Herd or Individual

I came from a family of 2 kids and I am the youngest. My brother is 6 years older than me so I pretty much grew up as an individual. Plus, I was a girl, he was a boy. "The kids" wasn't a term used for us. I loved it. I was free to be me and not ever just shoved off to the side with us to entertain ourselves.

Now, I have 3 girls, all 2ish years apart. It is so easy to put them into the "girls" or the older girls or the 2 little girls or whatever. They often get listed in the herd category. I am not sure if it is an introvert thing...not really liking the whole shallow thing...or if it is how I was brought up, but I hate that my girls get that herd mentality. Having each of them be an individual is what I really want.

We focus alot on each one's personality, they are very different from each other so that helps but it is a ton of work. Not to mention, the oldest one (5) understands when things are different for her verses her sisters (the justice of it all)! I can't figure out why I don't like the herd thing, I am not even sure it is that bad...I guess it all boils down to me not wanting to be put in a box and made to just go from here to there for no reason. Rebellious, why yes I am :). I guess for the next 18ish years I am just going to have to live exhausted trying to make sure that each child gets to go their way, not just the way of their sisters.

Ok, now that I really think about it...God doesn't treat us as a herd. He knows what each of us needs down to the detail...He surely is thinking of my girls the same way. Each one with a special and unique plan for their lives, including when they were born. Ok, I will live tired and take time to make sure my girls feel part of the family and work as a team but also that they feel that they are an individual, not just a Schultz child.

Carry on all of you out there! Raise your kids strong!