I agree with most of what Mia wrote and can also understand where Wren is coming from. I think on some subconscious level I also wanted a gifted kid, or at least a kid who shared my love of learning, so my son and I are a really good fit. If I expected my son to be gifted though, I expected him to be MG (or maybe I didn't know there was anything else?), so the idea that he might be anything more than that did take me by surprise and has definitely required some adjustments. I never experienced sadness or a sense of loss, however, and now that I've done enough research on giftedness and the local schools to feel like I've got a good plan for my son's education, I'm cautiously optimistic and excited about what lies ahead. I even think that on some level, the overachiever in me actually enjoys the challenge of raising this intense, demanding kid. Because my son is only 4 though, I haven't yet seen my kid suffer the way others on this board have, and I haven't yet had to fight the battles others have gone through, so my attitude could still change. I will say, although I haven't yet felt sad for myself or my son, I certainly didn't like the looks of fear and horror I saw on his grandparent's faces when he read books to them at age 2; I hate that I can't talk to the neighbors, my coworkers or most of my friends about things he's doing; and I'm bitter that after basing our decision to buy our house nearly entirely on the high ratings of the local school, we've decided it's not a real option and will be sending him to private instead.
