Curious: SO different because of gender or birth order - thoughts?!

[pipkin35]

Just interested. For those with 2 or more kids...
Obviously, it goes without saying that 'their all individuals' etc...but since I'm an only child, I'm really interested in what others reckon regarding the differences between their kids.

I have an older boy and younger girl - 16 months between them. They're SO different. In terms of most things. 1st kid, picky eater, 2nd eats anything. 1st kid amazing sleeper, 2nd kid dreadful. 1st kid happy to amuse self, 2nd one easily frustrated, more tearful etc...and so the list goes on.

Curious as to whether you all reckon it's a definate gender thing (and if you think there ARE any gender differences generally or is it a load of old tosh?) or 1st/2nd child thing, or neither of these? As in, could be the way I've 'handled' them - generally more time/being more 'precious' with the first etc...

I'm not 'worried' about anything, but all my mates only have one kid and I like to hear stories - and besides, I am super bored at work! :)

read this book on the gender thing, it rocks.
what she shows is that though there aren't significant differences in the brains boys and girls are born with there are differences in the ways they are treated, which may have a bearing on how they turn out.

my 2nd child (boy) is the picky eater in our house though....

Sleep: 1st slept thru from 2 weeks, 2nd slept thru from about 5 month ish, 3rd stil ot sleeping

eating: Fed completely differently so that may have a bearing.....1st was bottle fed from 1 week an 100% jars and is VERY fussy and only just getting less so, 2nd was mix fed until 16 weeks then bottle fed and had a mix of jars and homemade and is picky now but not massively fussy, 3rd was bf until 9 months and will eat ANYTHING! He was just given handfuls of whatever the others were eating!

Playing: all pretty similar. 3rd happy to entertain himself

All boys.

DS2 has issues similar to ASD though.

My DD's are twins. One is a picky eater, other eats anything (both were bottle fed). One is very sensitive, other is complete opposite. Neither one needs a huge amount of sleep and neither one plays well alone (although I think that may be twin thing - they always have someone else to play with).

Also, don't forget the magic word "phase". Dd was a fussy eater at 4 and a gannet at 10. Ds was a human dustbin baby but turned into a fusspot around age 6. Dd was sensitive baby, high spirited toddler, dramatic pre-teen- nothing's changed really. Ds otoh has gone from totally laidback to very sensitive and argumentative.

I have boy twins, 13 months.
Chalk and cheese.
(both lovely, obviously)

two boys: 2years old and 6 months - very different from the very beginning...

i was thinking that the differences may be due to something during pregnancy.. for DS1 (he is hard work) i had lots of nasty nightmares, for DS2 (he is the easy baby) i didnt have any nightmare at all...

I have two littlies, 14 months apart.

they are SO different, you can almost predict what one will do/like based on what the other one does...

sleep: dd2 sleeps rarely, has nightmares and night terrors and still, at the age of 6, has only managed a handful of full nights sleep.

ds sleeps straight through from being tucked in to being woken up the next morning and has done since he was weeks old - the only time he is disturbed is when dd2 wakes him up!

food: neither are picky eaters, but they like different things - to the point where what one leaves, the other one eats and vice versa.

playing: they like different toys, different tv programmes, different games... you name it, there is not one thing that they will both like - although they are happy to play together it is always a compromise.

I think they're just different, nothing to do with gender or birth order...