It sucks to be the second child. Being a first child myself, I always kind of knew this, but it wasnt until recently that Ive really come to understand just how hard it is.When I was a kid, I used to torture my poor little brother. My favorite line to use on him was that I was bigger, faster, smarter and stronger, and it made no difference to me whatsoever that I was only conferred those advantages because Id been born three and a half years before him. I didnt care that one day he would most certainly be bigger, faster, stronger, and maybe even smarter than me. At the time, he wasnt, and I let him know it whenever I got the chance. It wasnt until I took Psych 101 in college that I even thought about the damage I might have done to his self-esteem. But now that Im the parent of a big sister/little brother, Im really starting to see how awful it must have been.

My daughter is about to graduate from sixth grade. Shes transitioning from elementary school to middle school. Personally, I dont think this requires a whole lot of fanfare. Maybe there could be a class party, maybe the sixth graders might get a little extra space in the yearbook. Perhaps there could be some sort of assembly.On my last day of elementary school (in fifth grade), all of the fifth graders were given …

To my sweet boy,Im just going to come out and say it: it sucks to be a younger sibling. I cant say I know how you feel, because as a firstborn, I have never been in your shoes. But I remember how I used to treat my little brother, and I wouldn’t have traded places with him for anything. As your mom, my heart breaks for you every time that your …

When it comes to my kids, one of the things that stresses me out is this whole idea of specializing.Since my daughter was four or five, I’ve watched as many of her friends have streamlined their focus on piano or guitar, on club soccer or volleyball teams, on ice skating or acting or singing or swimming or tennis or dance. The stakes seem to get really high really fast – weekend tournaments in Las …