Boy-Mom VS Girl-Mom

I have been blessed with the best of both worlds: Being a boymom to my toddler, Caleb Beau and a girlmom to my baby, Olivia Joy!  Being a boymom and girlmom are both equally exciting and rewarding.  Frequently, I’m asked, “What’s the difference between being a boymom vs. being a girlmom?”  As far as babies are concerned, it is not as different as I thought it would be.  Obviously, as they grow older, the differences will be greater and noticeable, but the differences are slight as babies.  Here are a few differences between being a boymom vs. being a girlmom (as newborns and infants).

• Circumcision vs Ear Piercing.  BOTH are optional, however, we had our boy circumcised when he was a few days old and our girl had her ears pierced at 2 months.  These were decisions we made as parents while being pregnant.  Circumcision is not required, however it is sometimes suggested by some healthcare professionals for cleansing and hygiene.  The ONLY con was the pain my baby boy went through for 2 days while he healed.  My husband was in the room while they performed this procedure and the Dr. asked me to leave because I could not contain myself.  As I heard my baby boy’s cry from outside, I instantly regretted putting him through such pain.  Fortunately, after the 2nd day, he was fine and healed properly.  On the other hand, ear piercing baby girls is a cultural tradition in our family.  We pierced my baby girl’s ears at 2 months, although we both cried (her cry made me cry), she quickly stopped after I breastfed her and went about her day just as any other.  We made sure we cleaned her piercings daily for 6 weeks.  I understand and respect that some cultures may view ear-piercing as “cruel”, however in Latin culture, it is not simply for aesthetics but it is a tradition for baby girls to have their ears pierced, some even at the hospital days after their birthday.  Both circumcision and ear-piercing were painful at the moment for both babies, but it was temporary and now we are happy with the decisions we made.
• Girls eat less than boys.  At least in my case, I noticed this from day 1!  I’ve breastfed both babies and I was able to quickly notice that Caleb’s intake was greater than Olivia’s.  I used to breastfeed my son for 40 mins. while my girl eats half of that, so I became a tad concerned and asked the pediatrician if it was normal for her to eat as “little” as she did.  He told me her numbers were perfect and that her weight and growth prove she is getting full.  He added that most of the time, boys eat more than girls.
• Boys tend to be bigger in weight & height.  Stats prove that this is true, and again, in my case, this happened.  Olivia weighed almost a pound less than Caleb and she was my second baby (they say second babies weigh more – but then again that could be a myth).  I find myself comparing their numbers when Caleb was her age, and the difference is noticeable.
• Clothes!  Hands down, girls win in the most stylish clothes for babies.  I loved dressing Caleb in onesies often because they showed off his chunky, irresistible thighs.  Every time I went to shop for him, I noticed there is 3x more clothes for girls than boys.  And now that I have Olivia, I understand why – girls have tons of accessories from head bows, to ruffled this and ruffled that!
• Diaper changing.  Cleaning and wiping is obviously different.  With baby boys, you have to make sure you clean their tip carefully after every diaper change especially if they are not circumcised.  With baby girls you have to make sure you clean carefully from front to back.
• Different diapers.  Surprisingly, my babies wear different brands.  Again, this may not be true for most people, but in my case, we started Olivia on the same Pampers Swaddlers as Caleb, but, she developed a diaper rash that turned into a minor infection.  This was NOT because of the Pampers diapers, however, because her skin was awfully irritated, the pediatrician suggested trying Seventh Generation diapers in the meantime and prescribed a medicated ointment.  Once we applied the ointment and switched diaper brands all at once, she healed.  We continued to use the same brand for her.
• Their cry.  I strongly believe baby boys and girls cry differently.  I can easily tell between a baby girl’s cry vs. a baby boy’s cry.  Boys tend to have a deeper tone while girls a softer tone, nonetheless, that definitely does not mean one cries louder than the other.

As time goes by, there will be more differences.  Are you a boy or girl mom?  I’d love to hear about your experience.  Feel free to comment below.

Below are photos from this past Sunday at church with my babies. (Floral Print Dress by ShopPinkBlush.com)

Disclosure: I have been gifted clothes by PinkBlush as part of being a brand ambassador. Although the product was a gift, all opinions in this review remain my own and I was in no way influenced by the company.

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