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Strollerderby
A Dad’s Advice on How to Answer THE Question
So far we’ve managed to be relatively vague about the question — the question.
How are babies made?
So far we’ve gotten away with a simple explanation that babies grow in stomachs and then they pop out one day. In my mind, I was thinking something along the lines of Sigourney Weaver and Alien, while my daughter, not yet 4, seemed to contemplate the idea for a moment before nodding as if it all made sense.
But when she’s really after more details, I think I’m going to turn to aptly named Creative Type Dad, who recently came up with the perfect answer:
“My seed, otherwise know as ‘sperma’ or haploid with 23 chromosomes, and mommy’s egg, also with 23 chromosomes met in the mommy’s womb and formed a diploid cell and after it fertilized a zygote was formed, which is basically a baby, and now you’ll be a big sister in a few months. Now go clean your room, brush your teeth, be nice to mommy, and don’t forget to wash your hands after using the bathroom. I love you.”
It seems like it would work.
What age did you kids press for more details and how much did you spill at an early age?
– Mike @ Cry It Out!
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3 Comments
Rebecca commented on Jan 31 10 at 7:38 pmMy mother is an OBGYN, so when I asked The Question she sat down with me and a couple of her med school books. She explained everything in technical terms (I didn’t know any euphemisms for sexual organs until I hit middle school) and showed me photos in her textbooks. It wasn’t a big deal, and I was pretty young when this happened, possibly preschool age. I personally think parents get way more worked up than necessary over this. Most kids won’t get worked up over this unless their parents do, at least at a young age, imo.
On the other hand, my best friend learned everything she knows about sex from sex ed videos in school. Her parents taught her NOTHING. Jerks. She told me how uncomfortable it was learning about this stuff that she should have learned at home in a classroom setting.
As a funny aside, the day after my mom explained everything to me I went to school with her medical textbooks in my backpack, unbeknownest to my parents. My mom got a call from the school that I was conducting a lesson on the birds and the bees during recess for the other kids. Apparently, I had this big crowd of kids around and was explaining as best I could (probably hilariously) about human reproduction, and pointing at random pictures in the textbooks. Mom had to come get me because the school figured that the other kids’ parents would probably prefer to teach their kids that themselves. =P
Marj commented on May 06 10 at 10:31 amComments
Marj commented on May 06 10 at 10:33 amI don’t think I’ll be showing them that movie to explain things! lol
I can only hope I handle it as well and as matter-of-factly as my mother did. She sat us down on the couch and gave us the basic talk (my older brother was 10, I was 7 and my little brother was 4). Over the years, we got more talks, all without embarrassment or preaching.
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