• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Little Shoots, Deep Roots

Little Shoots, Deep Roots

Simplified Family Faith with Christie Thomas

  • Home
  • About
  • Books
  • Blog
    • Kids Faith tools
    • Moms Faith tools
    • Christian Parenting
    • Christian Picture Books
  • HopeGrown Faith

The Top 9 Things Every Mom of 3 Boys Needs You To Know

By Christie Thomas 21 Comments

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This post may contain affiliate links. See my full disclosures, Terms of Use, and privacy policies on my "privacy" page. I never recommend a product I don't love.

3 boys can be a lot of work, but there are significant perks to this mom-job!

If I had a dollar for every time someone said one of the following things to me when I’m out with my 3 boys, I’d be living on a private island right now:

  1. Are you trying for a girl?
  2. You must be busy.
  3. *look of extreme sympathy*

Frankly, I love my 3 boys to bits. They are each about 2 1/2 years apart. The eldest has a surprising wit that alternately leaves me rolling on the floor and rolling my eyes, but also has a big, sensitive heart. My middle guy is the best helper I’ve ever met, and even in early elementary is a real ladies man. The littlest boy is sneaky, but every time I catch him doing something bad, he turns on the most dimpled smile and gets out of trouble.

My family is just like your family in so many ways. But there are some things ONLY boy moms know. Read to find out what they are?

DISCLAIMER: This post isn’t intended to say that boys are better than girls or any of that nonsense, but simply that having 3 boys isn’t something to pity! If you enjoyed it, please pass it on! 

1) Boys appreciate my poop jokes

I love a good poop joke. No, not excessive ones at the kitchen table, but a witty poop joke can crack me up anytime. Try this one on for size:

Knock knock
Who’s there?
Yoop
Yoop who?
No, I didn’t poo. Did you?

I truly appreciate having an easily-pleased audience when I come up with that type of gem. 3 boys are just the audience I need.

2) Having 3 boys means fewer clothes

Sometimes I have a choked-up-teary-eyed moment where my youngest is wearing a shirt that I remember both his brothers wearing. I could have those moments every day if I had a better memory because almost every single article of clothing my youngest wears has been worn by both his older brothers. And since I have friends who give me their hand-me-downs, I’m quite sure I spent less than $500 in clothes in the past 8 years. Thank you boys for letting me spend my money on other things (like noise-canceling headphones).

I’ve heard this low-maintenance clothing trend tends to continue on in life, so I think we’ve got it made in the clothing department. We also won’t have to go into debt to afford makeup, jewelry, accessories, and handbags. Just fancy underwear (if my friend’s teens are any indication)…but I can deal with that. And on that note we come to #3…

little boys are awesome, funny little creatures #boymom

3) I don’t have to share (mostly)

Except for the occasional time when the boys have wanted nail polish or to wear my necklaces, I doubt they’re going to want to share my sweaters and lipstick. Which works just fine for me, thank you very much.

4) Fewer toys in the house

Yes, I know, boys and girls can play with the same toys. But it seems that Toys R Us hasn’t figured that out yet. Until they do, I’m very happy to easily categorize all birthday/Christmas gifts into one of five bins: vehicles, tools, marbles, Lego, and sticks.

5) Wrestling (and not wrestling)

I like wrestling with my boys on the trampoline. But when they get too rough, all I have to say is “be gentle with mommy!” and the wrestling is all done. It’s a great card to play, let me tell you.

6) I get to be their first love

This is true of all mommy-son relationships, but I think it’s especially sweet when there is no sister in the mix. I’m also the queen bee. There’s currently no other woman bossing my boys around, at least, not when they’re at home. 😆

>> Related Reading: 3 Truths to Remember When You’ve Been Disappointed by God (my story of gender disappointment)

7) Easier hair

Last year, my youngest got lice. I know, right? SO GROSS. But you know what we did? Each boy took a turn in the backyard with the buzzer and we shaved it all off. Compare that to my friend with 2 girls who recently spent 14 hours total (no exaggeration) combing nits out of their hair. My solution: 10 minutes.

Also, I think I combed their hair about 5 times before they each turned 5. Only at Christmas, really. It certainly makes mornings easier. 😬

My eldest currently has long-ish hair, but in mid-elementary, he’s old enough to brush it himself and young enough not to care about bedhead.

8) Sticks

Seriously, it doesn’t take much to entertain this crew. Throw a bunch of sticks in the backyard and I’ve got myself a free afternoon. (at least, until someone draws blood…)

9) The chance to raise the kind of men I want to see in the world

When you look around the world, you can easily see how much damage a few bad men can do in the world. (Apparently, testosterone can have a negative effect on peacemaking.)

We have the chance to raise the kind of men who will build up the world instead of tearing it down. Men who will live with integrity and treat others with respect and kindness, men who love their families, and men who speak up for those who are less fortunate.

I am honored to be given that duty in triplicate, and I can only pray that I will live up to the challenge.

Spark a family transformation!

Lead your kids into a deep Christian faith..without feeling like you have to DO it all or KNOW it all.

​

    Join our community of over 4000 moms and get my free printable: Start Little: 5 quick wins to deepen your family’s faith (and how to actually make them stick).

    ​

    I respect your privacy and won’t send you junk. Unsubscribe at any time.


    Raising 3 (or more!) boys has challenges as well, so here’s a bonus list of the things I think you’ll need! If you’re about to embark on the journey of 3 (or more) boys, I hope you find this helpful.

    3 things you’ll need to raise your 3 boys:

    1) Grace for yourself

    Sometimes, in a vulnerable moment, I’ll share this secret with a friend: I was a better mom when I had 2 boys. I could keep the house clean, bake bread, run the children’s ministries at my church, and exercise regularly. I was gentler, I read more to them, and felt like I had it generally together. Then came the third son, and it busted all my boxes of what my life should look like.

    With more kids making a mess and less time to clean them, I had to learn to let things go.

    I’m sure this is the same with either boys or girls, but if you’ll permit a brief stereotype…boys are messy and loud and are constantly injuring themselves and breaking things and putting holes in my walls. I had to learn to let more of those things go.

    2) Patience

    Many years ago, I recognized that I was a super impatient person, so I asked God for more patience. The joke’s on me because His way of giving patience isn’t what I thought. I expected Him to fill me with unending patience. Instead, He gave me 3 sons to raise. 😳 Turns out, how God gives patience is by putting us into situations that develop our patience.

    Boys push, throw, climb, yell, and make messes. If I had a nickel for every time I said “our house is not a jungle gym”, I’d be on a Hawaiian vacation right now.

    Siblings fight. A lot. One of my boys knows which buttons to push on the other two, and he pushes them All The Time. You are going to need patience of the strongest variety!

    3) Grit

    I’m not gonna lie. You’re going to need grit to raise those 3 boys of yours. As males tend to be less chatty, you’ll need the perseverance to get to know your boys. You can’t become offended when they won’t share their problems – you will need to find ways to climb over those walls and get into their hearts.

    Above all, your best teammate in this journey of raising 3 boys is God. He is the one who can fill you with strength on the hardest, messiest, noisiest days.

    Here are a few of my favorite books for raising boys – I hope you find them as helpful as I have! All of these books are written by Christian boymoms I know and trust.

    If you’re looking for other resources, here are two of my favorite websites for boymoms.

    Only Girl 4 Boyz

    The MOB Society (Moms Of Boys)


    How about you? What do you love most about the kids that you have?

    Whether you have 1 or 10, biological or adopted or fostered or grandparented, they’re all special.

    Related Articles

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Annette Wegren says

      April 2, 2017 at 10:12 pm

      Ha! I have 4 boys and I too received MANY varying comments most of which were not positive. I often replied with the “I have all boy toys and all boy clothes, why would I want to start with the girl stuff?” But my favorite reply was “In Biblical days I would have been considered a very blessed woman”! The look of utter surprise was priceless!

      Reply
      • Christie says

        April 2, 2017 at 10:24 pm

        haha, true! Many arrows in your quiver 🙂

        Reply
    2. Jen says

      April 4, 2017 at 10:40 am

      Boys are awesome. I like all your reasons. They are real. Sticks… yup.. I will never forget all the sticks.

      Reply
    3. Theresa Boedeker says

      April 7, 2017 at 7:56 am

      Great reasons and all ones I can relate to, even if I have only one boy. And yes, it is nice to be their first love.

      Reply
    4. Jody Collins says

      April 8, 2017 at 5:41 pm

      Christie the poop joke made me laugh out loud…. my son and his wife have four boys( and Princess Abigail).
      I will pass this on to them 😁

      Reply
      • Christie says

        April 8, 2017 at 7:44 pm

        My poop jokes are nothing to be trifled with! 😉

        Reply
      • sarah pollie says

        June 24, 2017 at 2:41 am

        Jody i have 3 boys, and then princess abigael 💕💓

        Reply
    5. Laura Thomas says

      April 9, 2017 at 7:41 pm

      This is great, Christie! Two out of my 3 are boys, and I remember being slightly petrified when I discovered I was having a son. I’m one of 4 girls, my first is a girl, and—what was I supposed to do with a BOY? Needless to say, it wasn’t scary at all, and I’ve loved raising two young men. They are such fun, pretty low maintenance, and WAY easier as teens… 😉 Thanks for sharing your boy joy! Stopping by from Hope Writers!

      Reply
    6. Kim (Life in the Van) says

      April 26, 2017 at 2:22 pm

      I absolutely love being a mom to my three boys…really young men, ages 12, 15, 17. I love being part of their world: camping, hiking, fishing, football. Funny, they don’t mind being part of my world. We cook together, bake together, etc. I feel as if the Lord equipped me to be their mom and to love their world.

      Reply
    7. Anne Hjelle says

      June 9, 2017 at 8:16 pm

      As a mom of five boys, I would agree with all of those reasons! (Not sure where I stand on poop jokes, though. I’m apparently not as adept at those as some of you moms. Lol)
      My guys are all grown up now. And I realize even more the amazing task and honor it was to be entrusted with these little boys that became men of God.

      Reply
      • Christie says

        June 9, 2017 at 8:33 pm

        I’m so glad to hear there’s amazing stuff on the other side of this motherhood journey!! Thanks for stopping in with encouragement 🙂

        Reply
    8. Marie Ashley says

      June 29, 2017 at 2:04 am

      We have one adopted son. He is our joy and our heart. How come one minute when he doesn’t get what he wants he says he wants to kill me and tries to bite me and wants to do away with me and then when I talk it through with him explaining that we don’t talk that way he is lagging about something silly and wants me to see what he just built with his vast car collection? Yrs, he is six. Will this seemingly violence mongering continue? How do I instill in him self control even at 6!

      Reply
      • Christie Thomas says

        June 29, 2017 at 8:57 pm

        Hi Marie! Thanks for stopping by! I think it’s partially a matter of consistency – as you continue to react the same way and remind him of the same things, he will hopefully eventually learn. Occasionally there is a case of a child that needs to see a doctor because there is something more going on as well. Praying for patience and wisdom for you!

        Reply
    9. Terra Lewis-Smith says

      June 29, 2017 at 10:25 pm

      Love this. I am a mom of 5 boys and yes with sticks! It’s a great toys. Sticks with rocks and I have whole hour to myself!

      Reply
      • Christie Thomas says

        June 30, 2017 at 4:47 pm

        oh yes, rocks!! A shore full of pebbles and a pond to throw them in…

        Reply
    10. Janet says

      September 17, 2017 at 5:37 am

      Thank you for saying what i’ve found to be true, love my 3 boys in amongst the challenges! I too love a good poo/fart joke, i remember buying a funny fart story book for my boys which i could never read to them without cracking up myself!

      Reply
    11. Belinda says

      September 17, 2017 at 11:46 pm

      These are great reasons and as a mum of two boys I can totally relate to all of them. Love the odd poop joke but they usually don’t stop at one! 😫😂

      Reply
    12. Karen says

      January 18, 2018 at 10:02 pm

      Yes to ALL OF THIS! Mom of 4 boys here – which inspired me to write this: https://www.lightlyfrayed.com/dreaded-question-trying-for-girl/ Love my man cubs that are rapidly becoming less cub and more man – eek!

      Reply
      • Christie Thomas says

        January 18, 2018 at 10:06 pm

        Haha, great post! And yes, I am familiar with that question as well!!

        Reply
    13. Sarah Yip says

      November 22, 2020 at 5:18 pm

      This helped me so much, thank you! Mum of 2 boys expecting a third boy soon

      Reply
      • Christie Thomas says

        December 2, 2020 at 7:35 pm

        You’re so welcome! Having boys is a challenge but also a joy. May your third arrive healthy and safe.

        Reply

    Tell me your thoughts! Cancel reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Hi, I’m Christie Thomas

    I am a mom of three boys, former Children’s Ministry Director, and author. I believe that every Christian mom can confidently nurture deep faith roots in her kids through little habits that add up over time. Learn more about how I can help you here. 

    Top Posts & Pages

    • the fast that gets God's attention
      the fast that gets God's attention
    • An Object Lesson on Faith That Kids Will Beg to Do Again!
      An Object Lesson on Faith That Kids Will Beg to Do Again!
    • A simple way to help kids pray (+ free printables!)
      A simple way to help kids pray (+ free printables!)
    • The 8 Best Books About Heaven for Kids
      The 8 Best Books About Heaven for Kids
    • The Top 9 Things Every Mom of 3 Boys Needs You To Know
      The Top 9 Things Every Mom of 3 Boys Needs You To Know
    • The Christ-Centered Way To Present The Fruit Of The Spirit For Kids
      The Christ-Centered Way To Present The Fruit Of The Spirit For Kids

    Find me on Social Media!

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube

    Footer

    About

    The Little Shoots, Deep Roots community is all about leading our kids to a deeper Christian faith through little faith habits, without feeling like you have to know it all or do it all. We’re about making family faith fun and simple so that your kids love it, and you can feel confident that you're nurturing deep faith roots in your family.

    More About Our Community

    Let’s Connect

    • YouTube
    • Instagram
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest

    My Newsletter

    Are you ready to start your own little family faith habits? Join our community of over 4000 moms and get my free printable, Start Little: 5 Quick Wins To Deepen Your Family's Faith (and how to actually make them stick). 

    Copyright © 2021 · Christie Thomas · Site Design By Visible Web Design

    9.0Kshares