[luckystarmom]

The hard part is that my husband isn't around much to help my son. He sees him in the evenings before bedtime, and on the weekends. My son is surrounded by girls: me and my twin daughters.

How do mothers raise boys to be young men?

[annyokie]

You need to let them take apart a small appliance, like a toaster or an old vacuum cleaner. They don't need to repair it, just take it apart. (If your husband isn't handy, go buy your boy some tools. Screwdrivers and socket sets will take apart and reassemble anything small.)

Boys have spatial tools that girls don't have and they get very VERY absorbed in what they are doing. My eldest took apart my mother's back porch screen and her patio furniture with a screwdriver she gave him to play with when he was three.

Since I have three sons and three brothers, I think the best advice is to remember that they are BOYS and not to freak out when they decide to beat pop-gun caps with a hammer or jump off the roof--anything over the first floor is verboten on the last part.

[CajunConservative]

What about Boy Scouts or a male relative? My dad was a raunchy role model but my uncle was there and was a great role model.

[cornfedcowboy]

You need to buy "Bringing Up Boys" by James Dobson. you can get it at www.family.org

[IronJack]

How do mothers raise boys to be young men?

They can't.

There are a lot of miracles a strong woman can work, but they can't overcome biology. A boy learns to be a man from men, not from women. And a strong woman knows that, and knows when to let go.

[netmilsmom]

Are you part of the FReeper family table discussion group on Fridays? You have a great question about raising boys and someone there may help.

Let me tell you though. I have a nephew who came to live with myself, his mom and my mom and my dad when he was three. My dad died four months later. He was totally surrounded by women for the majority of his life. He now has a wife and three boys. He works two jobs so she can homeschool. He attributes that work ethic to the strong women around him and his Grandpa's memory that stuck with him.
Your husband may not be around as much as you would like, but a father being in the picture is the best thing that could happen to a child. (even a Grandpa can be a great dad)

[RonF]

See if he might like the Boy Scouts. But be aware that we'll need some help from either you or your husband. The thing we most often need is adult leaders, someone who can show up at meetings and campouts. If your husband can make the weekend campouts, that'd be great!

But we also need people on the unit committee, handling the treasury or the publicity, buying the badges and keeping track of who's got what advancements, getting newsletters out to the parents, calling the State Parks or the other places we go camping to reserve sites and all that, and all the other committee jobs.

Then there's the short-term committments; organizing the annual pancake breakfast or Christmas wreath sale. In any case, call your local Boy Scout Council (generally in the yellow pages, or go to the BSA web site and put your zip code in the Council locator) and find out where the local Troops or Packs are. 1^st through 5^th grade is Cub Scouts, 6^th (or 11 years old) through 12^th grade is Boy Scouts.

And if you really like the Boy Scout kind of program, and any of your girls are 14 years old or in High School, they can join Venturing, which is co-ed.

[MEGoody]

"How do mothers raise boys to be young men?"

I've always heard it said, if there isn't a daddy in the home serving as the proper role model, get some other family member or a family friend to spend time with your son. But if there is a daddy in the home, it's his responsibility to be the role model.