if you make the gesture bigger, is it clearer?

I just had a conversation with the ladies who cook for us in which they either:

1. Asked if I was a boy or a girl, or
2. Asked if I had any kids.

At first I thought it was 1. and I was a little insulted (I know that I wear trousers, but still). But then they started making rocking motions with their arms, so I'm pretty sure it was 2. Also I'm pretty sure they wouldn't have used the Swahili word "watoto" (kids) if they meant me. I'm not sure if the "no" quite came through. Why can I not remember hakuna (there is no...) when I need it?

They also taught me how to say cow, which is is harder than it sounds. It's something like "yawn," but not.

And then we had a conversation mostly in motions about family. "Father?" one asked, making a sad face and a negative sort of motion. "No," I said, "Father!" with a big smiling face. "Father, mother!" Smile, smile.

"Brother?" she asked.

I held my hand over my head and tapped it, then tapped the air a little lower down next to me. "Brother." and lower again, further over, "Sister."

My brother is actually taller than me, but I have absolutely no way of explaining that one.