Celebrating the individual

This time I'm asking for advice!

It has amazed me that all of my boys have such different gifts and abilities.  Connor (8 years old) has an unbelievable ability to draw (and he can sing too!) 
Declan sat down to draw a picture a few days ago, and it was a perfectly fine drawing for a 6 year old (in fact probably better than I could do) but even he noticed that it wasn't a masterpiece like Connor always manages to produce, and he got quite upset about it.  I praised him, and told him it was a fabulous picture, and I put it on the fridge.  It didn't fool him though, it didn't make him feel any better.

Yes, we always talk about Connor's drawing ability, but I'm sure I put as much enthusiasm into Declan's praise.  We always talk about the things that each of us are good at, and make a point of praising each member of our family's uniqueness.  I guess it's a pretty big status symbol to be good at drawing at their age!  Can't say that I know anything about that, because I have never been able to draw a stick figure with any success, but I can remember being at school and being in awe of the drawings of my peers.  I could write a mean poem, though! 

When I was teaching I always encouraged children to find their "thing", whether it be a sport, an academic ability, an ability in one of the arts or having altruistic tendencies....whatever! I was the first one to tell my students I can't draw, play sports to any ability level and so many other things, but I can spell, write and know my times tables back to front!

My point is, how do you celebrate one child, without making the other feel a little left out.  "Every dog has his day", and I'm the first one to tell my kids to "get over it".  But sometimes even a hardened mum like myself, feels pangs of sympathy for them.  I am certainly not a parent who gives the other children "a little something" on their sibling's birthday. I do believe that children need to learn that it's not all about them in this world.  I try to spend a little bit of quality time with each of them individually (with 5 of them it really is a "little" bit), but I'm really not sure what else I can do.

He probably doesn't even remember the picture or the feelings he had about it, but I would like to feel a little more confident about what to do next time this situation pops up with the boys.  Can I add, I am soooo not looking forward to the whole girlfriends season of life!!!