Why does it seem that baby boys are less 'celebrated' than baby girls??

Question

Before I had my beautiful baby boy, so many people said to me "Oh, are you disappointed you're not having a girl". Or, "hopefully you'll have a girl next time" etc etc.... I love my baby boy, with his curly dark hair, big brown eyes and long black lashes, he is so lovable, and I get stopped everyday when I'm out for people to gush over him, some making the silly comment "Oh, he's so beautiful, he looks like a girl". Do you think in the Western World the tables have turned, and now baby boys are treated like 'second best'??

To the first replier - in fact, the one thing everyone tells me in favour of baby boys is that they are generally more affectionate and cuddly, and I can see this in my little bundle of joy - more so than the baby girl of my friend.

Goodness Lamatime - you're going 'overboard' with your comments - I'm not talking about the great Male/Female debate here, just how people talk about babies - and as for going on about rape!!! Etc. I am a very loving, righetous person, and OF COURSE I shall teach my little boy to respect and adore women, just as you should teach your daughter to respect men.

Answer 1

because baby girls are more adorable then baby boys

Answer 2

Perhaps people assume that since you are a woman, you would prefer to have a girl. Many people do assume that about women, and the same goes for men being expected to want a boy that they can relate and connect to.

Also, little girls have ALWAYS been fawned over (at least in contemporary western culture), much moreso than little boys. We got into a discussion about this in psychology. Up until about sixth grade, little girls are treated as little princesses, and boys are expected to be... well... boys. When they start entering middle school, this dynamic changes, as boys become more interested in women and girls tend to compare themselves to movie stars/etc., which can lower their self-esteem.

Edit: Congratulations by the way!

Answer 3

In China and some Eastern/African cultures girl children are left to DIE. In Africa they still practise the barbaric ritual of female circumcision without any form of anaesthesia and cut out the entire clitoral area. The amount of girl children in Eastern Europe orphanages far outnumbers boys. To this day the male child is still considered the one who will carry on the family name/business leaving the female sibling in the sidelines or having to prove herself worthy in the eyes of the father. I do not think the western world has changed as men still dominate the world. Men still hold the power. Men being stronger can rape a little girl in a number of ways. Take child pornography for example we only hear the extreme case where it happens to little boys but what the other much higher percentage of little girls being abused not only by strangers but members in their own family. I am so worried for my little girl I love her so much that I would be capable of anything to protect her. As a mother you love your child no matter what sex they are. Your son is beautiful and wonderful and your ultimate joy. I only have one request that you teach him to respect women as human beings not objects.

Answer 4

I always found it to be the other way around, since traditionally and historically, having a boy was the best thing that could happen to your family (this idea was majorly supported by my grandparents).
It might be because stereotypically boys are harder to raise then girls as they are more energetic, violent, cause more trouble, blah, blah, blah then girls. My mom, for example, feels that I was easier to raise then my two brothers.
There's also the idea that if you have a girl first, she is more likely to help out if you have other kids and she'll act like a babysitter for you at times.

Answer 5

I love all my kids - Boys and Girls - But I have never experienced that because Boys are much less expensive. It is expensive to keep my daughters looking like Queens. My boys are roughnecks and don't need much

Answer 6

I found it to be the other way around. I was usppose to be a boy and everyone was dissappointed that I turned out a girl.