Security is having a big brother.
Peanuts
For 11 years, Joshua was an only child. Of course, I’d wanted to give him a brother or sister, as I had wanted to have at least 2-3 children. However, it didn’t turn out as expected as I had difficulty conceiving. So he got to enjoy my full attention for his first 11 years.
When Kaitlyn joined our family, despite all the talks with Joshua about what to expect, he was still very tiptoe-y around her. He commented how small she was, how she couldn’t sit up straight, and how loudly she cried.
He had never been around very small children, or babies for that matter, so I couldn’t really blame him. With encouragement, he soon carried her while he was seated on the sofa, but that lasted about only 10 seconds. Kaitlyn was wriggly and couldn’t sit still!
As Kaitlyn started to crawl, I would ask Joshua to watch her in case she wandered out of the play area. One day I caught him crawling alongside her in a race. Kaitlyn was thrilled with the company and kept smiling as she crawled faster to catch up with her big brother.
As time went on, Joshua began to warm up to his brotherly role and got more confident in carrying his little sister around. He would help to carry her out of her crib, or to place her in it. He even helped to give the milk bottle to her. What tickled me was when I heard him echoing what I usually say to Kaitlyn:
No playing…drink your milk properly!
He even came along to the clinic when Kaitlyn was getting her shots and distracted her when the doctor was administering the injection. He then comforted her when she cried after the shot.
I recall a time when I was feeding Kaitlyn and had to step away for a while; Joshua actually took her bowl and sat down to feed her without me having to ask him to. That was a really sweet moment for me as I saw this new side to him: a loving big brother.
When Kaitlyn started to walk, the home front became her playground and exploration grounds. One room she loved venturing to was Joshua’s. She would call “Kor Kor” and knock on his door. When she entered, she’d ask to be carried up onto his platform bed to play with his soft toys.
One morning, I was preparing her breakfast and turned to find Kaitlyn not with me. I asked the family if she was with any of them, all said no. We started looking in every room, even the bathrooms… then lo and behold, we found her seated comfortably on Joshua’s bed.
No one had placed her there!
There she was, surrounded by the soft toys and looking very pleased about herself. That’s when we realised that she had skilfully climbed up the bed all on her own!
What warms my heart is when I see them playing together. Joshua is at the age where he’s not a little boy, nor a teen. To see him playing with Kaitlyn on the play mat, whether it is with her toys, or creating a fort out of blankets, is a really cherished moment. Even at the playground, when Kaitlyn was trying out her new scooter, he was watching over her as she rode.
Kaitlyn adores Joshua and always gets excited when he comes home from school. She would call out “Kor Kor!” with glee and smile so sweetly. In fact, Kor Kor was one of the first few words she said. He would get all silly sometimes, and Kaitlyn would burst into laughter. With such an enthusiastic audience, it’s no wonder Joshua gladly makes a fool of himself just to get Kaitlyn to laugh.
I am so proud of Joshua taking on his big brother role with such devotion. To see them building this brother-sister bond is one of the best gifts a mother could ask for. I only pray that Joshua will continue to be the loving, caring and protective brother that he is, and how blessed Kaitlyn is to have him.
I smile because you are my brother; I laugh because there is nothing you can do about it!
Unknown
