The Middle Son

On any given day the following comments might be made to my 4.5 year old "middle" son, Evan.

Zachary has sleepovers because he is seven, when you are older you will have sleepovers too.

I push Julian in the stroller because he is just a baby. You're a big boy. You can walk.

When you are older you will lose teeth too, and the Tooth Fairy will leave money under your pillow. You are too young now. 

Please share that toy with your baby brother, he is crying  and you are old enough to know how to share, Julian doesn't know any better.

It must be hard to be the middle kid. Not old enough to do all the cool things your older sibling does, but too old to be babied. I can imagine he must feel like his life just isn't fair. I came from a family where I had only one sister, so I have not experienced this dynamic. I have been thinking a lot about it, and I have decided that while it is very hard to be the middle child now, someday Evan will see the advantages. Being in the middle isn't always bad.

The best part of an Oreo cookie is the creamy filling that holds the two cookies together.
Without the middle a sandwich would only be two dry pieces of bread. 
The middle of the novel is when the story starts to get good. The plot thickens, you're invested in the characters, and you don't have to say goodbye yet. 
June is in the middle of they year. It is Evan's birth month and the start of summer. It's the beginning of warm weather, sprinklers and barbeques. 
The middle of the night brings deep slumber, starlight and dreams.

My wish for you Evan is that you benefit by learning from your older brother's successes and mistakes and that your baby brother will teach you patience, compassion and leadership.

There are six years that separate Zachary and Julian, I believe that Evan will be the glue that holds my three boys together.