The Curse Of The Third Born Boy

Thursday, 18 June 2015

The Curse Of The Third Born Boy

This is little man. He is a cheeky little devil. It is no wonder as he is our third and last child.

He may give me a hard time but he is only getting his own back. After all he is cursed with being the third boy. 

What is this curse? 

Well here is a glimpse into how little man sees the world. 

1. He looks at photographs of days gone by and exclaims things like "big man wear my coat!" or "middle man wear my top" Obviously he is a little shocked that his brothers are wearing his clothes. He has not yet worked out that he lives in hand me downs. 

2. He is resigned to the fact that he is too little for everything. When the answer to a "Can I?" question is no, he will assume that it is because he is too little. 

"Can I go to big man's football club?" 
"No you are too little."

"Can I eat this chocolate?"
"No it's 9am"
"Me too little?" 

3. He thinks that it is perfectly acceptable to befriend someone by bundling them. This generally only causes a problem with younger first born children. 

4. He has learnt to play on his baby status. Babies are cute right? Little man has grasped this fact and plays it to his advantage. Middle man pretends to be a dog. Little man bounds over saying "me baby dog!" Middle man pretends to be an alien. Little man trumps him with baby alien status.


This cute status runs into playing with older children. He looks up at an older child, pretends to be cute and before you know it "me legs not working" and they are carrying him around.

5. He is surrounded by pictures of people that look like him on the walls but who are not him.

"That me Mummy?"
"No, it's your brother."

Note to self must update some canvases. 

6. He knows that he has to go to bed first. There are only so many toilet and drink requests that can be had whilst trying to work out what amazingly exciting things his brothers are up too. His payback is to be first up at stupid o'clock and play with electronic toys.

7. Little man has never had organic vegetables puréed for him. With my first born I spent my evenings boiling up organic carrots and freezing them in ice cube trays. By the time middle man came along, carrots where banned for their staining abilities. By the time little man came along he ate food straight from the pouches!  

8. When he asks for toys from the TV it goes on a birthday list. Actually it does for all the boys now. It comes to his birthday and I really wished I had actually written down the list.

9. Someone has already done everything first. I feel sorry for little man, but unless he starts doing back flips on a tight rope, then it has probably been done before by one of his brothers. All the boys attended the same nursery but he deals with his place there in a Hitler style fashion. We go to pick him up and before anyone has stepped out of the nursery door he is screaming at his brothers that there is "No running in my school!"

10. He does less classes. Big man was enrolled in baby college, music, signing, football, swimming. You name it he did it. Not the same if you are the third child. He does do swimming lessons but that is mainly so I have less to worry about on holiday. 

And with that, I had better make sure that I am nicer to little man. After all it could be him that chooses my nursing home. With all this evidence it will be the cheapest one he can find! 


  1. Coombe Mill (Fiona)22 June 2015 at 07:45

    I so understand, life is different depending on where you are born in the family, it just has to be that way, my 4,5 and 6 would have the same complaints!

  2. The dynamics of behaviour according to birth order are fascinating really. My third born is the joker of the family - it's his way of getting attention (and it works too!). He has two older sister, so no hand-me-downs for him and we say to him that although he may be the youngest, he won't always be the smallest. He will always be my baby though!

  3. Aww he does sound so so adorable and very inquisitive. I believe the youngest gets away with a lot too, based on stories I hear about my husband when he was little :)

  4. Louise Fairweather22 June 2015 at 17:38

    Awwww yes I do try to limit the hand me downs as it wouldn't happen if he was a girl. Def the joker tho x

  5. hahaha I love this and I can see my third is going to have exactly the same problems .... he is already in the hand me downs I really love this post made me smile this morning #sharewithme

  6. Haha, yes, I can imagine it happening. Some of those things we haven't even done for our first so if we make it to three he's doomed!


  7. Sara (@mumturnedmom)24 June 2015 at 17:13

    Ah yes, that poor third child :) The wee girl gets off a bit lighter, being a girl, but she still gets hand me downs and most definitely got pouches!

  8. Louise Fairweather27 June 2015 at 22:03

    Thanks Helen. X

  9. Louise Fairweather27 June 2015 at 22:03

    Yes I'm not sure what possessed me to purée organic carrots

  10. Louise Fairweather27 June 2015 at 22:04

    I often have to think that if he was a girl we would by him new xxx or the poor thing wouldn't have anything that was his x

  11. Ahhh bless him. I have heard it's tough for the third child but I bet even more so with three boys. Wow. lol I was the eighth child by time I came along I raised myself there were no photos and hand me downs had long been binned. lol Thank you so much for linking up to Share With Me #sharewithme