10 ‘joys’ all mums of boys face

When a close friend forwarded this article, 10 Challenges All Moms of Boys Face, to me, I immediately went on the defensive. Why is ‘boy parenting’ so often framed as a challenge? Why can’t we focus more on the joyful, fun side of being a parent of boys?

And then I read it.

Most of this mother’s 10 ‘challenges’ are actually just the ‘realities’ of raising boys.

And actually, if you reframe them a little (apart from the trips to emergency), they can even become the ‘joys’ of raising boys.

Boys being loud, boisterous and physical? Embrace it and it becomes a joy – I love hearing my sons laugh and sing and yell and whoop with excitement, and it makes me appreciate the rare quiet moments even more.

Boys’ clothes are boring and boys don’t care about wearing stained jeans and t-shirts full of holes? Embrace it and enjoy the fact that you’ll save money, and (hopefully) experience less ‘costume dramas’.

Not sure how to talk to boys about the body part you simply don’t have? Embrace delegating these discussions to their dad or another close male friend or family member.

Kissing your girly dreams goodbye? Now this can be a tricky one for some of us… but embrace it and enjoy not having your tampon stash or shoe collection raided (probably).

And remember, as the author rightly points out, “bonding over armpit farting contests is poignant and lovely in its own right…”

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