Raising a Boy?

My advice: Enjoy the baby boy! I also grew up with one sister, hardly no boys with the exception of my dad and my two boy cousins that I hardly saw! How on earth to deal with them? I say it is the easiest. Basically just play with them. Get on their level. My son is one of the best things I have had happen in my life.

I have always babysat for girls too. Both of my SIL's have two girls (under the age of 2) and they both say that their daughters are drama queens too! My son - he is energetic, loves to play, be outside, climb, draw/color, play with playdoh, and anything else you can think to do with him. I would not trade him for the world! I actually now would like my subsequent children to be boys...they seem to fit me better! :-)

K. C.

I grew up with only a sister & wanted a girl when i was pregnant - but i got a boy - who is AWESOME! You won't have to guess - you just end up reacting to what they do anyway - boy or girl. Seriously - don't be scared. Oh, and the boys clothes are really cute too - the girls stuff is all frilly and little girl looking and the boys stuff starts to look more adult a lot earlier - it's so cute on them. Anyway, just have fun & if you have any more questions, let me know - i'm in worthington/columbus.

C.

Boys are easy... no worries. I have 2 boys and they are fun. I told my husband before the first boy was born that because he was a boy, he needed to take care of everything below the waist... diapers, potty training, and later, the sex talk! LOL... try that one on your husband... didn't completely work for me. :-)

Hi, I felt the same way! We have a 3 yr old girl and a 7 month old boy. When I found out we were having a boy I was so worried and scared! I thought now what on earth am I going to do with a boy, I wanted another girl. But when he was born it was amazing, the instant he looked at me we had a special bond! I just figure that I will learn as I go, with help from my husband and family. I wouldn't trade having a boy for the world, there is just something so special about your little boy. I find it hard to concentrate when he smiles at me, I just forget what I was doing and have to go pick him up. You will do great!!! Congratulations.

I don't specifically know of any resources, but when my son was born, and we found out he was a boy...I was nervous too! I don't know anything about raising a man, but I am muddlind through it. He's pretty rough and tumble for an (almost) 8 month old, but other than that, i just try to love him and give him lots of hugs and kisses. I figure you do the best you can to teach him kindness, gentleness, etc, and let dad teach the other stuff!
Good luck and I'm sure it will turn out wonderful.

I think I agree with everyone when they say that, no matter the gender of your child, you'll still "stumble through" and learn as you go. We didn't know what we were having until our son was born. I was a little disappointed, since I've always wanted a daughter, but I wouldn't trade my son for the world! He's such an easy going, happy little guy. I've loved watching him grow and learn over the past 13 months and can't wait until he gets older, so I can play games with him and read with him. Because his daddy works a lot of hours, he is definitely a "momma's boy," but I don't mind that at all. I try to raise him to be kind and gentle, but I also make sure I try not to make too much of a big deal of all his little bumps and bruises, so he can learn to bounce back quickly. I'm sure you'll be a great mom to your new son. Just give him as much love and care as you have your daughter, and it will all be just fine! Congratulations and good luck!

Congratulations.
I have one brother and one sister. my brother is 6 years older and my parents divorced when I was 8, So I never really lived with the opposite sex until I was married. I have 2 boys and a girl.

My inlaws gave us a book called Bringing up Boys by Dr. James Dobson.It has some really cute stories from what I can remember (it was 6 years ago that I read it) and insight on how girls and boys think differently. He is also pastor, so it will be in christian book stores or you can just google Dr. James Dobson and go to dvd/books/resources. He also has a book called The Strong Willed child that I have read parts of I need to dig it up my middle child can be a brute. lots luck - T.

A lot of people have found help in the book "Raising Boys" (I think that's the title) by Dr. James Dobson. It explains and discusses the various ways to rear boys in today's society. In other words; how to raise a gentleman, how to avoid/deal with homosexuality, etc. I have tried reading it several times, but with two boys of my own, I barely have time. I should've read it before my boys were born. I, too, have only 1 sister and no brothers, and had no friends growing up that were boys. I lived what you call a "girly existence" LOL. Even my mom, when she came to help, said she didn't know how to diaper boys...she kept getting a shower. LOL Obviously, it doesn't take long to learn. And as far as you stumbling along...lots of us are stumbling along, and continue to stumble cuz even with two boys, they're SO different, and I'm expecting a girl in November!

Oh, btw, my second son was proud of being a boy in the ultrasound too. But we found out why after he was born...he has club feet. He was basically sitting on the bottoms of his feet, with his knees apart, therefore making it easy to see his genitals. With this third pregnancy, the tech made sure to get pics of her feet to be sure they weren't clubbed. You may want to see what your OB thinks of this. (Club feet isn't that tragic, but it takes getting used to. He had to have casts on his legs for 7 weeks straight as a newborn. He's 16 months now and still is required to wear special shoes and a bar between them at night.)

Hope that helps! -A.

I kinda felt the same when my son was born. Dad has been a big help. I also have a 10 mth old daughter. Right now, Ben was easier than Claire. He was a very easy going little baby. She's a drama queen. But, only time will tell. Someone recommended the book " Raising Boys". I loved it. It gave me more insight into the "boy mind" than even my husband could do. Everyone is right, we also learn as we go. It will be great.

I also agree with the other responses, that all children are individually unique and each brings his own share of challenges and absolutely AMAZINGLY wonderful characteristics into the world. I actually have 2 boys and 3 nephews (how I ended up in this family FILLED with boys is crazy!) Anyway, my sons (ages 6 and 3) are so very different and both are a perfect fit for me as a parent. My 3 nephews are also very different from each other, and my sister-in-law (who was set on "trying" for a girl) is thrilled to be the mom of 3 boys (now ages 9, 7, and 5). The only real advice I can give you is that I've noticed that boys seem to have a special bond with their moms so watch out for dad getting a bit jealous of that. Also, moms seem to tend to be overprotective of their boys (I know I am) and dads often will expect a bit too much out of them at younger ages. I think it's a matter of compromise and recognizing what your son is able to handle and accomplish as he gets older. I could honestly write a book about how much I adore my boys and how I am so content with being a mother to the two of them, but I am sure you'll feel the same way once you hold your little guy and start to experience the joy of raising a boy!

I also grew up surrounded by females. Needles to say, when I found out that my first was going to be a boy I was more than a little concerned about HOW I could go about raising him. Boys are definitely different from girls, but not on a higher level than my sister is different from me. You will be fine, just trust your instincts. There is a GREAT book called 'bringing up boys' by James C. Dobson that I recommend. I didn't discover it until my 2nd boy was almost 3, but it's still a great book, and I would recommend it to anyone with boys of any age.

Don’t worry; no one knows what they are doing when it comes to raising kids regardless of the gender. It will come to you naturally. I have a 5 year old by and a 3 year old girl. My boy has been much easier, but honestly, there is really nothing you do different in my opinion between them. You just adjust to the child’s personality, regardless of gender. I mean, boys and girls can both bite, hit, yell, through tantrums the same. And you don’t allow it with one and not the other. You really will be fine.

I think you'll be just fine. I'm not so sure anyone really "knows" how to raise a child regardless of what gender they are. It will mostly be trial and error and he'll let you know his likes/dislikes.

I've heard boys are "harder" to raise then girls when they are younger, but easier than girls when they get older. Either way, I'm sure you'll find boys are just as fun and special as your girl!

Good luck!

I have a two-year-old boy and I felt that way too, but it's so much more amazing than I ever imagined. There are actually a whole lot of books out there these days that can give you food for thought - "Real Boys" and "Raising Cain."

Time Magazine did a huge article about boyhood just last month too. I blogged about it a bit (http://tzt.blogspot.com/2007/08/good-time-to-be-boy.html).

As a mother of two boys, I can say that just like with your daughter and being a mom for the fist time, the things you need to know will come to you. I know the one thing you do need to becarful with is when you are cleaning them...down there, after they get home. you have to keep their little "winky" cleaned up, but I would say if you have questions like that ask them at the hospital or talk to your doctor about it and I'm sure they will be more then happy to know that you want to know how to take care as a proud mother then just guessing at it. Good luck and enjoy!