Boys vs girls

[trick-r-treat]

When my daughter turned 15, I was told that I was in for it, but she never gave me any trouble. So when my son turned 15, I was totally unprepared. Now I talk to lots of parents who tell me they have been through 15 and know exactly what I am going through. Are boys worse than girls? Actually, I was much more mature growing up than my daughter was, and I remember giving my mother a hard time, but nothing like this!

[Sam]

I feel that girls are way more to handle than boys at that age, boys tend to stray and want more privacy and they are mostly in their own world, its a mystery really.

[tater03]

I to have always heard that girls are harder to raise when they hit the teen years. I have two sons so I cannot help but hope that this is true. I will say that most of the people that I know seem to dread and hate the teen years when there daughters reach them. Maybe it has to do with the hormones and just reaching puberty overall.?We all know how us women can get when it is that time.

[jmeyer3131]

I've heard the same thing, tater. I only have a daughter, so I can't speak to the difference either.

I can say this much: having just one child, as a young teen I have no problems yet. She has a good head on her shoulders. She's independent and lives by her values. We do, of course, have arguments, but that's how she learns that people fight and make up. (She can't learn that through siblings like lots of us did.) It's also a way for her to assert herself.

Do I sound like I love being a mom? I should. My mom obviously loved all four of us, and I learned a lot from her.

[Teresa]

My experience was the exact opposite....I had my son, and then my two daughters. My son was soooooooo easy, from birth on. My oldest daughter was WAY more difficult, from day one, and especially once she hit the teens. Now my youngest daughter is also a teen, and I'm back to having an easy time with her. So, I would say that it just depends on the child in question.

[jmeyer3131]

Teresa, just curious, was your oldest daughter also more difficult from birth? My daughter was like your son, easy from the very beginning. I know there has to be some parental influence in how our kids turn out, but it's hard for me to take any credit for my daughter. She was just always a good kid, easy to smile, averagely active, adapted easily to things.

It's made me curious about just how much influence we really have. It's easy to point the finger at the parent when the kid is difficult and easy to accept compliments when your kid is good, but I often think that my daughter would have been one of those easy-to-raise kids with any parent.

So...were the two "easier" kids always easier? How about the rest of you?

[Teresa]

Originally Posted by jmeyer3131

Teresa, just curious, was your oldest daughter also more difficult from birth?

Oh yes, she was born being more "difficult." She was what they call a high needs baby....she wanted to be held 24/7, and if she wasn't, she screamed......not cried, SCREAMED. So I wore her for a year, just to be able to get things done around the house and spend time with my son. Brian had always been so easy going, and able to entertain himself, that I had no clue what was up with Adrienne. As she grew into a toddler, she continued to be very strong willed, wanting what she wanted when she wanted it, and seemingly convinced that she didn't have to listen to anyone else about anything.....and it's just gone on from there. (Don't get me wrong, she can be a good kid, and mostly is, but she's still stubborn, hardheaded and persistent....LOL).

When I got pregnant with Amy, I actually hoped she would be a boy, after my previous experiences. But, even though I had another girl, she was born with the same even temperament as her brother, and again, could entertain herself from an early age, or just enjoy watching what was going on around her without havign to be the center of attention.

[happy2bg33k]

For me it's a matter of comfort. I feel pretty comfortable talking to my daughter as she gets older because I remember what it was like to be her age and feel like I know girls a lot better. My son, on the other hand, scares me (not him, the talking to him!). Right now he's young enough that I have some time to figure it out. But things like wet dreams, shaving, etc...I don't know anything about them! Luckily, my husband-his stepfather- can cover that area but for a long time I was a single mother and totally bewildered about what I was going to do!

[blade]

I have two daughters, my oldest, 14 has started to change alot lately. There's that 'i'm not bothered' attitude in her class work, I know she is, and she generally tries her best and gets good grades, but I've noticed her slacken, she's forgetting her homework etc. Laziness around the house. And then there's the latest, boys.
I'm just been alot more stricter with her, making her do her homework before going out with her friends, and making her pack her school bag the night before. Just silly little things, she's not the most organised person in the world I must say.
I make her dry a few pots, tidy her room every day.

There's one thing I've learnt. Money works for anything!
blade

[reowen51]

We raised three sons and an attack daughter...she was the baby. The girl was the toughest but I think only because it was different. All of them were involved in activities and were supported by us their parents. Looking back they each posed their own challenges to us but we all survived it. Now ranging in age from 33 to 25 we sit back and watch them go through the same things they put us through. We now have 4 grandchildren. The mother's curse works!