I have two boys. I have two very energetic, bouncy boys. They are 3 and 15 months now. I think they like each other. I think they might even be a bit fond of each other. However recently the horse play between them has been taken to a whole new level of horse, um, play.
Months and months ago Littler Boy would pull Big Boy’s hair. Not out of spite (I don’t think). He just didn’t know what he was doing. Big Boy wouldn’t do anything and would just cry. We *ahem* encouraged Big Boy to gently nudge Littler Boy away and say no. It worked, for a while. Then the nudges became pushes and the pushes became actual punches. We obviously kicked ourselves and tried to rein it in a bit. No fighting allowed Boys, lets all be lovely to each other. Who the heck was I kidding? As Littler Boy has got bigger he now torments Big Boy and goads him into retaliating in some masochistic attention seeking ritual! If anyone had told me my 15 month old would be able to pick a fight with a 3 year old I would have laughed in your face, but he does!
So now we have punching, kicking, dive bombing, pushing, lifting, bundling and rolling. Our only saving grace so far is that there has been no scratching or biting. Because that’s just not honourable between two brothers fighting is it? Big Boy’s favourite trick is to drag Littler Boy around the floor by the foot of his sleep suit. Littler Boy’s goading technique involves sitting directly on top of his big brother while he is in the middle of playing with a toy/drawing/watching something. I know they are boys and I know it is to be expected but so soon? I’ve got how many years of this to come? As they grow I can see that extra curricular activities will surely become our allies in taking the fight out of these brothers in arms!
