Nicholas is starting to differentiate between girl stuff and boy stuff (purses are for girls, cars are for boys).  I really hate making any kind of assignments for gender (especially to things that I would love for him to play with or do) and it bugs me when I find myself doing it. There are some things that I am finding are total boy things where he is concerned.

Peeing standing up

I was really sweating this one when we first started potty training. I mean, it’s not like I can show him how to do that in any real way. Thankfully, my fiance, William, took over the “peeing standing up” lessons. Seriously, this is one of the first things I thought of after Mark died, “Who is going to teach N to pee standing up?!?”

I think that some of it must be instinctive though, as Nicholas was arching his little back and pointing aiming at the toilet from pretty early on in the potty training process.  On a side note, I think he must have seen one of the construction guys around here peeing outside because there is a certain part of the yard that, for several months, he insisted on “peeing” at each time he passed it (he would go to the spot, spread his little legs, tell me he had to pee and arched his little back). Weird.

Baseball

Here is where my own gender bias comes in. I played basketball in school and have never been a big fan of baseball or football. Just not my sports, but I’m aware that there are many rabid fans who are women. Shoot, one of my grandmothers was such a huge baseball fan that we played “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” at her funeral. Anyway, Mark was a huge Astros fan, and since I don’t particularly care for the sport, I think of it as a “boy” thing. Here’s my problem: I want Nicholas to love the sport as much as his Daddy Mark did, I don’t like the sport much, know nothing about it, and William doesn’t like baseball. My solution? My friend, Jeremy, has been assigned baseball duty with Nicholas. He is an Astros fan, he knows how important the ‘Stros were to Mark, and he folows the sport/team. He’s my go-to guy for teaching N about baseball and the Astros. Crisis averted. I hope.

Women

Okay, I know this isn’t really a “boy” thing I need to teach Nicholas, but I am really hoping to raise a son who loves women, respects women, and surrounds himself with quality women (both friends and partners). Maybe this isn’t a traditional boy thing to teach him, but I feel as a woman it’s my responsibility to teach him the finer points of the female mind. Do open doors for them, do use manners and be polite, do take it slow with a woman romantically and allow them to dictate the pace as much as possible. Don’t assume a woman is bad with numbers or math. Don’t blame anything on PMS, even if she’s brought it up first. It will only lead to badness.

What “boy” stuff have you come across? What gender assignments have your kids made that you’ve been surprised by? What about your own gender assignments?  What do you wish your spouse or partner knew or did as a man?

Sherry Carr Deer is a Mommy to 3-year-old Nicholas, fiance to William, the widow of Mark, and a PR professional at a non-profit hospital.

Kelli is mom to Braxton, age 2, and partner to Mike. She is an instructor at the University of Oregon and a public relations consultant with her own firm. Thanks to growing up in a large family, she’s learned to manage chaos and still have fun. You can read her posts here.

I clearly remember my first baseball game. I was 9 and we lived in Blessing, Texas (poplulation: 800), and my dad took my best friend, Barbie (an actual girl, not a 11″ fashion doll) to see the Houston Astros play the St. Louis Cardinals at the Astrodome. It was 1984, Nolan Ryan was on the mound and Jose Cruz was in center field.

Spending an afternoon at the ballpark, whether it’s our local minor league team or heading north to Seattle to watch the Mariners play, is still a beloved tradtion in my family. I thought, for that reason, that reviewing Baseball Bits: The Best Stories, Facts, and Trivia from the Dugout to the Outfield would be fun. I always love a good story and, as an academic, I appreciate a good set of data. And my partner, Mike, is a baseball stat geek.

I must admit, the amount of information in the book is a tad overwhelming. Not many stories are more than a page, resutling in a smorgasbord of anecdote and fact snacks. The book is categorized, not chronologically, but thematically with chapters like: Ball Clubs, Bosses, Deals and Steals, Big Events and Color, Clout and Controversy. This works really well, especially if you’re a fan of a particular aspect of the game. And it makes it easy to browse the book without feeling like you’re missing some part of the story.

As I read through many of the “bits,” I’d often find myself yelling across the house, “Hon?! Did you know…?” To which he’d dutifully reply, “No! Really? That interesting!”

This book is a treasure trove for fans, afficianados and stat geeks. Author Dan Schlossberg is all of the above. A former Associated Press writer, he’s authored 33 (!) baseball books and more than 25,000 (!!) articles about baseball.

A few of my favorite “bits.”

• Nolan Ryan, who pitched a record seven no-hitters in the majors, was 12 when he pitched his first no-hitter - in Little League ball in Alvin, Texas*. Page 88, Batters and Pitchers
• Philadelphia zookeeper Jim Murray sent baseball scores to telegraph offices by carrier pigeon every half inning. Page 4, Origin, Innovation and Evolution
• Although he started with the St. Louis Cardinals, Harry Carry was with the Cubs in 1992 when he joined his son Skip and grandson Chip to become the first three-generation family to announce the same game**. Page 202, BallTalk
• The Boston Braves spent $10,000 to purchase Hank Aaron’s contract from the Indianapolis Clowns***, a Negro Leagues team, in June 1952. After less than two years in the Braves’ minor leagues, Aaron reached the majors to stay. Page 133, Deals and Steals

Win a Copy!

We have 5 copies of Baseball Bits: The Best Stories, Facts, and Trivia from the Dugout to the Outfield for our readers! All you need to do to enter is leave a comment here telling us who would benefit from the book if you win - are you a baseball fan yourself? Is it for your husband? Dad? Son? Wife? That’s it - easy as pie. Just leave a comment and make sure you use a valid email address.

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* this is a favorite because of the family legend of my dad vs. Nolan Ryan in the Little League All-Star game that same year. Nolan pitched, Dad hit a home run.

** Mike is a huge Cubs fan and Harry Carray was his favorite announcer of all time. He can even do a pretty spot-on impression.

*** The Clowns? Are you kidding me? That was the name of the team?!

(Disclosure: A copy of the book was provided free of charge for review.)