Family Make Up Comments: Why do people give them?

Recently I read the article, below, and found it very compelling. As a mom to all boys, I feel this mama so much. As we grow our family (to likely another boy with our brood), I am so sick & tired of the comments. The endless comments. For years (4 and counting since our second son came). Keep your ideas of what you think my family make up should look like to yourself, please. No we don't wish we had a girl. No we don't wish any of our current children were girls instead. No we aren't missing out because we don't have a girl. No we aren't any less of parents because we don't have a girl. No, having a girl does not make your family complete, no.

Why do people feel the need to comment on family make up? Does it come from a naive place of just curiosity, or do you think people genuinely think you need both a male and female child to have that "perfect" family? What is it about the sex of the child that makes it so special, compared to a different family make up? Tell me in the comments below what you think and if people have commented on your family make up.

​"I am a mother of three boys and I have always heard comments like:

Are you going to try for your girl?

Three boys…whoa…you must be tired.

Or that awful saying that goes something like this:

A son is a son until he takes him a wife. A daughter is your daughter for the rest of your life.

For the most part, these statements don’t bother me – well, maybe except for the last one…who wants to ever think their child will go off and never return? What a terrible thought, but the statements aren’t exactly encouraging or uplifting, either.

Recently though, I heard a comment about my boys that I continually turned around in my head until it seeped into my heart and made me feel like I could not possibly be blessed more than by being a mother of three sons. We were visiting my grandmother in her senior living center and one of the ninety-something year-old ladies came up to me and said, “You have such beautiful boys.” Then she hesitated, as if trying to decide if she should say more before finally adding, “I have three sons too and I love it. They take such good care of me.”

She said it with such joy and pride and went on to tell me how they treated her so well. She ended our conversation by firmly stating, “They take better care of me than any daughter ever could. I am so happy I have three sons.”

Her words were lovely and I felt uplifted.

If I think about it, I can see my boys also being amazing to me if someday I found myself in her shoes. They already have all kinds of super hero powers and are continually fighting off the villains that daily enter our home. I know they will always be my protectors.

I am their favorite girl and they tell me so each and every day. How lovely will it be to always have three handsome men visiting me no matter how old I am? That’s got to be good for the ego.

With them around, do I really ever need to open a door for myself? I will always be treated like royalty.

You should see some of the stuff they come up with when building Legos or how they strategically place their Spy Gear around the house so they know exactly what is going on. To me, these are signs of brilliant, future adult minds, all capable of taking care of their mom.

As the lady at the retirement home walked away, I called to her, “Thank you for saying that to me.” She turned back around and our eyes met. We exchanged a knowing look that only two mother of all boys would understand, connecting us across two generational gaps.

Mother of all boys. Yes, I do believe I hit the jackpot."

Cheryl blogs at www.sinceibecameamom.blogspot.com. 

Photo courtesy of Made to Mother and Cheryl