Hellobee Boards

I dunno, but I know my hubby wanted all boys...(although he loves my daughter so much)....

My grandma had a thing for boys. It drove my mom crazy (her MIL) because she had all girls. She thought my grandma was so sexist. But then my mom told me she never wanted a boy. It works both ways!

I was thrilled about our boy. I'm sure next time I will root for a girl, nut I think we will have more than two so I'm not worried. I don't think I'll be too disappointed if I have all boys. I still plan on teaching them to bake and sew!and I have a cute niece!

I think there is some truth that people might favor baby girls in general. However, as the mother of a little girl, I have to say that I would rather deal with less of a clothing selection than all of the real problems faced by women in this society. I worry very much about her future when I know what awaits her in terms of an overly sexualized culture which preys on young girls, the fact that there might STILL not be equal pay for equal work and the fact that there still might be relatively few women in powerful positions. I just hope things are different when she's older.

The HB posts and polls are answered by women. I think if we polled men we would see a strong preference for boys. My mom always wanted one of each and hoped her first would be a boy. Turned out I was a girl.

Just like women's clothing has a larger foot print in department stores compared to men's, so does girl's clothing compared to boy's. Culturally speaking clothing, appearance, what's on the outside (superficial) is a burden women face more so than men. Having tons of dressy clothes for baby girls with matching bows and shoes is something we teach and reinforce to our girls at a young age. I do not think our culture as a whole has a preference for women.

I think that society as a whole still far values boys above girls.

For me, no. I wanted both and I would have been a little disappointed if I never had a son or daughter. But I do agree that boys clothing sections are pathetic compared to girls!

agree with a lot of pp's...i'm not sure that society favors baby girls (in asian culture thats definitely not true), but if it does, that doesn't make up for the fact that women have it much harder later in life!

@blackbird: "We don't place the focus on carrying on the family name and having heirs that other countries do."

Tell that to my dad! You'd think we were the Rockefellers or something. To be fair, my dad was the only boy of his generation and my brother the only boy, and he was one and done so if he didn't have a boy, that would be the end of our "line", but seriously, our names is NOT uncommon-- it's like the Smith of Germany.

I maybe would have agreed with the clothing thing a few years ago, but have you seen some of the little boy clothes out there lately? It is ADORABLE. There are so many more options and colours for boys. Man, they can look cuuuuuuuute.

However, I don't really agree, I know more people in my life who would prefer boys and cringe at girls than I do the other way around. The only reason I have such a strong preference to a girl at the moment is because we have two boys already and I'd like to break that up a little.

@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: Exactly what I was going to say.

For the majority of us women, we know what it's like to be a girl, we know how to relate and remember what it was life as a little girl. I know for me personally, I grew up with 3 brothers and they DROVE ME NUTS. I felt I didn't have the patience for a boy and was so scared to have one. Turns out my son is SO laid back, a great listener and while he loves a good romp with his daddy - he's actually SO fun and not nearly as crazy as I expected (granted, he's only a year so I shouldn't speak too soon ;).

Anyway I felt I could have had all girls and been happy but now that I have a boy I realize how awesome it is to have the balance of a boy who reacts physically rather than emotionally. If we had a girl it would be drama, tears and princess-like behavior, which isn't bad just different. A boy is a nice balance of that. I do hope I have a girl someday but I'm actually thrilled I had a boy first. I like the idea of a little girl having a big brother to look out for her. I had a great relationship with my older brother. I trusted him to ask for a guys opinion on clothing, boyfriends, etc..

Like lemon-lime said - if we were polling men I'm sure a whole lot of them would be perfectly happy with a family of boys, whereas we moms would be more inclined to feel more at ease with a slew of girls rather.

I'm still scared of potentially having all boys and really hope I get a girl but I also know that I would love my children no matter their gender and still love being a mom.

As for society: that's a good point about clothing etc... Since having a boy I wish more than anything I could design my own little boys clothing line! So many cute stuff for girls, but I wish there was more for boys. My shopping is limited to Gap and H&M pretty much.

@foodnerd, lol the Rockefellers. Ok so some families are extreme about it

@zippylef: I agree. Society as a whole does favor boys. Childrens clothes do favor girls.

@.Twist.: I completely agree, I love having a boy and I think the options for clothing now are great! It's so much fun dressing him like a tiny version of his dad - little boys can have such great style now.

I don't think society does but the baby clothing industry does. I love my little boy and even if I was to have another little boy I would be thrilled. My BFF definitely went through gender disappointment with her 2nd pregnancy but now she is totally over it.

I agree with some of the comments above about boys clothes being harder to find, especially if you don't want something really formal on the one hand or stereotypical (cars, trucks, planes, more trucks, etc) on the other.

Speaking for myself -- although I don't think @beehive would disagree too much -- I would have been equally happy with a boy or a girl. If we decide to try for a second, then I will hope for a girl: we already have a boy, and I would want him to have a little sister, because I do too and she's amazing.

I don't consider lots of clothing options a sign that baby girls are favored. I actually consider that a very clear sign that society is still deeply sexist. Consumer goods don't equal equality!

@mrskc: I think it's the same for our families!! Everyone wants a boy first then after I don't believe there is any preference =) We are having a boy and we are over the moon, we would have been for a girl too but DH definately wanted a son first!

I had a girl preference for the twins because I was (am) terrified of what two boys the same age will get into! But, I really want to have at least one of both genders, so if I had all boys or all girls I would be a little disappointed.