I only have one brother, but my mom is the youngest of nine siblings and my dad is in the middle of seven — not to mention I have entirely lost count of how many cousins there are in the family.
Obviously, family gatherings are a big deal for us by sheer volume alone! But that also means I’ve never had to worry about someone being there to have my back, like when I had a nasty fender bender on my way to work one morning, and no less than three uncles arrived on the scene to assess the damage in a matter of minutes.
Sure, it can get loud, and there’s plenty of drama waiting around every corner. But I wouldn’t change a thing about my gigantic family tree. And now, the Reddit users listed below are sharing how their big families have shaped who they are as individuals.
Did we miss one of the unmistakable signs that you grew up in a huge family? Let us know in the comments, and please SHARE with your loved ones!
Thumbnail source: Flickr
1. You're always on alert.
“You're sort of always looking out for everyone. I'm the second oldest of six, and I still find myself doing this with friends — if we're out somewhere, I'm constantly checking to make sure everyone is accounted for.” — JoeyBulgaria
2. You get creative with nicknames.
“Using middle names more often because of multiple relatives with the same first name.” — Hraesvelg7
3. Most of your things have a history.
“More used to sharing and getting secondhand stuff. Siblings are more likely to have to get stuff their other siblings used, especially when there are a ton of you.” — Reddit User
4. You never hog the bathroom.
“Learning how to be quick in the bathroom. I was the only girl, and I had 4 brothers, and also my mother. We had 1 bathroom. I still can get in and out in less than 2 minutes, and makeup and hair still only takes me ten minutes tops.” — missleavenworth
5. ...Or you are just used to an audience.
“Using the bathroom in front of others. When you share 1 bathroom between 5 women, most of whom like to primp a lot, you get used to having to do your business, no matter who is standing there for hours putting on their makeup.” — Startraveller42
6. You aren't phased by hyper kids.
“When a friend's small relative begins treating you as a human jungle gym, you just accept it, and when they apologize, you have to explain that it's not the first time.” — DrPlatypusPHD
7. You know the importance of volume.
“I come from a large Italian family, and when friends come to family gatherings, they're constantly asking me if we're all fighting because we basically all scream when we talk to one another. Being loud is definitely a habit — gotta make myself heard in this crazy big family!” — joseamerica
8. You find unique ways to stay organized.
“Color-coding or marking everything — you have some kind of system to know whose stuff is whose. Dots on the band of the underwear; initials on toothbrushes; assigned favorite colors; etc.” — Thantosiet
9. You always buy in bulk.
“Buying in bulk. Even when I'm grocery shopping just for myself, there's a little voice saying, ‘Get the big box, it'll last longer.’” — thattaylornerd
10. You're a member of your own army.
“You messing with me? You just earned yourself an angry mob of 20 uncles, 40 cousins and 10 siblings.” — Reddit User
11. You have zero secrets.
“Pro: You are never really alone. Any emergency and you have loads of people coming around to help you and support you through it. Con: Lack of personal space. Everybody’s business becomes everybody’s business.” — thattaylornerd
12. You can bond with many different types of personalities.
“You learn how to get along with many different personality types, and your siblings can become your best friends.” — ejayhomes
What do you like most about having a big family? Leave us a comment and please SHARE with your loved ones!
These stories are based on posts found on Reddit. Reddit is a user-generated social news aggregation, web content rating, and discussion website where registered members submit content to the site and can up- or down-vote the content. The accuracy and authenticity of each story cannot be confirmed by our staff.
