5 Reasons Why It Rocks Being the Eldest Child

1. The most fuss gets made over your birth. You get the most presents, the most photos, the baby shower, the baby milestone book filled in. Ok, so you won't be able to remember all that, but it's nice to see the many photos your snap-happy parents took. Subsequent children tend to get less fuss.

2. You get new toys, clothes etc. 

3. You get more privileges and get to do things first. It's wonderful watching your younger sibling/s stomp off sulkily to bed, while you get a later bedtime.

4. You get to have the best bedroom first because you need the space to study.

5. Usually you're physically bigger than your siblings for at least the beginning. All the better for letting them know who's boss.

What do you think are good things about being the eldest child?

Not Pretty Enough by Kasey Chambers

Since it was Valentine's Day yesterday, I thought these lyrics were appropriate.  I asked these questions of myself a lot when I was single, and I bet I'm not alone in this.

Am I not pretty enough?
Is my heart too broken?
Do I cry too much?
Am I too outspoken?

Don't I make you laugh?
Should I try it harder?
Why do you see right through me?

I live, I breathe, I let it rain on me.
I sleep, I wake, I try hard not to break.
I crave, I love, I've waited long enough.
I try as hard as I can.

I laugh, I feel, I make believe it's real.
I fall, I freeze, I pray down on my knees.
I hope, I stand, I take it like a man.
I try as hard as I can.

Lyrics from here.

5 Reasons Why it Sucks Being the Eldest Child

I'm the eldest child in my family and Duncan is the youngest in his.  We've had some interesting discussions over who is hardest done by.

Here's why it's tough being the eldest:

1.  You're the 'guinea pig', the 'experiment'.  Every mistake your parents made with you, they (hopefully) learn from with your younger siblings. What you suffered through, they get a cushier ride. When I finished high school and went to uni, I had to spend three years languishing in cruddy student housing.  By the time my brother started a bridging course (which he later dropped out of) to get into uni, my parents had bought a house in Perth and he got to live there by himself.  Although my parents pestered him to get a housemate to help them pay the mortgage, he refused and they eventually gave up.

2.  There are greater expectations placed on your shoulders and the bar is set higher.  You have to be the responsible one, you're the 'heir'. If I'd got the poor grades my brother got in Year 12, I would have got my butt kicked.

3.  You not only get blamed for things you do wrong, you get blamed for what your younger siblings do, too.  Younger siblings dob on you and your mum believes them, but if you dob on them, you get told not to dob.

4.  You have to be in charge when your parents are out, kind of like a third parent (hence #3).

5.  You have to watch your younger siblings get presents as well on YOUR birthday (because they'll throw tantrums otherwise), but you don't get any presents on theirs.


Are you the eldest child?  What do you think are the hardest things about being the eldest?

Stay tuned for '5 Reasons Why it Rocks Being the Eldest Child' next week.

Rory's Racing Car Birthday

Some photos from Rory's 3rd birthday...

This was the best cake I could manage in this season of life.

Everyone was singing Happy Birthday.

Pretending to be shy.

Trying out his new Thomas folding chair from Amanda and family.

Teddy having a turn on the chair.

I blinked and I have a three-year-old!

Christmas 2015

My brother hosted Christmas last year at his bachelor pad in Albany.  My mum still ended up doing most of the work though, he just pinched a lot of her Christmas decorations and kitchenware.  It was fairly relaxed, too much food, as usual, and Rory got VERY spoilt.

The downside was that I clumsily hit my head on a shelf and ended up with a massive headache and a big bruise.

Rory helping Nanny (my mum) put up her tree.

 

The shark laundry hamper was for Flynn.  What else do you get a baby
who already has everything he needs haha?

My scrumptious Christmas pudding.

Flynn got Flynn the Fire Engine.

The Lord Gives and Takes Away

Before I was even discharged from the Mother Baby Unit, Duncan and I were on the hunt for a nanny. The reality was and is that I struggle to cope on my own and get to the myriad of appointments I need to attend in order to get well.

Ideally we wanted someone:

Without kids. I didn't want someone bringing their own kids over to our house, making more noise and mess.

Without a job. Or at least someone available a couple of days a week.

Local. I didn't want live-in help, if possible. 

With good English.

Able to keep up with young children - robust, energetic, no-one elderly or with a bad back etc.

I thought the chances of finding someone out here would be slim. After a possible candidate turned out to be unavailable, we found someone....a friend of ours from church. She's 24, married with no kids, not working since she's waiting to begin full-time external study, and was happy to come and help me out a couple of days a week.

Things were going well. It was great to have my hands free for a bit. She played with Rory so I could settle Flynn or get a few things done. Or she looked after Flynn so I could spend time with Rory and sleep in the afternoon while Rory slept (Flynn only catnaps still unfortunately). I got to go to appointments by myself. I marvelled and praised God for how He had provided when I thought the situation was hopeless.

But last week we found out that, due to unexpected circumstances, our nanny can no longer come. At first, I thought it'd be ok. I'd manage somehow. Now the reality has set in and it's a juggle and a hard slog. I'm still far from well, and I don't know how I'm going to find more help.

I don't understand why God has allowed this to happen when everything was going so well. But I will trust Him. He knows what He's doing. The twist in the tale may not be what I'd have written, but this is just a very small sub-plot, and God knows how this fits into His story.

Quote of the Day

When a train goes through a tunnel and it gets dark, you don't throw away the ticket and jump off. You sit still and trust the engineer.

- Corrie Ten Boom