Brothers

Now that Evan is getting mobile, he can start to play with some of Benjamin's toys. Benjamin has had a mixed reaction to this. For the most part he tolerates it very well. Although he is not eager to share, he usually does not scream "mine" or react in any other hostile way. He typically moves away from Evan, and if Evan continues to pursue him, Benjamin will find Evan an alternative toy to play with. I've encouraged Benjamin to interact more with Evan. Sometimes this is not done out of the desire to foster their relationship, but to distract Evan when he is fussy and I need to get stuff done. The other day I asked Benjamin to show Evan some animals in a book and Benjamin replied, "I can't, I'm busy eating my grapes". I sure hope he didn't learn the "I'm busy" response from us!


Benjamin has also been very loving toward his brother at times. He has spontaneously hugged him and told him that he loves him. He has also told Evan "its okay" when Evan is upset. Benjamin has shown signs of looking out for Evan like a big brother should. When Evan kept dropping his toys in the car, Benjamin made sure we knew that we should install a gate to prevent this from happening. I'm not really sure how this would work, but the intent and concern was definitely felt. I can just tell that these two are going to be good friends and I look forward to seeing their relationship continue to develop.