A boy and his baby

Anyone that’s met my son will tell you that he is 100% all boy.

He loves monster trucks, dirt bikes, dinosaurs and wrestling. Anything that most boys will gravitate towards.

I encourage and support my son’s interests that are age appropriate and healthy.

The one way my son differs from most boys is that he loves to play with his baby doll, Neddy.

Upon finding out that my sister was expecting a baby my son was overwhelmed with excitement and anticipation. He immediately wanted to start practicing being a good older cousin.

So we bought him a baby doll that he could practice taking care of and being gentle with. Initially he was a little embarrassed by the thought of having a baby doll. However, he quickly overcame that feeling and started taking pride in caring for his baby Neddy.

He takes Neddy nearly everywhere, unless he fears he will lose him or Neddy will get ‘hurt’. All summer he slept with, cared for, and loved Neddy.

Now a problem we faced was others suggesting that my son having a baby doll was overly feminine and inappropriate. My son came home from his father’s house and was upset that his father had told him having a doll was for girls only. He was hurt because he loves Neddy and felt torn over being told that was wrong.

I asked my son if he had ever seen a man holding his own baby? He said that he had seen that before. I then asked if anyone was telling that man that holding his baby was inappropriate or were making fun of him? My son immediately said, “No! That’s his baby!”

I then explained to my son that’s exactly how he should feel about holding Neddy! He understood and has never let anyone make him feel bad about it since.

Having a baby doll doesn’t emasculate my son. It prepares him for having an active role in his future children’s lives and in assisting his future wife and helping bear the load of parenting children.

#lemon8diarychallenge