Are Boys REALLY Easier Than Girls?

Boys will be boys

Yesterday I discovered something rather monumental.

There is a fate worse than a sick husband with so called ‘man flu’. 

That fate is in the form of a 3 year old boy who has ‘mini man flu’. He’s not even really that bad at present, he has a mild cough and a cold and his 2 year old brother who has it ten times worse is taking it more in his stride than him. But the three year old is dying. I believe his exact words were ‘Mummy, I can’t live like this anymore *cough cough* I’m dying!‘.

I remember both times when I was pregnant with my boys well meaning strangers would say to me ‘Oh, you’re having a boy! Boys are so much easier than girls’. I would smile and say that yes, I had heard that before. I think the general consensus was that boys are much simpler creatures. Less talking, less whining, less drama queen antics, less teen angst. Sure, they said, they are physically far more taxing. They run, wrestle, jump, dive off furniture and never seem to stop moving or get tired from being on the go all day. However, emotionally they are much easier to navigate through the minefield of childhood. You don’t get the silent treatment and the ‘I hate you’ thrown in your face quite so vehemently (or the high pitched squealing) and you don’t have to worry so much about emotional bullying and the cruelty that can come with little girls. With boys a push and a shove and it’s likely over in the playground, as opposed to the ongoing emotional trauma that little girls tend to instill in their victims.

On the flip side, I have since heard that many people consider GIRLS to be the easier sex. I think the general consensus has also flipped to girls being on trend as the preferred sex too, they seem to be the latest accessory in celebrity land and the world is full of people feeling sorry for all boy mums (this is a whole different topic I will delve into at a later date, you wouldn’t believe half the things strangers have said to me upon hearing I have only boys!). I think people consider girls to be quieter (when they’re not talking your ear off of course), more likely to sit in a corner playing dolls or tea parties and less likely to destroy the house.

But is it true really?

My boys are physical but they also have the soft and sensitive side too. They always demand snuggles and kisses. The little one never shuts up. He could talk the head off a donkey (where the hell did that come from?!) and they bloody well do squeal (though to be fair they did pick that up off their girl cousin!). The older one is always dying. Or cold. Mummmmmy! I need you! (Translation: needy). They can sit quietly playing cars (for about 2 minutes) and my little one loves to go shopping and socialise and then have a coffee with mummy (his coffee is a cheeseburger though, as if he needs more caffeine, being a boy and all!). They’re also pretty sensitive creatures, they just hold it in a bit more.

So are little girls really as whiny, dramatic and difficult as they are made out to be? Or are boys actually  the ones who are harder?

What do you think? Is one sex easier than the other or does it simply come down to personality?

53 thoughts on “Are Boys REALLY Easier Than Girls?

    1. My thoughts too! My boys were easy babies but I am finding the older they get the more physically demanding they are! We have injuries almost every day, no hospital visits yet though (fingers crossed!).

  1. I think it’s a personality thing. I have a 5 year old boy and I had to laugh when I read the stereotype boy and girl behaviours because like you, I’ve noticed my boy doing all of them.

  2. Oh I love these type of posts because – hey, six kids!
    Boys as you say: Adorable, mushy, ever-needy, sweet, soft. Busy as hell too!
    Girls: Sweet, independent, talkative. These ones grow up at twice the rate of the boys! By eight, they’re 13!
    Personally, both have pros and cons. Boys are boys for years and really idolise Mum too. Ever-loyal, they’re around you until you go insane. Girls are grown in a minute and possibly give you a greater run socially (they always organise events for themselves) and cost twice as much as four boys put together in upkeep! I love them both! Teen girls are much more work than the boys however… 😀

  3. Hmm I have one of each, looking from birth to 1 year as that’s all I have to compare I have found my girl much easier than my boy. I think it all comes down to personality rather than gender. But my girl has been much more independent, not as clingy or whiny. My boy clings to me like there is no tomorrow and whines a lot.

  4. With three boys to grow up I’m completely trying to believe that boys are more tricky as toddlers but easier as teens… Otherwise I’m in a whole lot of trouble!

  5. I have two girls and one boy, and I am a primary school teacher. I don’t care what they say, boys squeal way worse than girls. Every time!

    In our house, with three teens, I am finding the boy the most emotionally demanding to parent. By the time the girls got to 13 and passed through the phase of being 14 they had really settled down. They get on with their homework, they are diligent and sensible and are easy to reason with. Not so with this boy. He is just like my youngest brother. Emotional, overly sensitive, obstinant…more than the girls ever were…not diligent, often difficult to move his inflexible thinking. He has an ADHD-inclined brain so that has something to do with it all. But he has definitely been the harder one of the three to parent through these most recent years.

    I don’t think this is a gender issue. I think it is about personality.

    1. As a teacher you would have way more insight than me! I think I settled down around age 18 with 11-14 being the most trying time for my mum which is in sync with what you are saying too. Personality has so much to do with it.

  6. I’m a Mum of two boys as well (three and almost two) and I think it does come down a lot to personality, every child has their quirks and own set of challenges.
    I totally hear you when it comes to comments from people (usually random strangers) about how tough it must be having two little boys (mine are 16mths apart) and are we going to ‘try again for a girl’. Even when I was pregnant with our youngest little man people actually gave me looks of pity when I said I was having another little boy….. sorry for the rant, it’s so frustrating though!!

    1. I have a post mostly written already about that issue which I will be putting up soon, so keep an eye out! Mine are 17 months, 3 and 2 🙂 We must have lots in common!

  7. I’m definitely going with personality. We have 1 boy (10) and 2 girls (4 & 7).
    I wouldn’t say anyone out of them is any easier to parent than the other. They all come with their own qualities and challenges!
    I hope all your boys feel better soon, don’t forget to take care of you too! x

    1. I have it too which kinda sucks but my 3 year old is definitely taking the cake on feeling the worst! Haha. The challenges for each will shift and change with time and age no doubt.

  8. I am sure no one sex is easier than the other in general… It’s more to do with the personality of the child, and the parenting, and the conditions they grow up in, surely? I have two girls, and they are easy to take to cafes, and easy socially. They are great communicators, but they are also head strong and FIESTY! Hope everyone is feeling better soon. x

    1. My boys are definitely not easy to take to cafes. We went to a restaurant once. NEVER AGAIN. I stick to the coffee shops in the mall where there is also a McDonalds! 😉

  9. I don’t know. I can’t compare as I only have a boy. But I also get told that phrase by people…”Boys are easier than girls”. I would agree with it being their personality.

    p.s. Your three year old must be listening to his Dad too much when he is sick ;). God I can’t believe they start doing the whole man-flu whinge that early in life!

    1. Yeah, I really think it totally depends on the child. Both mine have individual challenging aspects to their personalities, one is FULL ON and the other is more sensitive and quirky.

  10. I have to agree with the age thing, I think it has less to do with gender and more to do with age. And most of all it has to do with the individual child. My eldest girl covers all of the stereotypes of both boys and girls, she is as rough as guts, could talk the ear off a corn, is so melodramatic she could win an oscar, and hasn’t met a bug she doesn’t like (with the exception of spiders that is!). So yeah, I don’t think one gender is harder than the other (although I can’t scientifically confirm this, having only girls myself) it just comes down to the child themselves and their age at the time. My girls are like chalk and cheese and what has been hard with one has been easy with the other, and vice versa.

    1. Thanks Finley .. Sorry! That was supposed to say talk the ear off a corn is a new one to me! Haha. My youngest came out to the clothes line with me the other day and there was a worm crossing the footpath and he was terrified! He went inside and wouldn’t come out. He also thinks flies are spiders and they are chasing him. Your daughter sounds more like a typical boy than him! Funny how they turn out 🙂

  11. I have three girls and one boy and they all have their moments. It’s personality as much as gender that comes into play I think.
    My boy does have more energy, that’s for sure, but I wouldn’t say either gender is easier. It just depends what mood any of them are in!

    1. That’s true too, mood also plays a part and how much sleep they got! Much like us I guess. But yes, the energy thing, I wish I could borrow some!

  12. I’ve got 2 girls 22 months apart and they are miles apart in personality – I think we might be in for some tough teenage years given the drama that goes on at ages 8 & 6! I wouldn’t think that either would be easier than the other just different types of problems and worries. Everyone says to me that the teenage years are hardest with girls and then they come back to you when they have kids of their own – time will tell! What can you do anyway right?

  13. Well, as the mum of three girls I can’t comment about whether boys are easier to raise but I’m sure personality would play a huge part regardless of gender. I’m sure we’re in for quite a ride during the teenage years though! I did laugh when I read in your post about people feeling sorry for ‘all boy’ mums as I got exactly the same reaction when people heard I was having my third girl!! The ‘oh well’ comments I received and questions about whether we would try again for a boy just staggered me!

    1. Yeah, I don’t think it is reserved just for all boy mum but we do tend to get the brunt of it. I think men with all girls probably get the brunt on the opposite side of the fence!

  14. I don’t know if boys or girls are easier, I have three sons! I seem to recall a study that suggested boys are ‘harder’ as toddlers/young children. It was based on hospital admissions/broken bones that kind of thing. I do remember my sister in law, who is a Dr, telling me about making multiple calls to the poisons information hotline for her son but never needing to do that for her daughter! Ulitmately it has to be personality based, surely?!? On your other point, gee I receive a lot of sympathy from strangers for having three boys! Hilarious really.

    1. Haha, I have totally heard the poison hotline and boys thing before! That’s pretty funny. Thankfully no hospital admissions or broken bones here (yet!). How about you?

  15. 9,838,928,636 comments on this one! My boys are absolutely insane with the physical stuff too. Wrestling and climbing, etc. And my 2-year-old is also known for yelling, “I need you, mommy!” from his bed. For right now, there might be a level playing field for difficulty level of boys and girls (except moms of boys don’t have to deal with long, tangly hair), but from teaching high school, I know the girl drama is coming, and for THAT I’m extra thankful I have boys!

  16. As a Mum to four boys, I always get the comment that I’m lucky I have boys as they are SO much easier then girls. I think all children regardless of gender have difficult periods in life, it all depends on the child’s nature.

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