Every Girl Every Boy

This past weekend, I was reminded of just how different my two kids are from each other while catching a rare moment of snuggling with my daughter. My 4 year old son wants to be a fireman and a parachuter, but loves to set the table, help me cook and gives hugs and kisses followed by "I love you Mommy" all day long. My almost 18 month old daughter spends most of her time trying on shoes and making sure everyone else is also wearing theirs. But when not worrying about that, she is climbing stools to get on the counter, climbing ladders to the slide, or jumping from the ottomans to the couch. She has no fear, is happy to go off on her own at the park, the beach, etc. and I'm hard pressed to get a hug or a kiss out of her. Their differences aren't gender specific, but I think people often like to explain "reasons" for differences by focusing on gender. A few years ago, when I walked into a new job, this poster was hanging in one of the office's. It is used in a lot of classroom settings. My first thought when I read it was if I ever have a daughter (in addition to my son who was already born) I would hang this poster in between their rooms. I have the perfect spot where our hallway ends and to one side is my daughter's room and the other side is my son's room. There is a lovely sailboat print their now, but I think the message here is much more important than the beauty of anything else, and it makes the space more personal in a way and hopefully reminds them that everyone is unique and they don't have to be like anyone else. Kids, and even adults, are under so much pressure these days that sometimes it's nice to have a reminder that we should just be ourselves and accept others as they are too.