I don’t think it’s fair to say that both of the famous Brookes aren’t grateful for their girls.They just wanted the experience of raising a boy. The only difference between them and regular people is that they don’t have a bunch of people/strangers analyzing their comments and saying they are valuing boys over girls. I think both would be insulted and probably hurt from that

I would like to say that yearning for a different gender baby and recognizing the blessing and being grateful for the ones you already have are not mutually exclusive. I am the mother of three boys….waited 5 long years, hoping and praying for a daughter, and gave birth to a baby girl. I was, and still am soooo in love and grateful for my boys, and yet still longed to experience raising a daughter, for no other reason than, I believe it (raising both genders) to be one of lifes ultimate blessings and joys. I believe it’s quite natural to want to experience both. If I had had 3 daughters and no sons, I would’ve wanted the experience of raising a son. It would have gone both ways for me.

i thnk it is so sad when people say things like ‘we really want a boy’ or vice-versa ‘we really want a girl’. wishing for it quietly is ok, but saying it is not.
how bad must those daughters fell, knowing that their parents really wanted a boy, and how special will that boy feel just because of his gender?
i am a mother of 2 girls and with my first pregnancy i didn’t wish for one or the other.
but, with my second pregnancy i was hoping that it would be a boy. turns out it was another girl. i did feel a little disappointed the first 2 hours after the ultrasound but got over it quickly.
it’s not that i felt a boy was needed to complete the family, but i felt that i would miss out on the experience of raising a son. my husband though didn’t want a boy and was so glad that we were having another girl.
i do know two couples that have two boys and were wishing for a girl. more the mom then the dad though.

I have one of each and while I tried to guess what I was having each time (and was wrong both times)I wasn’t hoping for one or the other. I’m just thrilled to have 2 beautiful healthy kids. My family is full of girls so knowing my daughter had a bunch of femal cousins to play with was cool. Then knowing I was adding the rare boy to my family was also cool. Next time around hubby and I aren’t finding out but will be thrilled with which ever should bless us with his/her presence.

I think that Shelley could explain what she thinks of all the comments made here.

While I don’t have any children of my own yet, this topic was of particular interest to me. When my mother and I were having a discussion recently about where my life is going, and where I see myself in the future, the subject of children came up. She expressed her desire to become a grandmother, and I reassured her that I would love to become a mom someday, to a pretty decent sized family. It’s still a few years down the road, but I’ve known I wanted to be a “Mommy” since I was in Kindergarten and had to draw a picture of my future career in class.

As we chatted, my mom let it slip that she wanted a boy and a girl. She told me that she hoped for a boy first, and a girl second. I am the oldest, and I was expected to be a boy. But of course, I put a little kink in her plans! (I always have been a stubborn person… hee hee) Then my younger sister came along. When I was young, my mom always discussed adopting a boy. I remember that my mom thought she was pregnant when I was younger (I was also a snoop!) and hoped for a boy.

My sister constantly teases me about how I threw off my parents’ plans. But, I never felt unloved or unappreciated, and still don’t. It’s just a little weird, in my opinion, to think that I was “supposed” to be a boy. And hearing my mom still today, talk about her desire for a boy, doesn’t leave me upset or angry… it’s just odd.

That being said, when I have a family, I would love two boys and two girls, if I could choose. But, when that time comes, I will sincerely hope for healthy, happy children, no matter what their gender.

I am a mother of 6 wonderful children. Five of them are boys and only 1 is a girl. There is a twelve year age difference between my youngest son who is 14 and my daughter who just turned 2. After having my second son every time I got pregnant I would hope that I would be blessed with a little girl. Not because I didn’t love having my sons because I did, but I guess you could say it was me being selfish and wanting to have atleast one of each. Not because I thought having a little girl was better than having a little boy because I didn’t. Before I had my daughter I would never have traded one of my sons for a girl. I think that goes for all the moms out there. We may wish to have a child of the opposite sex but we love our children no matter what they are and one is not better than the other. My life would have been just as complete and happy without having my daughter but she does make it that much better also. I was blessed to be able to have atleast one of each sex. I don’t see what the big issue is over wanting to have both sex’s. Before your child is born you may wish and hope for a certain sex but when that doctor puts that baby in your arms for the first time what sex that child is doest matter at all.

We have 3 girls and would like to have the experience of having a boy. I know DH would love to have a son around for “male bonding”. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t love the girls. He adores them. And can’t imagine life without them. We are on the fence about a 4th. Part of it may be that we are hesitant about a 4th girl. That is a LOT of women in the house. 3 is hard! We are not sure yet what we’ll do. DH is adopted and we are seriously looking into that as an option.

it seems to me quite the opposite. i have over 10 friends that all just had baby girls and they all wanted girls. i was the only one of all of us that wanted and got a boy. if people are so eager to have boys then why do childrens boutiques carry barely any boy items?! most stores offer shelves stocked with girl clothing and have one little corner for boys. as the mother of a son, this is disappointing because i want to be able to dress him well. but again, i think some mothers connect on a better level with sons. i know i do and if i have children in the future i want more boys. the prospect of having a girl scares the hell out of me.

Actually, for as moody and dramatic that girls may be as teenagers, boys are their own version of a handful…

Case in point: The Jackass syndrome. The concept of “consequence” doesn’t develop in boys as soon as it does in girls, so they’ll often engage in insane stunts that end up in personal injury. A favorite among my boy cousins–”the milk challenge.”

No one knows why.