5 Ways to Avoid Sibling Rivalry
Trouble amongst siblings is just an unavoidable aspect of having more than one child, and learning how to deal with it is an important skill to have. On top of all their parenting duties, moms and dads must also become the referees of their children. As bad as it may get at some points, a rivalry should never be considered an inevitable consequence of having multiple kids. Here’s how you can avoid sibling rivalry:
1. Sooner Than Later
As soon as you become aware of the second child on its way, you should begin to work on the relationship between your children. Preparing your first child for a new baby is critical to them not only understanding the situation the family will be in, but also accepting and embracing it.
2. Avoid Neglect
Many times, the older sibling may develop this rivalry because they feel neglected once a new baby arrives. It’s important to not only tell them, but show them how much they still mean to you after the second sibling is born. Better yet, be sure to involve them a lot in helping out with the new baby and asking for their opinion on various issues relating to the child.
3. Time Sharing
Another important concept to keep in mind is equal time-sharing between your children. While it’s easy to get lost in caring for and spending time with a newborn baby, you must also be sure to give the older child enough attention as well. Although you may be oblivious to how much time is spent, your children will be well aware if they aren’t getting the time they deserve.
4. Family Bonding
Building a strong bond within your family unit is a great way to keep the sibling rivalry to a minimum. If you can manage to plan multiple family activities throughout the week or month, there’s a lot better chance that your children will grow closer as they get older. The key is to continue this relationship building as young as possible to pay off later in life.
5. Role Model
If you raise your older child to be a great role model for the younger sibling, this will be very beneficial down the road. If they can take on this responsibility of role model, not only will your younger child be able to confide in them, but this will also strengthen their relationship. It will ideally become a mentor-mentee relationship.
Written by Stephanie Parker from Sleepingbaby.com, inventor of the Zipadee-Zip
The motto for Sleeping Baby, makers of the Zipadee-Zip, is: “Inspiring Dreams One Night at A time,” and that, in a nutshell, is how it all started…with one little dream that has since become the Parker family’s reality. When Brett and Stephanie Parker’s daughter, Charlotte, was born, the feeling that welled up inside of them was indescribable; they never realized until first looking into those baby blues of hers that they were even capable of that kind of love.
When it was time to transition baby from swaddling, the Parkers tried every sleep sack on the market and every swaddle weaning trick they could find for nearly two weeks and nothing worked to get baby Charlotte to fall and stay asleep.
Stephanie became determined to restore sleep and sanity to their household and set out to find a solution that would soothe Charlotte’s startle reflex and provide her the cozy womb-like environment she loved so much but still give her the freedom to roll over and wiggle around in her crib safely. Out of sheer desperation and exhaustion, the Zipadee-Zip was born. The first Zipadee-Zip(R) Stephanie put together on her little sewing machine worked like magic!
To date tens of thousands of Zipadee-Zips have been sold and all from word-of-mouth marketing. It is so rewarding for the Parkers to see other parents and babies getting the sleep they both need and deserve!
For more information, visit sleepingbaby.com.
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