What is one thing you didn't have as a kid, that you would like for your child.

[Beeblebear]

My husbands answer to this would be the name Luke Skywalker. Luckily I uaed my labour veto for this one.

Straight teeth.

A loving Mother. . . forever and ever x

I want her burgeoning sexuality to develop at its own natural pace and her first sexual encounters to be enjoyable and consensual.

I want her to be fit and have body confidence.

I want her be proficient in a form of self defense

I am loving all of the very honest answers here! I think it really shows that we can all come from different experiences and backgrounds and all come together in the same place. Your answers have made me rethink my own.

Originally my thought was a sibling closer in age, as my brother was 8 years older than me and I often felt like an only child and probably could have used some guidance in my teenage years.

But upon giving it some more thought, I would like my son to be more AWARE in general. I lived a pretty sheltered life, never exposed to culture or taught life lessons about poverty and riches, or about broken families, or what not to do as a teenager, or who to look out for. I was told what to do or what not to do rather than being given street smarts and because of it I got into a LOT of trouble in my late teens. I didn't appreciate what I had.

Now I only have to figure out how to do that with my son. I think the first step is open communication.

And... I have never heard of a Mr. Frosty .

Similar reply to TwllBach on the first page as i had similar parents by the sound of it!

its not so much what i didn't have but what I did have and want for my own children.

I want them to feel as proud of me as I do of my mum. She has undiagnosed mental health issues and could/still can be a bit erratic at times, but she went from being a barmaid with 3 children under 5 to top of her field in a very specialist subject during 'the teenage years' of our childhood when she completely self funded two masters degrees working part time.

It was hard awful for everyone and TBH I didn't have a traditional childhood/teenagehood as a result BUT i am the person I am today because of that.

I don't know how I can do that though, because my mum made sure that I wasn't ever going to have the same hardships she did. I'm just going to be an ordinary mum with nothing very special to be proud of.

DH says 'more lego'. I'm in the Mousetrap set, my terrible parents only gave us educational games.

To be allowed to do creative stuff like painting without worrying about the mess :)

A bedroom of his own. Easy to organise as he is an only child.

Im plumping for mr frostys too, that was the first thing i thought of. Although i guess the up to date version is that cup you stick in the freezer.

Another one here for the actual, branded version of things. Also to feel able to ask for things he wants. I always knew to pretend not to want anything, to spare my parents feelings.
Both me and my sister remember walking around in clothes too small for us because our folks either hadn't noticed or couldn't afford to replace. Still unsure which as they were bith oblivious and skint. And, of course, we said nothing

Unconditional love which my two very definitely have got.

Oh and a view of the wider world and affection from both parents.

dashoflime our dc aren't that bothered by actual branded things: dd detests Hollister and Jack Wills and her favourite shoes are from Shoezone. I bought her a Top shop dress (sale) and an H&M tshirt at the weekend and she was over the moon and kept saying how guilty she felt because she'd had so much. And FWIW we have high six figures coming in so I really don't get the branded/non branded deprived argument. Not meant as a stealth boast btw - but we don't get the branded argument so maybe our dc have just never picked it up. DS rolls his eyes at some of his friends who have endless v. expensive stuff and will argue v strongly against materialism.

Parents who had the emotional maturity and capability to work things out and stay together, or not to bring EA people into their childs life subsequent to their break up. (or the sense not to have married and had kids in the first place.)

And a sibling, which luckily mine have!

Mine was a brother or sister,

I have two DC so have fulfilled that one for them!

Marriedinwhite It was about accessing the mainstream and being the same as other people. It wasn't about status labels even
I remember coveting branded spagetti hoops and feeling so frustrated they would always be out of my reach. I think just having something that I recognised from wealthier peoples homes would have made me feel more normal and better about myself.

Unconditional "I love you"s and cuddles. Both of which are in abundance in our home, and I hope it continues through to adulthood. (That would be adulthood for my DCs as opposed to me, who is evidently already an adult)

I've never heard of Mr Frosty?!

Ditto - mine was a sibling. However, I did want a brother, more specifically. So DD is sorted. DS? He probably would want a brother too, so I do feel I let him down somewhat ...

yeah, i asked for a Mr Frosty for years. Don't know what my parents had against it.

I want my kids to have loads of family time. although i always felt loved, my parents worked so hard that i cant remember spending a great deal of quality time with them or my brothers...

dashoflime yes to accessing the mainstream. We didn't have the right clothes or cultural references & it made it hard. Nothing about us was normal.

When my brother saved up for a Nike jersey my parents were very disappointed in his materialistic consumer ways.

That reminds me of another one - I want my daughters to have a mum who takes them shopping. My mum hates shopping & has no interest in clothes so from the age of 12 I was given £50 a month & left to get on with it.