gender memories (+)
Another interesting source of validation back then was when I started learning Dutch. One of the earliest sentences I figured out was "Ik ben een vrouw," "I am a woman." It was nice to be able to reaffirm that to myself without giving it away to others. (Incidentally, another sentence I figured out was "Ik ben een sinaasappel." I'll leave it to you to figure out what that one means.)