Snakes and Snails and Puppy dog tails…

I grew up with two little sisters; we had loads of little girl friends; neighborhood friends, school friends, gymnastics friends.  There were not a lot of little boys that we played with.  My “best friend” Mikey moved away when we were very little so my memories are of all things pink. Bows, and Barbie’s, and baby dolls, playing house and who got to me the “mommy.”

As stated before I always wanted to be a mommy, so when I got pregnant with our first son Jake, I was beyond thrilled.  I had a hunch Jake was a boy from the beginning and I was thrilled, I truly didn’t care one way or another, boy or girl, just please lord give me a healthy baby! And thankfully he did, a perfect, healthy 7lb 11oz baby boy! He was an easy going baby, a pure delight. I never thought anything about the fact that I didn’t ‘know’ about “boy stuff”……after all he was just a baby.

That baby grew up fast then I could have imagined into a little toddler who did things that I thought to myself “why on earth are you doing that?” or “my goodness you are a bizarre little man.” But my husband or my dad or my father-in-law…or pretty much any male around would just laugh and say “yup, he’s a little boy!”

So my list of things I didn’t know were fun until I had little boys:

·         Putting a box on your head and running into the wall, or the chair, or your brother….or anything really is a great time?

·         Running and purposely falling/rolling on the ground is fun?

·         ANYTHING about your “wiener” is funny?

·          Going potty on the fence, or wall, or anywhere outside is fun

·         “Tooting”

As a little girl, surround by many other little girls I never thought “I should put this box on my head a run into the wall, sounds like fun!” But I watch both my little goobers do it and they love it! Hey it may kill a brain cell or two but I like to think of it as creativity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the “wiener” thing (don’t judge because we do not use the politically correct term), I could go on for days about this one. Last summer Jake was not quite 3 years old and we were getting ready for the Chatham Sweetcorn Festival. I got both he and Jimmy ready and then I was getting ready. It was hot so I put on a tank top and a skirt. Jake asked: “Are you wearing that skirt?” I sweetly told him that I was. He responded in a disapproving tone “Okay, I hope your wiener doesn’t fall out the bottom!” ~ this is when I got to tell him girls and boys are different….a topic for another blog.

The going potty outside thing, I guess it’s cool? But in the summer that is the only place Jake will go.  He will proudly talk about it. We met someone I had not seen in a long time at the grocery store, I was so delighted to show off my little boys to them. When they asked Jake his name, I waited proudly for him to introduce himself. He is not shy, an always does. But instead he triumphantly said “I hold my wiener and go potty on the sidewalk!”, Really, REALLY? We had to say that right now? Ha ha I guess the plus side for mommy is that potty training went WAY faster! He was completely done before 2 and a half with no accidents.

My little Jake is an “all-boy” type of boy, I thought that maybe he was one-of-a-kind (which I know he is that too) but then we had our second little boy Jimmy.  And he is just a rambunctious and rowdy and wild as his brother, maybe even more-so, so that he can keep-up.

I am now able to see some of the differences of little girls and little boys. And I am sure there will be many more along the way. While they are a handful and they never sit still and seem to be danger-seeking when your little boy tells you “mommy you are SOOOOO pretty” all those other things seem to quickly disappear from my mind.

(Please don’t tell be about gender stereotyping, if the boys wanted to play with dolls I would happily let them! However I do not feel like dealing with the dismemberment of little dolls around my house, lord help if we ever have a little girl)