I Couldn't Love Him More

Seriously, folks, Will is an amazing big brother. He really seems to care about his sister and if she is happy, sad, etc. When she cries, he is quick with a, "Why you cryin', Emma Drace?" (He rarely calls her just Emma. It's always her full name, with his very own pronounciation. Of course, M and I have taken to also calling her "Emma Drace," so it's her nickname of sorts.)

He has had his adjustment phases to be sure, don't think I am glossing over the tantrums, bedtime refusals, and general toddlerishness. But overall, I couldn't have asked for more from a little person who is really little more than a baby himself. When it comes to "Emma Drace," he is all sweetness and light. He protects her from overzealous friends and tries to make her happy when she is sad.

This morning yielded a precious (and yet, kinda gross) story that exemplifies the type of brother he is.

Emma had woken up super early this morning (the 4 month sleep regression has arrived in our house with a vengeance) and needed a nap around the time that Will woke up. I am not doing CIO here yet, but when both kids need something, I triage parent, which meant that I had just put Emma down in her bassinet when Will woke up. So, I left her, to see what a few minutes of grumbling would do while I tended to him.

I changed his diaper, put him in some sweatpants and a t-shirt, and set him down while I tidied his room a bit. He ran from the room. We have a gate that locks at the top of the stairs, so I knew he couldn't get far. Emma stopped crying, so I took a few more minutes to change his diaper pail. Then, I suddenly realized, it was too quiet.

I went in search of my son. . . and found him. He was by the bassinet, feeding Emma a bottle. While he fed her the bottle, he quietly said, "There, there, Emma Drace, it's okay. Stop crying."

I stopped for a second to appreciate the scene before me. . . and then I realized that the bottle that my son was feeding my daughter? It was the last ounce of a bottle I had given her before bed last night and then set on the nightstand and forgotten about. Yeah, "Emma Drace" was chugging down 12-hour-old formula. Ewwwww.

She's fine, btw.

But how cute and sweet is that? He has learned our family motto: Food makes you happy. And he's applying it to help his sister.

What a brother.