Certain things about Colin’s development have been improved by having these older siblings. He is hyper-articulate, knows all the slang, and he knows how to hold an audience — as well as every type of sports equipment. And he is happy to have any of us do things for him, rather than focusing on mom or dad for meals, baths, bed, etc. Other things have definitely been sacrificed at the feet of the age range and my available time. The teenager’s emotional angst is way more important to me than what container Col drinks from; the fight Neve had with her best friend that has her sobbing under her bed takes precedence over the fact that Col still sleeps in his crib.
Tom was giving me a hard time about Colin still engaging in “baby” behavior, etc. It’s true, the other two were in beds, toilet trained, said goodbye to sippy cups and naps by 3. And we are closing in on three and none of that has been done. I listened, and I looked at him, but all I could think was, I can’t get all in a knot about a this stuff when I’ve got an 8th grader who thinks school is truly an ancient system for mind control. It’s like all available channels are tuned to the emotional needs. It’s like the cliche: he won’t go to college with a bottle in his mouth. I know Colin won’t be in a crib much longer, and I know he’ll get the toilet training thing soon enough. So what if the kid needs to suck on something to comfort himself–heck, I need my tea to make it through the day. I can’t panic about things I know I could control–it’s the stuff I can’t control that makes me worry.