As promised last week in this post, here are 5 of the most awesome things about parenting the same gender.
1. You know what to expect. Changing a diaper on a boy? Yeah, you already know how to deal with that. A girl getting her first period? Yeah, you got that. Anything that is uniquely gender dependent, you have already dealt with or will deal with on the first one.
2. Hand me downs! We have not had to buy any clothes yet and my oldest is 4 years old. Don't get me wrong, we definitely HAVE purchased clothes for them but we haven't HAD to. Everyone was so excited when our first was born that we were flooded with so many clothes, she didn't even get to wear all of them before she would outgrow them. Thanks to parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends, the girls get new clothes on Christmas, their birthday or just because and every article of clothing my Monkey has outgrown, has moved directly to my Monster's closet and when Monster outgrows it, it goes to my Munchkin.
3. Shared space. While I would love for each of my children to have their own bedroom, they could all share one room if necessary and it wouldn't be a problem. Children of opposite genders can share when they are small but it becomes awkward and not very practical as they reach puberty. Bath time is also easy and even as they get older, it won't be a problem. If Monster is taking a shower and Monkey needs to get ready, she can go in and use the sink. As a teenage girl, I was left banging on the door waiting for my brother to get out of the bathroom so I could get ready.
4. Instant, lifelong friends! There is an amazing bond that develops between sisters (and brothers), having someone there who is in the trenches with you, going through all the same difficult changes that come from growing up, that knows everything about you, and my daughters get to experience that. Don't get me wrong, I love my brother to death, but I always wondered what it would be like to have a sister. Mr. Gem only has a sister, so he always wondered what it would be like to have a brother and when we found out Monster was going to be a girl, we both got so excited that our girls were getting something we always wanted!
5. No opposite gender kids in the house! One thing I am really excited about in having all girls is that when they are teenagers, I don't have to worry about their brother's friends always wanting to stay the night to be near the cute girls. I could easily see it the other way too. All the girls wanting to stay so they could flirt etc. with the brothers.
There are so many wonderful facets in having all one gender. My husband, in having all girls, gets to be absolutely adored by 4 girls and if we had all boys, I would be the Queen to 4 guys. My husband never has to worry about the girls raiding his closet and if I had all boys, I would never have to worry about going in my room to find my favorite pair of red heels missing (sadly, my 2 year old is already a closet raider!) I can't help but think if we had a boy, he probably would NOT like having to be dragged around shopping, or going to his sisters gymnastics competition and if we had all boys and one girl, she probably would NOT like having to be dragged around to his sports or having him and his friends pick on her (I know I didn't like it). So to those wondering, no, we DON'T regret not having a boy just like my friends with boys DON'T regret not having a girl.
EDITED TO ADD: I just remembered one other awesome thing about having all one gender! When you are frazzle brained and the kids are being crazy, you don't have to remember names! Just say "GIRLS, STOP IT!!!" As I just did right after I published the original post!
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