<p>What I’ve seen is that the truly good people who simply get bitten with the jealousy bug, usually come around in time and/or respond well to humility, kindness, and our sincere interest in THEIR child. As for the other ones, well, you can be as humble as nice as humanly possible and it won’t make a bit of difference. </p>
<p>It really is a mine field to be around people prone to envy. If you are reserved and reticent to say much about your child, then the other person may go on and on about their kid and the great school he attends. But then eventually comes the question: “So, where does your S/D go to school?” If your answer is HYPSM or whatever the cool school is that’s near you, then the person can feel ambushed. I’ve tried answering their question really quick and then changing the topic immediately, like “S/D is at HYPSM. So how does your S/D like their classes, roommate, etc.” Sometimes that works, but sometimes the other parent will say some self-deprecating thing like “Well, S/D’s school isn’t as good as HYPSM, but…” and the openness and friendliness fades dramatically. I’ve tried talking about the negatives of S/D’s school or situation in order to diffuse the jealousy (to let them know that I don’t think the school is all that) but that strategy has backfired too as then the person is annoyed that you’re “complaining” about a dream school. You really can’t win if the other parent has a weakness in this area.</p>