We need to keep peace among the troops. No, I am not referring to our many brave troops at war overseas. I am referring to those mini-troops who live under our roof.
If you have more than one child at home, you are probably so familiar with sibling warfare that this might just be the eleventh commandment in your household: Thou shalt not tease or hit your brother or sister!
Kids being kids, of course, this is one commandment that gets broken on a regular basis in most homes.
Sibling warfare a part of family living. What would life without in-home wrestling matches, wedgies, noogies, squabbles over who gets to watch their TV program, name-calling and hitting your brother or sister for eating the last Pop-Tart!
When I was little, a fight with my brother left me so incensed that I picked up a mirror and cracked it over his head.
He carries the scars to this day, and from time to time he’ll remind me of the incident. We laugh together about it now, but even after three decades, the memory of this lapse still makes me wince.
Siblings can go from best friends to bitter enemies in the blink of an eye.
They know how to push each other’s buttons.
Life with brothers and sisters can be rough and tumble. But there’s also a lot of fun and good times, and if you’re lucky, you just grow closer through the years.
Mom on the Street wants to know this week about war and peace among your youngsters.
Monica Baldwin of Southlake said that fighting among siblings is a normal part of growing up, and also a daily occurrence in her home.
"The rules we have for quarreling in our house include no hitting, and that they are expected to work out their problems before resorting to calling in a parent for help," Baldwin said.
"If they get to the point where they can’t, or if they do start physically fighting, then we step in to help sort it out," she said.
"What I do to keep fights at a minimum is to try not to compare my kids to one another or favor one over the other. To pit your kids against each other can start fights out of jealousy .... If the fighting is bad, I will separate them for a cooling-off period and that usually solves the problem," Baldwin summarized.
Nicole Baker of Grapevine recalled that when she was a child, her older brother used to pick on her, but the thought of it brought back a funny memory.
"My big brother used to bother me and hit me all the time, but I remember once I got into an argument with a classmate after school who tried to start a fight with me," Baker said. "My brother stepped in and told the girl that she couldn’t put her hands on me, because that was his job," Baker laughed.
"So, I guess my story is an example that even though most all siblings fight with each other at times, in the end, your siblings are usually are the ones who are still by your side," she added.
For those kids out there who are tired of fighting with their siblings, just pause for a moment and think of how boring life would be without them. For parents, keep in mind that sharing of sibling squabbles from your youth, even the cracked mirrors, will keep your kids laughing — and loving one another — for the rest of their lives.