Fayette-Mom: It's not a contest!

If I’ve said it once to my kids, I’ve said it a hundred times: “It is not a contest!”

Oh, but everything is a contest to my kids these days. I find they are intent on one-upping each other in any way they can. Emma brags about a note of praise her teacher sent home, Eli rubs it in that the dog prefers to sleep in his room at night. And they are constantly policing the “stuff” that their sibling is accumulating, with Eli ticked that Emma got to buy more books at the book fair (she used her own money) or Emma steaming about the purchase of a new winter coat for her brother (never mind that that the five coats and jackets she already has is more than she’ll ever need).

The little “fact-checkers” follow me throughout the house, quizzing me on who’s turn it is to pick a movie to watch/play on the computer/have a friend over for an afternoon. It seems I’m always doing calculations in my head, trying to keep track of who gets what and how much and gosh, I better get this right or there will be a meltdown for sure.

Quite frankly, I’ve had it.

With contests, there’s always a winner and always a loser and no matter how many i’s I dot or t’s I cross, someone, at least once in a while is going to get the short end of the stick. The power may go out right when it’s Eli’s turn on the computer, or the playmate who is finally due over to be with Emma might get sick and have to cancel, and there’s absolutely nothing I can do about it. Life…it just isn’t always fair.

I tell them that I love them both, and I want happiness for them equally, but I will no longer be held hostage by little tyrants with such long memories. Anyone caught keeping score will have to open up their treasures and let their brother and sister choose an item. To keep. Forever.

kept them tending to their own yard and keeping their mouths shut. I no longer have to hide the Target bag in the closet, or mentally run through a checklist of who got what when before making a purchase.

Yep, Mommy won this game.