I always thought my 4 year old daughter and my 6 year old son would go at it the most, but it's the 18 month old, my daughter's own creation, that has come back to bite her in the butt, literally. For the first year and a half of his life, he watched as she pushed, poked, and pulled from her older brother. He watched and learned and then took it to a higher level and today...he pulled a Brad Pitt.
I don't mean the suave Brad Pitt in Oceans Eleven, or the sexy secret assassin Brad Pitt in Mr and Mrs Smith, well, after the moves I saw today, maybe some day. He was the no holds barred, I got you were I want you, I'm gonna win or get messed up in the process, blood is my friend and pain is inspiration Brad Pitt in Fight Club.
It started over a mop, a plain old kitchen mop and it ended in my son grabbing on with one hand to the locked stove door handle while death gripping the mop, while my 4 year old, who is about 10 inches taller and 20 lbs heavier grabbed, with a blood curling scream at the other end. At one point, John laid on his back, wrapped his legs around the mop and hung on like a monkey to a branch that held the last stack of bananas in the world.
And what did I do?
Watched and snickered to myself.
Of course, I made sure know one got hurt, but I let them duke it out. And in my head, over the screams and cries of desperation, the scratches and the pushes, I secretly wanted to get out my video camera and tape it to show my husband who missed this entire production while taking out the trash, or blur their faces and secretly post it to you tube. In my motherhood desperation, I laughed and thought, I remember these days, my sister and I used to fight like cats and dogs. And as I looked at my 18 month old son, giving my little princess tomboy a serious, and I repeat, serious run for her money, I thought these are the moments that build character, these are the things that get you to fight back and not take anyone's crap, even if it is from your 4 year old sister.
Is it bad for me to take sides?
That is an interesting perspective. My 4.5 and 2.5 yr old really go at it sometimes and I probably get involved more than I should. Fighting between siblings is normal and maybe I should let it take its course sometimes!
ReplyDeleteif indeed that is the case then I did a lotta character building for my little brother growing up!!
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