"Is it different?"

I'm asked this all the time and yes, it is different. Boys are different from girls. It starts immediately. Ty is content and happy, praise God because the idea of doing something because it will please me has not occurred to him. The very idea that I have feelings hasn't occurred to him either! The urge to get into the trash, dump cream of tarter and salt on the floor or smack his sister in the face is just too strong to ignore despite how happy mommy would be should he surrender to obedience. No matter how many times I redirect his activity, he finds his way right back into said "no-no" which left Greg asking one day, "do you think he's very smart?"! Yes, I think he's smart but I think he's just so darned determined that we are going to be hard pressed to convince him that some risks are not worth taking. Therefore, we've got baby gates, cabinet locks, closed doors and empty end tables. I had to eliminate the decorative table altogether because the urge to knock it over several times a day was just too much for him. In the check out lane at Meijer today, he broke the debit card machine! The only good thing was I had already used and it and could make a quick escape after embarrassed apologies! What goes on in that little head of his? I know we were able to reason with the girls. A simple "no-no" with redirection was enough for my mommy pleasing little girls until they were old enough to back talk. Is it premature to hope he won't back talk in exchange for this busy phase?