Is it hard parenting kids with a 6 year age difference?

We will have a 6 year age difference between our son and their little sibling. I’d love to know what the everyday looks like, can be negative or positive. My husband and I are 5yrs apart and I know when they are older the age difference won’t matter if they keep close friends. My son loves babies and is so sweet and helpful to them, he’s excited to “teach the baby how to walk and talk”. But what about the everyday little things when they are growing up? Would love to hear your experiences

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My kids are 7.5 years apart… and it is challenging at times. Wishing you encouragement, patience and wisdom as you navigate this journey :sparkling_heart:

Trust me, it’s easy! Your oldest will help so much

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My kids are also 6 years apart. They annoy and pester each other like siblings do, but they have such genuine love for each other. I will say it was wonderful that the oldest was pretty independent when her brother was born so that was an easy transition. She was also very helpful with her brother and still is.

Eight years between my first and last and four in between the others . Loved it and would do it all over again the same way

My oldest is 7 and I have a 1 year old. My 7 year old dotes on her baby sister helps her try to talk,plays with her reads to her and is a fantastic help

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It’s going to be amazing! Mine are 5.5 years apart. Haven’t seen a single downside since we brought baby home a year and a half ago. Except when she decides she wants to play with one of his Lego creations :laughing: he’s so helpful, generous, loving, engaging, and protective over her. Best helper I could have.

My kids are 6 years apart it’s nice now that the youngest is 3 they play together alot more . But just make sure older child has somewhere they can escape little one as I find my youngest terrorizes my oldest lool

My eldest is ten years older then my youngest and 7 years older then the middle child. Resented them right from the beginning. I wish I could have had them closer but it was not meant to be but either way, there was challenges and I never left them alone for any length of time as they were growing up. There is no bond between them but they are now civil to each other. Mind you they are in their thirty’s and forty’s

My kids are all 3.5 yes apart and I love it. But my oldest is 10 and my youngest is 1 and they are really close. He’s super helpful with his brother and plays with him alot. My 7 yr old daughter is the same way. She is like a little mommy to her 4 and 1 yr old brothers.

My children are 5 years apart and worked fantastic had time for baby when he was at school and treated them same never have favourite and my children get along fantastic now 35 boy and 30 girl

My kids are 6 (5y9mo) years apart and it’s been wonderful. Older is 9, younger is almost 3 and I haven’t had an issue with the age gap. I am starting to have an issue now because my oldest likes alone time and my younger guy just loves to be with my oldest but other than that, it’s been a super easy transition! It’s like have a newborn first child all over again because my 6yo was so independent.

My older 2 kids were almost 5 and 6 when my youngest was born. They were old enough to not be jealous, but young enough to grow up with the baby. They’ve always been very helpful. They are all 11, 16, and 17 now. My teens still baby the little one. They helped teach her read, and ride a bike. My oldest is going to be a senior next year and my little one is gonna be devastated when she leaves for college.

There is 9 years between me and my older brother it was a big gap more like a role model then a brother never in the same school and not interested in the same things as he was driving once I could do things he was doing we got along till we got older and since married on different wave lengths but me and my younger brother 3.5 year fought all the time always wanted to be in my face and have what I had so I don’t think there is a right age gap . If your happy with starting all over again with late night feeds etc then go for it also 5 years makes a differences on your body . I have 5 kids in 11 years and I am definitely feeling older now that I am 38. But only you can decide.

Be prepared for the youngest to “act grown” at a very early age. 5 yr age gap here and the 8 yr old loves her 13 yr old sister so much, she has “grown up” wayyyyy too fast!

Absolutely not, at least not for me. Had a 10 and 13 year gap between older 2 and the youngest. Toe it was absolutely easier than the close age gap. There also wasn’t the disconnect between them you might think. The connection with you geat and oldest was strongest but middle and youngest has their own unique bond. It’s a little different now as the older 2 are grown and out of the house but that bond is still there.

I have a 20yo, 14yo and 4yo. the only con I’ve seen is getting use to - and encourage the older kids to- get use to - the baby schedule which is more demanding. once that’s established, it’s better. and also like your apart of 3 different worlds. but it gets easier and gets to be fun.

the older ones in my house have been pretty helpful where they can be with tasks, which is nice.

I have a 13 year age gap and honestly i will tell any parents, the bigger the age gap the better.
The bond my kids have despite now being 15 and 2 is indescribable

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Mine are 5 years apart and they will be on totally different levels in life and I think that’s been the toughest balance for me and them lol because while the 8 year old requires something, my 3 year old requires the opposite. It’s a strange transition some days haha but they do love each other and like siblings they do annoy one another.

My first two are 1 month shy of 10 years and I can honestly say I’m glad there was a age gap. He’s great when i need his help. My two youngest are 4 years apart and again the age gap is great.

Ok so I have a 17yr old girl 13 yr old boy 8yr old girl(stepdaughter) 2yr old son and 1yr old twin girls and they all get along amazingly lol the older ones love the younger its great!

My kids are 6 years apart and they fight more as they get older currently 16 & 9 they don’t really have much in common and "he’s cool"and “she’s annoying” I am constantly telling my older child to stop fighting with the little one

My two are 11 years apart and at first I thought I was crazy but it’s the best thing I could’ve done, my oldest is a girl and youngest a boy and she just absolutely adores him (for now) she’ll do anything for her brother and he loves her so much

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I think it’s tougher finding things both kids can enjoy, but not that bad. Fairs, hiking short distances, parades, amusement parks, museums with kid programs or historic sites are fine for both.

The good part is they will have different classes, schools, activities, so won’t be rivals or jealous of each other. The younger one will look up to & worship the older, the older one will help, coo over & protect the younger one.

It’s mostly how you parent them. I know 2 boys, 2 different fathers, 10 years apart who loved each other from the start, and now they’re grown and one’s married they are still super close.

My boys are 6 years apart and since their older their always fighting but they are in the same room so they don’t get a lot of their own space. Now I just had a daughter and my boys are now 12 and 7 and they love helping with baby sister

My son has a friend with an older sibling (2 boys) and they’re extremely close, one is in high school who is 16, the other is 10. They get along great! I have an 11 year old boy and a 3 year old girl and it is soooo much harder than I ever imagined. My son has been involved with sports/activities and it has been hard taking the little one with to these things. My son and I can’t play a card or board game without the younger one getting into it, homework time with my older one has been a challenge. They constantly fight, my youngest being the instigator. Mine are 7.5 years apart and I thought it would be so much easier having them spread apart but it’s been extremely tough. I do think as my younger one is getting older she is doing better slowly but I never imagined this to be honest. But you really never know bc it depends on their personalities and I think having a boy and a girl is different than 2 of the same gender bc they have different interests.

6 sons from New born to 15 years they helped raise each other, best of friends, they are now 57 oldest and 42 youngest

Mine are 6 years 6 months to the day apart. Its fine :woman_shrugging:

I think it all depends. My son and his brother have never been close, and they are five years apart. But it is due to the way his mom treated them. The baby was very much the favorite, and still is. The resentment has never went away.

My boys are 8 years apart. They honestly fight and get along all at the same time lol :joy: I don’t regret it at all. They are 15 and 7 right now and the hardest part was when my oldest was 11 and 12, he just wanted no part in having a sibling bother him but it was honestly a preteen thing. My oldest loves his little brother!

My girls are 5 and a half years apart. My oldest adores her little sister and they spend a lot of time playing now that my younger daughter is a toddler. However, big sister does get irritated because they can’t play what she wants or little sister destroys things she’s working on.

No i have 7 & 11 years difference

I honestly think it depends on the kiddo… my sister and I are 23 months apart we put up with each other… my younger brother and I are 18 months apart he was my best friend before he passed away 2yrs ago…I’m 37 and have half siblings from my dad that are 19yrs old to 21 yrs old and us older ones see them as annoying little kids lol love them though. I have a 17 yr old girl , 14 yr old boy and almost 5 yr old boy and there all the best of friends… so for me I think it just depends. I have friends who have age gaps and there close I know some people with age gaps with siblings and there not close at all.

For us it’s been awesome. We had my son when my step-daughter was 6 and now he’s just turned 6 and she’s a big help with him.
He’s a handful and she is really patient with him. I’m sure a younger sibling wouldn’t be. For having such a big gap they’re actually quite close.

My boys are 6 years apart and I loved it all the way through till now they are 17 and 23.:slightly_smiling_face: The age difference when they were young was great because the older was helpful and already able to do things for himself. Growing up I found they did fight much as they had a good age gap. Now as young adults they are the best of friends.:slightly_smiling_face:

My 1st kid is going to be 6 in march and my 2nd turned 1 on Christmas

They fight over ice.

Me and my sister are 9 years apart, we were always close.

mine older two are 5 years apart and my oldest actually did help her sis start walking because she refused to walk for me. she is extremely helpful with both my younger two (4&2) however, she is literally an angel and i know if i had my 4 year old first, it would have been a whole different story. so at the end of the day, it depends on the child.

We have a 5yr age gap with our kids and my son is amazing with his little sister :smiling_face_with_three_hearts: that may change as he gets older but I hope not!

I have 3 kids with a 6 1/2 year age gap yes it brings its own set of challenges but it also does not have normal issues you get with same or similar age children. Going places tKes prep to keep everyone happy but it is totally doable. My oldest was 15 when my 4th was born.

My kids are 4½ years apart. One male, one female… they butt heads so much because their interests are so different due to levels of maturity… they are 12 and 7 now. The boy is coming into the pre-teen stage and wants his peace while the 7yo is wanting attention and to have together time. This stage has been difficult in my personal opinion.

It hard parenting any kid