for the last few weeks,
i have felt like i can't divide myself enough
between my 2 girls, and even more
so now that my oldest has spoken up about it.
parents of two: help!
recently emma has talked about how
she feels like i spend all my time with olivia
and she feels like i love olivia more than i love her
*heart broken*
of course i don't love her less but it's
been challenging trying to explain the needs
of a 2 year old since in emma's eyes her baby sister
is capable of doing everything she is.
she feels like she's reprimanded for more
and olivia gets away with more (uh oh, insert
older sibling syndrome) i remember
my sister always got in trouble and i as the
baby didn't.
is it too much to explain that when you're 6
you should be proud that you're more independent
and don't need help getting dressed? or that
school review comes before the bugs bunny and tweety show?
or that mom and dad expect good active
listening?
*sigh*
i feel like a broken record these days and
pretty much the only thing i can come up with
is figuring out activities that her and i can do
that gives her more time with me
and she feels there is balance.
any thoughts?
I cannot tell you how often I've had this conversation with M1. She's never said she thinks I spend all my time with M2 or love her more, but I do get a lot of the...
ReplyDelete"But M2's doing it."
"Why can't M2, why me?"
"How come M2 gets to and I cant."
I think you're right in saying that doing things with her that only she can do is going to be super helpful. Her own one-on-one time doing 'big girl things' will up her 'feeling special' factor, and who couldn't use more one-on-one time.
My other suggestion (and I know you do this already) praise the heck out of her when she does those 'big girl things'. It'll make doing them more appealing.
And it may be silly to say, but pray.
I'm with you, some days I can't find the balance and no matter how much I give, it's not enough. *sigh*