My parents (now divorced) are very different from each other. My mom makes full home-cooked meals every night (at least when I am there!). I don't know how she does it. I wouldn't even know what to buy at the grocery store unless I have a specific recipe. Wish I did though. My dad has a unique person in many ways - he has stone Buddha statue in the front yard, hates making new friends (still best buds with his high school pals), has a tattoo of something illegal on his body...I could go on. He is also basically a sexist, at least when it came to raising his kids.That's the only thing I would really concentrate on doing differently: treating my boy and girl children the same. I was always treated a little different by my dad because I'm a girl. Nothing big - just in division of household chores (I had to do the dishes, brother had to mow the lawn, etc.) and things like that. The thing about it, though, is once you realize your parents are treating you differently than your siblings, it changes you. You think every time your brother gets away with something, it's because he's a boy (which always made me unbelievably angry). You work much much harder to be better at certain things (for me it was school) than your brother, which creates a resentment between you. I could go on...but you can imagine the possibilities.