Mommy envy

I have nieces and nephews whom I love dearly and on many family occasions when we are all gathered together, I can often be found interacting with them trying to catch up on all the things that are important to them in their lives.

While I find this pretty normal, my daughter recently shared with me that it really upsets her to see me “loving other children that don’t belong to me.”

She went on to say that I belong to her and that each of them has their own Mom to ask those questions and give hugs and kisses to. Having grown up with siblings, the idea of sharing my mom is a very natural one. But, for her, an only child, it is interpreted very differently.

Although we’ve had conversations about the fact that my interactions with them will never change how much I love her, once we are around them, the jealous behavior returns. I am slightly taken aback by her strong feelings and find myself at a loss for words on how to address this in a way that she can accept and understand.

Have any of you Moms out there experienced this? How do you address this with your kids?