When you grow up with siblings, sometimes, things are really messy. There’s constant fighting, family drama and most of the time – ratting your siblings’ secrets to your parents as revenge for something they did to you. And, while we’re always talking sh*t and wishing we were “only children,” low-key – we love our brothers/sisters more than anything else.
While people say being the oldest is the best because you get to experience your parents’ “trial run” of parenting, others say the middle children are the strongest because they go through the “middle children syndrome BS” and still come out strong.
But –take it from the youngest of three girls – there is no greater feeling than being the baby of the family.
Sure, being the youngest has its ups and downs, but being the baby girl of the family has been the absolute greatest joy of my life.
Here’s why:
1. You get all the best hand-me-downs.
Or, you simply sneak into their rooms and steal their clothes.
The best part about hand-me-downs is the super cool Ramones t-shirt or the royal blue pumps you’ve been eyeing will soon to be yours (once your siblings are done with them, or once they simply leave the house for a long weekend).
2. Your parents are a little more lenient.
After having the first kid (or two, or three), your parents start to simmer down on parental controls.
They aren’t as strict on eating habits, bed times or checking in when you’re out past curfew.
They trust because their other kids turned out okay, you shouldn’t be too far off either.
3. You are brought with some killer music taste.
Instead of One Direction and Katy Perry, your siblings’ childhoods were Blink-182 and The Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Your music tastes aren’t like most of your peers’ because you’d come home from kindergarten to the sounds of Sublime and Dave Matthews.
Being the baby, you got to hear all the cool music before everyone else, see the best trends firsthand and even watched the R-rated movies way before you should have.
4. You get shown the most love and affection.
Being the baby, everyone is obsessed with you. Sometimes, people think this causes the youngest family member to be spoiled, but that could not be more false.
Being the baby teaches you to value your family and how important it is to give them love and support.
5. All of your accomplishments are magnified by 10.
When you’re the youngest, you’re always be the last to do everything, just like your oldest sibling was the first. This is the fun part.
When you graduate college, for example, everyone in your family feels particularly old because the “baby is graduating college.”
This also means big gifts (and even a party!) are coming your way.
6. You get to know all the family secrets.
Being the youngest, everyone opens up to you. They trust you because they think you’re too young to understand or you simply won’t tell anyone else.
This turns you into the human diary of your entire family. It becomes tons of fun when everyone just begins to tell all his or her worries and woes to you, and it feels even better that you’re seen as the most trustworthy one.
7. You have a great sense of humor.
Kurt Vonnegut once said:
“The youngest child in any family is always a jokemaker, because a joke is the only way he can enter into an adult conversation.”
This is why most great comedians are the youngest children in their families (aka, me).
8. You hardly get blamed for things.
Your parents will never suspect the baby sister would do anything wrong, even if you are a devil child. When someone loses Mom’s favorite shirt, she’ll ask you last.
This means you have three times as long to come up with an alibi and a story of why you would never break anything, ever. Cue the puppy eyes.
9. You’re part of a legacy.
In school, jobs and even when you start going out to bars and clubs, everyone knows who you are by your last name.
Your last name is like your superhero badge, and if you have really cool older siblings, the cool factor travels down the family tree.
Thanks to your kickass older siblings; you are respected and appreciated more.
10. You learn from your siblings’ mistakes.
You get a front row seat to every scolding and punishment your siblings ever received and you know exactly what not to do when you’re put in that situation. But, even so, older siblings make for the best role models.
They know they have a duty to set a good example and pave the way for the baby sister.
So, get out a pen and notebook because your siblings are going to teach you the only lessons you’ll need to know.
11. You’re never alone.
Having older siblings to stand up for you is the ultimate form of protection. You know no matter what happens in life, you’ll never have to go through any of it alone.
Being the baby, sometimes things fall onto your plate that you’re not ready to handle at such a young, adolescent age.
Having older siblings there to help pave the way makes the long road of life that much easier.