Good Friends

Something exciting has been happening slowly over the past few months...Andres and Celia are enjoying each other's company more and fighting less. I'm tempted not to write about this in case I happen to jinx it.

This change in their relationship is seen in small vignettes throughout the day. Take today, for instance: Andres woke up first (in our bed, having snuck in unnoticed at some point last night) and, before doing anything else, said he wanted to go wake up Celia. So we walk in, she wakes up, and they proceed to tickle each other through the bars of her crib for a few minutes, each giggling and happy as can be.

Only a few months ago his most pressing concern upon awakening was how quickly he could watch Curious George; now he favors hanging out with Celia. It's quite a change. (Though full disclosure: Celia is beginning to fall in love with George and Thomas just as Andres seems to be moving through this phase.)

He has also taken on the role of "toothpaste supervisor" for his sister. This started a couple weeks back, when he innocently asked me if he could put the toothpaste on Celia's toothbrush. I said sure, thinking that this was a one-time request. Apparently Andres was asking about a more long-term arrangement, however, because ever since then he has been the designated toothpaste applier for Celia.

He takes this job very seriously. He usually gets her toothbrush ready before his own (both in the morning and before bed), and then delivers it to Celia carefully. "Here Celia," he usually says, barely above a whisper. "Day doo bru-dah!" (Thank you brother) she often replies.

Playing together can sometimes bring out their more natural/jungle sibling tendencies, and about once a night I am tempted to either put a giant partition in their room or setup a cot for one of them downstairs. This is normal for this age group, no? But these moments tend to pass more quickly now than they did in the spring and summer, revealing to me how difficult those months truly were. We're at a different place now and I hope it continues.

Tonight the kids spent some time playing with a big marble-track toy. It's a great toy because it teaches basic scientific ideas like gravity and momentum, and the parts are big enough that both Andres and Celia can put the pieces together.

I also hate this toy because, in my experience, playtime usually ends with the structure destroyed, parts strewn about the room, both kids in tears, and me shouting something like "WHY DO YOU THINK IT'S A GOOD IDEA TO EAT MARBLES?"

But it was (relatively) smooth sailing tonight. Andres and I (ok...mainly me; I really got into it) made the structure, and Andres and Celia took turns putting the marbles in the top and watching them travel all the way down. It was actually fun. And on those occasions where Celia almost broke the track or Andres wasn't sharing properly, armageddon was averted--they seemed to work things out, content to try to be friends rather than adversaries.



The video below ends with a marble rolling under the stove after the two have a minor disagreement about who legally owns the bag of marbles. It's worth noting that in the past, this has been the sort of event that would have triggered the crying, smashing, and parental yelling described above.



Andres tried some interesting methods of locating the lost marble, probably helped by his "strong muscles." Celia looked on and offered lots of encouragement.




We eventually found something thin enough to fit underneath the stove and used that to retrieve the marble...as well as some other lost goodies, like a few refrigerator magnets and an old crayon. Celia cried with glee.

Bathtime followed. They jumped in together, practiced swimming, and played a game where they splashed a lot and shrieked like banshees. Then it was bedtime, but not before the new toothbrushing ritual--Andres carefully preparing Celia's toothbrush, then gently handing it to her. Oh--and not before storytime either.

This has been an interesting development. The past couple of weeks, Andres has been reading bedtime stories to Celia (with Celia's full approval). Most nights they can agree on a book or two to read; they hop into his bed together, snuggle up under the covers, and Andres does his best to tell the story. Some nights he will read one book while she looks at a different one. And other nights Celia wants to hold the book while Andres reads it, which never seems to work out. Those nights usually end with either me or Natalia jumping in and reading to both parties.

Tonight, Andres read a couple of classics. Note his Elmo voice.



I am under no illusion that this phase will last forever. But I'll enjoy it while it lasts. And perhaps one day in the future I can use this post as evidence that, at one point, they truly did enjoy each other's company.