B is for... Brothers

When I found out that I was going to be raising not one but two boys, I had no idea what their relationship would be like.  After all, I had a sister.  I didn't know how brothers interacted.  I mean, yeah, I had two step-brothers, but they were both older than me and didn't get along too well.  So what would my boys end up being to each other?  Would Teddy be jealous of Pete?  Would Pete think his big brother was a jerk?  Would they be in each others pockets all the time?  I just didn't know. 
After four and a half years, I think that they're going to be good brothers to one another.  Oh, they don't get along all the time.  I don't think any siblings ever did.  But when I see the two of them together, I have no doubts that "brother" means something special to each of them.  And, honestly, I should have known from the beginning.
From the time Teddy first met Pete in the hospital (and maybe even before, while I was pregnant with him), Teddy loved his little brother.  He would proudly point to Pete and tell everyone we met, "That's my little brother, Peter."  He wanted to teach him things, like how to play with his toys or how to jump.  He wanted to learn how to feed him, and he wanted to read him stories.  When we would stop at Kroger, he would go to the bakery and ask for "a cookie for me and my baby brother, Peter."  He adored him.

And it hasn't changed as he's gotten older.  He loves to teach Pete how to do things.  He'll sit with him and read him stories.  He'll try to teach him how to play Pokemon.  He'll help him on the Wii or play pretend with him.  He takes being a big brother seriously, though their play is rarely serious.  He tries to guide him, teach him, and be what he thinks a big brother needs to be while still being who he is.
And Pete worships Teddy.  From the time he could crawl, he would follow his brother around.  Everything that Teddy has been interested in, Pete has followed with interest of his own.  When Teddy was into super heroes, Pete had his favorites.  Since Teddy has been into Pokemon, Pete has learned from him the different types, their moves, their strengths and weaknesses.  Pete's saddest day was when Teddy started kindergarten and they had to be apart all day long.  He can't wait until Teddy is home from school each day and wants to tell his brother everything he missed.  And he wants to spend every minute with him, if only Teddy would let him.
They each look out for the other one.  So often, Teddy will help Pete with something he can't get quite right. So often, Pete will get an extra candy when we're out so he can give it to Teddy.  Teddy will slow down so he'll let Pete "win" when they're racing each other to the mailbox.  Pete will wait until Teddy gets to him so they can tie.  
This isn't to say that they never fight.  Because they do.  Regularly.  Teddy will want alone time when Pete wants to play with him.  Pete will get angry because Teddy has something he wants.  One or both of them will come crying because they've hit one another (and Pete, for all that he's the tinier one, hits the hardest).  They fight and argue over who's turn it is to do something.  But fighting is part of growing up, and it's part of family.  I've always said that if you can fight and make up, that's the true test of love.  Because it means that you aren't afraid to let your true feelings be known.  And I see that in my boys all the time - fighting and making up.
I've always loved the song "Brotherly Love" by Keith Whitley and Earl Thomas Conley.  But it never meant as much to me as it does know that I have my own pair of brothers that I'm getting to watch grow up together.

B is for.... Boys

Long time readers of my blog know that I have two sons that are both my pride and joy and the ultimate source of my frustration.  (I know, I know.  I'm no different than any other parent out there.) But, hopefully, there will be some new readers coming over from the Challenge that don't know as much about me.  So I'm going to give you a glimpse of my boys (mostly in pictures).

Teddy (Theadore) is my oldest.  He turned 6 in February and started school last year.  He can be a bit of a goofball, and loves to ham it up for the camera.  He's got a great sense of humor, a big heart and a love of helping others (most of the time).  We have our problems, of course - he has my temper and an inability to be patient. He likes to throw things when he's angry and argues constantly when he doesn't get his way.  But the bad times are far out numbered by the good.

Teddy is also a huge Pokemon fan.  It started with the handheld games, watching Mommy and Daddy play them on the computer or the DS.  It wasn't long before he knew all the Pokemon, their strengths and weaknesses and their stats. He collected stuffed Pokemon, Pokemon figurines, Pokemon toys and, more recently, Pokemon cards.  He's really gotten into the trading card game and goes to a local league every Sunday. He played in the Tennessee State tournament a few weeks ago and, while he didn't place, he did have a great time.  And that's what matters at this age.

"But isn't he too young to play Pokemon?" I hear some of you ask.  "After all, he can't read the big words on the cards."  And that would be an easy misunderstanding to make.  But an incorrect one.  Teddy is a fantastic reader, reading somewhere along 4th grade level while he's in kindergarten.  He started reading at around 2 1/2 and by the time he was four, he was blowing away his Parents' Day Out teacher with his ability to read.  He's blown away his kindergarten teachers as well.  He's started reading comic books and chapter books on his own. He's just as likely to have a book in his hand as he is to have his DS.  And I couldn't be prouder.

Something else that I'm proud of is his love for his brother.  sure, they fight.  What siblings don't, particularly when they're younger?  But Teddy looks out for Pete, tries to protect him, plays games with him and gives him hugs.  He loves to teach his little brother things - pointing out numbers and letters of the alphabet, passing along his incredibly knowledge of Pokemon (which Pete just laps up), reading to him and explaining things to him.  He's a fantastic little brother.

But regardless of how much bigger he's getting, how much older he is, he's still my baby.  He still snuggles up with his Bodie (the body pillow that my step-mom made for him when he was a baby), Piplup (his favorite stuffed Pokemon) and needs to be covered by his Backyardigans blanket.  I love to watch him sleep so peacefully, remembering the baby that he once was.

Peter turned 3 in September.  He alternately makes me laugh and fills me with dread - my boy is a daredevil!  He'll climb anything, run as fast as he can and dart through small spaces.  He's given me more than one heart attack.  The laughter, though, is what makes my day.  He loves to say silly things or make silly faces.  And he's at the age where he doesn't understand things as well, so he will say something that isn't quite right or make a comment to something I say and the way he does it is funny.  Like when his teacher told him to hold his horses, he told her he doesn't have any horses.  He loves to bring a smile to everyone's faces.

He's still Mommy's Boy.... well, until Daddy's home on the weekends.  Then it's "I want to sit next to Daddy! I want Daddy to get me out of my car seat!"  But that's ok, because the rest of the week, he's all about Mommy.  He gives wonderful hugs and kisses, snuggling in my lap with his thumb in his mouth and his plo (his name for his pillow) in his other arm.  He thinks I know everything, so I often hear, "Mommy, what dat?"  He's a sponge that wants to learn everything and wants Mommy to teach him.

His love of his big brother borders on hero worship.  Wherever Teddy is, Pete wants to be there.  He'll sit next to him and watch him play games on his DS.  He wants to go to League with Teddy so he can watch him play.  So often, he'll call out, "Teddy!  Come here!  I gotsta show you somedin!"  And honestly, he couldn't have a better role model.  Though, I'm sad to say, he has his brother's and his mother's temper as well, hitting either of us when he gets angry.  But he always apologies to either of us when he does it.  Because he knows that it's right.  And he doesn't want Teddy mad at him because he might not play Pokemon Battle with him!

While he's following in Teddy's footsteps by loving Pokemon, his real passion right now is dinosaurs.  He wants me to turn on shows about dinosaurs (Dino Squad on Netflix and Dinosaur Train on PBS are his two favorites).  He pretends to be a "twitedatop" (triceratops) and a T-rex and asks me or Teddy to be another dinosaur.  He has dinosaur books that he loves to read and any time he sees anything with a dinosaur, he has to point it out.  It's a good thing to be into at 3.

Like his brother, Peter will always be my baby.  I'll always remember holding him in my arms, keeping him close to my body as he slept.  I'll always remember moments like the one above, thumb in his mouth and his ploes keeping him company.  I'll always remember the "Mommy, help" moments.  Right now, he argues with me every time I call him "baby".  He's not a baby, he's a boy, he'll emphatically insist.  And yes, he is a boy.  With bumps and bruises and bug-bites.  But that doesn't make him any less my baby.  And that is something that will never change.

Me and my boys