Celebrating each child’s unique character
Ideas to allow each child to feel unique and special to us.
- Secretly, and for your eyes only, make a list of each of your children’s 5 main qualities. This way, you’ll see who they really are, individually. You could also do a list of 5 things in which they are good. This will give you a global vision of each child separately.
- Do a special one-on-one activity with each child as often as you can. Having a hot chocolate in a cafe with the oldest one, going to the movies with your daughter and going to the park with the little one are all great options that allow each child to share a special moment with you. And at the same time, you become more aware that each child is bringing you something different.
- Don’t get involved in everything going on between siblings. As parents, we tend to always get in the middle of our kids’ little fights to avoid the situation from escalating. However, if we punish them or solve the problem for them, they might interpret our decisions and think that we are always punishing the same child. Try to let your kids find their own solutions among themselves.
What if Grandma has a favorite?
Before the situation escalates, we must have a conversation with her to make her understand that her relationship with the other children could suffer. Of course, Grandma may have more affinity with some of her grandchildren, or simply see some of them more often than others. As adults, we have to stop counting and measuring everything because we sometimes exaggerate the situation. Even if Grandma sees some of her grandkids more often, it doesn’t mean that she doesn’t love the others. Yet if you feel a preference and think that it is affecting your children, talk about it with the grandparents. Grandpa is often the best person to help you get the message through to Grandma!
