girl! and here is why…

I always wanted a boy first. It just made sense. Besides loving babies and baby dolls I was never into “girly” things. I remember crying “when will I be old enough to pick out my own clothes??” when my mom would pick out my church dresses I “had to” wear. I never wanted to play dress up except for the time I got into my mom’s makeup, not to make myself look “pretty”, but to look like a clown. And I would get so mad when all the neighborhood boys would play football and Luke would say “go inside and paint your nails!” To which I’d ignore him and keep playing anyway. I was pretty good by the way, I think he was jealous. I enjoyed being outside; playing in mud, climbing trees, and “working” outside. I loved when my dad took me to work with him, watching him pave roads in the 90 degree weather. Especially when he’d let me help by tracing / painting the bumpers or disabled signs.

As I’ve gotten older, and thought about my own kids, I was afraid of having a girl that would want to wear makeup or go shopping, or whose biggest cares would be what outfit she’d wear for the day. My cousin’s daughter spent a few days with Stefen & I last year. She is one of the most well behaved, smartest, cutest, and perfect girls I know. But when she left I remember saying “I don’t think I can ever have a girl”. Not because it was “hard”, it was just so foreign to me. She dressed like a girl, and giggled like a girl, and was so sweet like a girl (she made Stefen a wallet out of duct tape and snuck money in it, which I snuck back in her purse).

But something changed over time. It might have something to do with the fact that I  now have 8 nephews and only 3 nieces, 2 of which live out of state. I’m just ready to be around a girl again! I never realized how much I wanted a girl until I actually became pregnant and caught myself staring at cute little girls while shopping thinking “yep, that’s what I want”. One of them reminding me exactly of my cousin’s daughter that stayed with us!

The more I thought about it the more I realized it’s true. I’m not into girly things. I grew up playing football and video games. So why am I worried about having a girl? Chances are, growing up with me & Stefen as parents, she will be a pretty good gamer herself, and with 7 nephews around she probably won’t mind getting dirty either.

So yes, I know all new parents say “I don’t care if it’s a boy or girl as long as they’re healthy!” and of course I agree with that because I will definitely be happy either way! But, I am still leaning towards a girl! And if it doesn’t happen this time, there’s always next time. Right, Stefen?