Growing up with six siblings, life could be a little hectic at times. There never seemed to be enough room in our house for all of us and at times, I felt like I was going to lose my mind. Now that all my siblings have grown up and most of us have moved out or, like myself, gone away to college, my outlook on my childhood and my family has changed. I find myself reminiscing fondly of all the crazy antics my siblings and I would create, or the insane things we argued over. So whether you have six siblings or one, I hope this list reminds you of the time spent with your siblings growing up.
1. Sharing everything
Bedrooms, bathrooms, clothes, toys, the list goes on and on. It didn't really matter how you felt about it at the time, what was yours was theirs as well. While this was sometimes one of the more frustrating things to live with, especially for a kid, it was a good lesson to learn at a young age.
2. Fighting over the most ridiculous things
When you spend an extended amount of time around one group of people, buttons are bound to be pushed. The sacred things like the TV remote, time in the bathroom before school or the last Oreo cookie in the cabinet were nothing to be messed with. You'd think we ruined someone's life by the way we fought over some of these things. Not to mention arguing for the sake of arguing. I'd like to think now that my siblings and I have had some time to mature, these arguments would occur less frequently. Unfortunately that isn't the case. Especially when it comes to Oreo cookies.
3. Never having to play alone
This is definitely one of the perks of having siblings around. There were hardly any lonely times at my house. Whenever someone wanted to play outside, or watch a movie, there was most likely someone else who would be more than happy to join.
4. You learn important social skills at a young age.
As I mentioned before, there was a lot of sharing and arguing going on with my siblings when I was younger. One of the good things that came from this was learning things like problem solving and patience towards others, especially in school and extracurricular activities. Interacting with others was something I was familiar with and I believe it gave me a bit of an advantage when it came to socializing with people outside of our family.
5. There will always be a mess.
No matter how many times you clean something, there will always be another mess or another chore to be done in the house. It's something you learn to accept over time, and of course there is always the mad dash of cleaning right before you have company over.
6. Your house becomes a version of "The Hunger Games" when it comes to food.
I don't know how many times I had to deal with my older siblings hiding all the "good food" from the rest of us after my parents bought groceries. If I'm going to be honest, I had a few good hiding spots of my own. Food goes fast with a lot of people in the house! I had to make sure to save some of the best stuff for myself.
7. Hand-me-downs
These are things I became very familiar with growing up. While it seemed like all my friends were buying new clothes from the coolest stores, I was stuck with wearing something that is old and outdated. While hand-me-downs can sometimes turn out to be a bit of a disaster, they have character and they are something you learn to live with.
8. Mornings are always a gamble.
My poor mother had the job of getting all of us out of bed, dressed and ready for the day, and as I look back now, I can easily say that it wasn't an easy one. My siblings and I didn't take a bus to school, so making sure that my brothers got to their high school on time and my younger siblings and I got to our elementary school on time everyday is still something I don't see as being possible without using something like a time turner from "Harry Potter." Thanks, Mom.
9. You learn to cherish privacy/alone time.
Getting my own room for my birthday one year was probably the best present my parents have ever gotten me. Having time to myself was something that didn't happen too often, so when it did, I was very grateful.
10. Your parents never call you by the right name.
Now, there were a lot of us, so I try to cut my parents some slack, but I got pretty used to hearing four different names be called out before they got to mine. Especially when they were flustered or angry which is something I found to be just a little funny from time to time.
11. They are always there for you when you need them.
Your siblings are your family and when push comes to shove, you know you can always count on them! Even if that need is just getting more toilet paper for the bathroom when you run out.
12. Missing them more than you thought you would.
With all the arguing and invasions of privacy, I thought for sure I was ready to be as far away from my siblings as possible when the time came. But as my older siblings grew up and moved out of the house, I found myself missing having them around. Now that I've spent a year away from home at school, I feel closer to them than I have in a really long time. They're a group of people that I love and even though they get on my nerves from time to time, I wouldn't trade them for anything.
