Raising Boys – What You Need To Know

As the mother of a girl, you know that you always have your own childhood memories to fall back on for guidance. However, unless you grew up in a home full of guys, there’s a fair chance that at least some of what it takes to raise a boy will take you by surprise. If the road ahead is looking like one big mystery, here are a few important things to know about raising a boy…

From Pixabay

They Never Stop Moving

From the point where they jump on your bed at 5:30 in the morning to when they finally pass out somewhere around bedtime, boys only come with two speed settings – fast, and even faster. It’s pretty common for a parent to see their toddler sitting on the floor playing with a rattle, turn around for a few seconds, and then turn back to see their bundle of joy summiting the kitchen cabinets! It’s going to take several years for him to slow down, so you need to learn to pick up the pace. Give them some safe and healthy way to burn their excessive amounts of energy, and you’ll make things so much easier for yourself.

Budget for Planes, Trains and Automobiles

From Flickr

Even if you make a point of stocking your play room with unisex toys, you’d have to be very lucky to dodge the early male obsession with vehicles. Pretty soon, your floors are going to be littered with diecast cars and trucks, the bathroom is going to be full of miniature boats, and there’ll be a surprisingly complex train track running around the perimeter of your lounge. Young boys absolutely adore anything with wheels, or anything that can fly or sail. Aside from days out at places like Brentwood Karting, this will also mean that you’ll need to buy a whole miniature motorshow sooner or later. If you’re planning to stock up on toys, don’t waste money by getting an eclectic range. You’d be amazed at the hours of fun they can have with a few toy vehicles!

Clothes Shopping is a Breeze

Here’s some good news for a change! A girl’s wardrobe can be massive at any age, but with boys, things are much easier. There’s trousers, trainers, and t-shirts, and that’s about it. There are no outfits, and everything, more or less, will go together. There may be less options, but dressing a boy is so much easier than dressing a girl.

Rough Play is Natural

From Flickr

The amount of roughhousing you’ll have with two boys can be pretty worrying at first. You tell him to give his brother a hug, and he sprints forward for a full-body rugby tackle. While rough play can be alien and disconcerting to a lot of women, not to mention totally exhausting, rough play is natural and healthy in boys. It may not look like it, but this kind of physical interaction can boost the feel-good chemicals in your boy’s brain, foster positive brotherly relationships, and even promote greater intelligence. You can read more on this at Psychology Today.