Being a Boy Mom

Being a boy mom is a privilege.  Maybe an exhausting one, but so incredibly rewarding and so incredibly different from being a mother to a daughter.  It's a bit like becoming part of a special club, where only other boy moms could possibly understand what it's really like.  I always imagined having a boy, and it was almost as if I wished it to be true I wanted so badly to understand what it meant to have a "mama's boy."  So what does it really mean, to be a mother of a boy?

 

// He will adore you.  He will love you and need you more than anything.  He will need hugs and kisses and snuggles.  He will need to be close to you, he will need you to hold him.  At times this may be a bit overwhelming (for example in the grocery store while carrying bags, or while trying to cook dinner) but every so often, a few times during the day he will need your undivided attention to know that you are his and he is yours.

// You will learn to love trains, diggers, trucks and motorcycles.  You will become just as excited as he does when you both spot one.  Watching him point and giggle and make truck noises will make your heart flutter and you will want to kiss him all over while repeating the sound a truck makes back to him.

// He will eat.  He will eat a lot.  He will be the messiest eater you could ever imagine.  He will make just as big of a mess out of spaghetti as he will out of eating one single cookie.  He will drink milk like you've never seen - and make a mess out of that too.

// He will have an obsession with balls.  Footballs, soccer balls, golf balls, ping-pong balls.  Anything that he can throw, kick, roll or catch.  You will find them all over your house, under the couch, in the couch, in his bed,  in your bed, in the kitchen, in the washing machine, and everywhere else you could possibly imagine.  Accept the fact that your house will never be free or clean of these.  You will also need to practice how to throw a fast ball, or catch one so that you are ready when he wants to play ball in the backyard and Daddy is at work.  Bonus points if you can play running back. while he is the quarterback throwing you the ball.

// He will find rocks and he will dig, throw and collect them.  Sometimes in his jean pockets.  Always check his pockets.  He won't mind getting his hands dirty, or eating dirt just to see if it tastes as good as it is fun to play with.

// He won't be afraid to try new things, or climb on new things or jump from new things or ride on new things.  Not much will scare him, and that will scare you as his mother.

// You will watch him look up to his Daddy and admire everything that he does.  He will follow his Daddy around, and look for his approval while imitating him.  Your heart will want to explode when you watch this, and then it will when he stops every once in a while to make sure you are still there, to come over for a snuggle or a hug as if to say "you're still my favorite Mama, I still need you - I always will."