I Told My 9-year-old He Could Be Embarrassed by his Little Sister

Even though she has Down syndrome.

We were at the school’s open house. The gym was packed full of parents and grandparents watching raptly as a select few of our children braved their way up onto the stage to perform whatever little entertaining skill they’d worked so hard to perfect. The annual talent show was actually one of the few events I enjoyed during my years as a Mom of School-Aged Children; it sort of gave me hope.

My 9-year-old was on the programme this particular year. He had learned how to juggle and had been practising his routine for months, eager to show off his superpower in front of his friends.

He got up there on the stage, started his music, and set his focus on the three multi-coloured balls. The crowd watched in appropriate awe as this fourth-grader switched deftly between his two tricks and back. I was proud of him for trying, even if he flubbed his big finale.

It was at that point that his little sister decided she wanted to join him.

Our 4-year-old cherub picked that moment to scream her discontent at being denied the celebrity of her brother and kicked me firmly in the shins from her seat on my lap. Knowing this meant war, I bundled her up quickly and headed for the back of the room…