Gender Issue or a Phase?

I don't think any of us will be able to tell you what this means...
BUT...
I will tell you this...
Girl clothes are more FUN! THey sparkle and shimmer. They shine. They reflect light. Girl shoes are more fun! They click when you walk, they sparkle, they light up!
my two sons were all about girl clothes, wanting me to put makeup on them, clicking around in my shoes, waning their nails painted. And they are both "all boy" in their teen years.
Does he ever say, " I am a girl!" or claim that he hates being a boy? Or is it just...girl stuff is better!
Is he happy? Is he active? Does he have friends?

Who knows?
Who cares?
You'll drive yourself crazy trying to assign meaning to every action so let it go.
Just enjoy him.

It doesn't sound like an issue to me. Gender issues arise when a child truly believes they should be the opposite gender from what they physically are. Your son does not think he is a girl, nor does he consistently express a desire to be a girl. He does not say he feels like a girl. Liking girl characters is not an issue.

It is ok for his favorite color to be pink. My favorite color is blue and has been since I was young. My daughter (age 6) currently says her favorite colors are turquoise, blue, and red.

Asking to occasionally wear a dress is ok, too. I can understand if you don't want him to wear it when he's out and about, but if he wants to wear one at home to play dress-up, let him. Let him have a girl avatar - it's not hurting him or anyone else.

I can understand why you're worried and I don't want to sound like I'm brushing off your concerns. But I don't think you need to be worried at this point. Your son doesn't sound at all like someone who truly believes he is/should be a girl.

If you had a daughter who only liked boy characters and the color blue, would you be concerned?

he likes girls, but that does not mean he wants to be a girl. my son likes to play barbies with his sister, does that mean anything to me? nope. i would let him play and be a kid and stop worrying about it.

If he's been this way for 3 years, it's not a phase. What else it is - or isn't - I cannot say. I think it's great that you are supportive and I think you may want to look at how you are guiding him toward male characters/avatars as there may be subtle biases on your part. I suggest you talk to your pediatrician or your city's office for children & family services (if they have counseling) to find out if there are support groups in your area so you can spend time with other parents of kids with various gender issues. You'll do much better in a larger group (where info can be exchanged regularly) than you will on the internet.

I don't know what you mean by "girl toys but doesn't have some." You might want to look at how stores are restocking and relabeling their toys so they aren't specifically gender-directed. There's a lot less of the "pink vacuum cleaner" and "blue action figure" division than there used to be, although there are certainly many companies who haven't caught on.

It's hard to say. My son used to want to wear a dress or skirt daily. And he loved dressing up as a princess. He loved pink and sparkles best when he was little. And he ALWAYS wanted to pretend to be the girl characters from movies. He also loved having his nails painted. He stopped wearing dresses at some point in kindergarten bc of some kid making fun of him. He probably stopped wanting to be the girl character at about age 7/8. His friends would be a bit confused about it, but he was very confident and had a strong opinion saying he LIKES that character best. He still uses a girl avatar every in some of his video games. He is 13 now and definitely gets crushes on girls...he had a girlfriend at school last year in 7th grade. He's a more artsy kid and not into sports. So...who knows about your son! I would say just support him in what he likes...that is what I always did. :) The good thing about my son verses some of the boys that are really into masculine/tough guy stuff is he seems to have a really big heart and is very sensitive about other people's feelings. He is the kid who always sticks up for the kid being picked on by those boys. He has done this so many times. He somehow gets away with it bc he is super confident and the other boys respect him. I think if we did not impose roles on kids that more kids would grow up truly being themselves and now what society tells them to be.

It is hard to say at his age whether it is an issue or a phase. Going on for 3 years seems more than a phase though. The issue? That could be two things - your issue with his identity and/or addressing it, or his issue articulating it and developing it. Your job, as you say, is to support. There is no need to worry about what it is until/unless he does have problems and needs help to grow into who he is in a healthy manner. I would not attempt to steer him toward anything. My mom could have directed me toward barbies when I was that age and I would have had zero interest. It didn't mean anything other than that I preferred "boy" toys and activities. Today, those things matter less and less. Your boy is who he is and as he gets older you will be able to define that more. Be there to help him along the way just as you would any other child. Enjoy your son and you will find out "who" he is along the way!

Just let him be, he will find his own way and if you have made it clear you are an open and tolerant household he will come to you when and if he feels there is an issue.

My son has always loved pink. He grew his hair long and begged to get his ears pieced at 3 years old. He presented as gender neutral until this year (he just turned 12) when he decided to donate his long hair and ditch the earrings. I have never pushed him one way or the other, just supported him in his own expression and made sure he always knew that in our house being LGBT would never be a problem.

And remember that, while there is nothing wrong with being Trans, loving dresses etc doesn't necessary mean one is trans, I know men you just find dresses comfortable and pretty. Cloths have no gender.

Stop worrying, he knows he is loved and the rest will fall into place with time, whichever way it goes. Blessed Be you and yours!

Hi! Your son is still very young so I think it's early to really know. Some boys are just fascinated with girl stuff and pink compared to the dull toys for boys and colors. My son loved some of his sisters stuff when he was that age I never made a fuss and it just drifted away. Whatever the case....just love him. God bless!

Honestly I think a lot of boys are like this and it's made a bigger issue then when it's the reverse. My youngest boy of 3, is very in tune with women as far as noticing new clothes, hair styles and make up. He has always loved pink and pick things things that are pink or sparkly, because he says they are pretty.
If it was the opposite and it was a girl wanting blue and boy things, it wouldn't be as big of deal because that how society has made it. I wouldn't worry. One mom told me a long time ago that most young kids spend more of their time with mom when they are young, so for boys to seek out "girl things" is fairly common. Made sense!

What would you do if there was "more to it?" He's 6. Even if he is trans, the things you would do would not be so different from now. Make sure he knows you love and support him no matter what, that it is OK to like pink and sparkly things whether you're a boy or a girl, that he is stronger than the people who might make fun of him for his preferences and can always count on you to be on his side when that happens. Let him be himself and be a person that listens to him without judgement so that he can trust you when he is older and has the words for "something more" if it is something more.

I wouldn't really pay any attention to this now. He's going to identify a lot more with a gender once he starts school and is around boys and girls all day.