. Or maybe that’s why he does it, so he doesn’t ever have to answer the door, or check the mailbox, or take out the rubbish…

Clever bastard.

**NB: My husband does take out the rubbish most days, but I stand by everything else.