My husband was petrified of Bailey.  He thought he was going to break her.  When he held her you would have thought she was a china doll.  I can remember that he didn’t take her anywhere by himself until she was almost two.  I assume that is normal for most first time fathers.  He did get better as the number of children increased.  I guess he figured if he hasn’t broken any yet his chances were pretty good.  It is amazing the differences in the way you raise your first child as opposed to your fourth.  Derek and I had conflicting views on the subject considering he was the oldest child and I was the youngest.  He told me that the youngest always gets away with everything and I told him the reason that is true is because the parents don’t care anymore.  At least with the oldest, the parents care if you try to ride the laundry basket down the steps or eat dog poop.  They stop you from doing things that are disgusting or potentially harmful.  But, with the youngest, the parents have become so callous from the older kids antics that they are spent.  When the oldest arrives there are two doting parents catering to its every need but by the time the youngest comes around the parents have checked out and the dog gets more attention.

The oldest child gets a birthday party equipped with balloons, friends, and her own cake
The third child got a half eaten brownie with 2 candles in it.
The fourth child did get a whole cake but no balloons or guests.

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