A Shout Out to Mothers of Sons

I have only been a mother of a son for a little over one year now and I'm not sure I'll survive.  Don't get me wrong, I love him dearly. He is precious in more ways than I can count.  But he's also rough, adventurous, and fearless.  I'm more comfortable with my girls...the ones who were delicate at birth, easy to relate to, calm (for the most part).  Kaylea came nearly 4 weeks early and was so sweet and precious.

  Being the first we were cautious with her, held her all the time, and gazed at her for hours on end.  She is still the dainty little princess we imagined, a smart, beautiful, careful little 5 year old we love so much. 

Then there came Natalie.  A second girl to play with her sister. She gave us fits for awhile, but still a tiny little princess to care for and love.  She immediately fit into our family perfectly and I connected with her just as quickly as I did with Kaylea. 

Now Natalie is a vibrant, beautiful, funny little 3 year old princess we love so much. Though we often butt heads because there are 3 girls in the house, I know how they're thinking, what they're feeling and how to make it better. They are completely opposite in nearly every way, but I get it.  I know them, I know girls. They light up our lives :) 

We didn't find out with any of our children what we were having before they were born. I suggest this to anyone who asks me. It was fun and incredible to find out boy or girl the moment they came.  And we never wanted others to be disappointed .  Especially after having two girls back to back, everyone I came in contact with would ask me if I was hoping for a boy and if we'd keep trying till we got one.  I hated this.  Of course it would be nice to have a son, but if God intended for us to have 3 girls then that's what we'd have. My concern was not their sex, but their health.  And so God gave us a healthy 8 lb. 10 oz baby boy for child #3. 

Carter did not come in to this world like his dainty little sisters.  The girls gave me time, I had epidurals, I was smiling through their births.  This boy came in as fast, as loud and as BIG as he possibly could!  I swore up and down I'd never have a child naturally, I wasn't cut out for it. So as most "I'll never" statements in parenthood often end up, that's exactly what happened.  Either way, we were blessed with a HEALTHY little boy to love. 
I have to admit I was a bit terrified to learn I had a son. What the heck was I going to do with him?  Would he love me like my girls do?  What exactly is "normal" for a boy, anyway?  Questions and worries streamed through my mind but I figured I could handle it. He is a baby after all, and I love babies :) 

But then it hit me...what if he's like his dad?!? What if he gets excited about speed and dirt and thinks AFTER he leaps?  What if he does stupid stuff for the fun of it and how much insurance do we need to cover  him when he does?  My mind started racing again until I decided I could keep that stuff at bay.  I stay at home with him every day so I would be his primary influence.  Surely after so many tea parties with his sisters and days of drawing flowers and rainbows on the sidewalk he would be somewhat reserved. 

One year later I have realized this isn't possible. The boy is in him, the Farrell part of him cannot be held back.  He climbs on EVERYTHING, he eats EVERYTHING, he goes as fast as he can and gets hurt on EVERYTHING!! By the end of the day I am exhausted, frustrated and in disbelief at his new accomplishments.  I prided myself on the fact I didn't have to completely baby proof our house because if you told the girls no, they listened. Now I'm stocking up on cabinet locks, outlet covers, and contemplating toilet locks!  This is crazy!  I'm going mad chasing one boy up and down stairs, pulling him off the oven door, yanking him away from the toilet lid.  How do mothers of more than ONE son do it???  Where does your energy come from, where do you find your sanity?  Are they all like this? 

I love him to pieces, and the love between a mommy and her son is unlike any other, for sure, but I often find myself holding out for those days when I don't have to pull him off of a pile of sharp rocks or scoop out dirt from his mouth.  I realize these days will come and then I'll have two teenage girls to deal with. I'll be wishing for this time again, but at least then Carter won't be eating dirt and climbing rocks.  Or maybe he will...either way he'll be stable enough to climb on his own and old enough to remove the dirt himself  ;)