What a big brother does...

Hmmm... What do big brother's do for their little sister? Well, it depends on the big brother. If it is Zak, our 15 year old, then it involves good mornings, hellos, pats on the backs, occasional hugs, and kisses good night. I think at first Zak was not sure of what to do with this little girl who has come into our home. He has since warmed up nicely to her, even to the point of sharing his guitar with Anna Lin. (OK, so she made it known that he would share the guitar with her. But she didn't just want him to hold it while she strummed, AL wanted him to strum too.) It just so happens that now AL has her own guitar. Or, at least she thinks that. :-) She liked for Zak to hold his string instrument like a lap guitar while she plucked and strummed. (Reminded me of a zither and I believe its called a guzheng in China. This is a long, 3 -4 ft, instrument usually placed on a special platform to play.) Well, while in Toys R Us today we found a small lap harp which Anna Lin fell in love with. ...And of course we just 'had' to buy it. She plucked that harp all the way home, grinning from ear to ear all the while jabbering about how she had a guitar like Zak now and she was going to show Zak her guitar. (OK, now this wasn't all in English, but I could get the gist of the point from hearing lots of 'wu' (I or me), Zak, guitar and lots of giggles of glee.

One of the reasons we went to Toys R Us today was because one of AL's big brothers. Number two son Spencer has a CD player that he takes with him every time he's in the car. About a week ago, he decided to show her what it was and shared his ear buds (ear phones) with her. Yeah, here they were sitting next to each other with one of them holding the player and the ear buds stretched out between them. (Where was that camera when I needed it!) So, we went to the store to get a CD player for The Princess. (...because while I love my son, his teenage angst music now-a-days called Emo for emotion, is just not what I would like the little miss to be listening to.) Well, not a problem. We found a Hello Kitty portable CD player that has worked out quite nicely. After we came home she listened to it all afternoon. (Sometimes while playing her lap harp.) She listened to music and then to a "Five Little Monkeys" CD that came with a book Ms. Janet gave her. AL listened to it for hours, exclaiming "five monkeys," "five monkeys sleeping," and "five monkeys jumping" at various intervals while displaying numbers on her fingers.

What else does a big brother like Spencer do? He has gotten into a bad habit of picking on her: poking her, patting her on the head, taking her toys, anything to tease her and irritate her. (Hey wait a minute! That's what he does to us! OK he doesn't take my toys but he does take his dad's.) One of the especially fun tricks he is known to do consists of taking her little stroller and bear. Then he zooms around the house with her in hot pursuit. Last night he decided to stop the shenanigans when I got out the camera to get a shot. However, The Princess insisted. AL took his hands and put them on the stroller so he would push it with her. (Too cute!) He is now watching Little Bear with her while I'm typing. He does have the laptop with him, so he can multi-task. However, I have observed him watching some of the show too and smiling. :-)



So, what do you do if you are the big brother number three? Is there anything else you can do with the little sister? If you are Noah, then the answer is yes. Noah plays the most with her. He likes active and rough 'n' tumble play: building with blocks, playing with balls, wrestling around, and just being silly. When they are together they are usually loud (LOUD) and there are lots of thumps, plus lots of giggles. The other night he introduced a new kind of fun: hiding. He brought two blankets down and they wrapped them over their heads like hoods. Then the two of them ran around the house, occasionally opening up the blankets to see where they were going or to surprise anyone they ran past. At one point she picked up the laundry basket and ran around with that on her head. (Again too cute!)



What does a big brother do? If you are in our house, he gives you kisses, hugs, and pats on the head and back. He teases you, but you love it even when you put your hands on your hips and give him 'the look.' He introduces you to new 'toys' like CD players and guitars. He plays with you, teaching you hide n seek among other fun things to do. He also tells mom when you need something just in case you didn't hear.

- Angi