Brothers

Ever since I started showing, we have been trying to prepare James for being a big brother. We talked about the baby in my belly all the time and that he would come out someday and live in our house. We bought a baby doll that we called "baby brother" and we practiced being soft with it. James took to it right away! He would carry it around the house and wanted it next to him while we read stories at night. I bought several books about being a big brother and having a baby in the house and we read them over and over. I wasn't sure how much he understood, but I was pretty sure that he was as prepared as a 2 1/2 year old could be. 

I think all that preparation paid off because ever since Everett was born, James has been absolutely wonderful with him! James doesn't really like to give kisses and hugs normally, but he absolutely loves giving Everett kisses! He thinks all the noises that Everett makes are so funny, especially if he burps or passes gas :) If James hears it, he will laugh out loud and shout, "He tooted!!" He is always very concerned if the baby is crying and wants to go over to him and pet him and put his pacifier in.

This particular afternoon, James told us that he wanted to hold baby brother, so we set him up on the couch. He loved it!

James loves helping us do anything with the baby. When I am changing his diaper Everett usually cries and James will climb up on the bed next to him and try to give him his pacifier. It is amazing to see how immediately James has accepted him as his brother and as a part of the family. So far there hasn't seemed to be much jealousy, only a few instances where he demanded that the person holding Everett be the person that gets him milk/reads him stories, etc... Funny enough, he seems to be totally fine that he has to share his mommy and daddy with Everett now, but definitely doesn't like the idea that he has to share his Grandma!

We all went to the grocery store yesterday and while I was putting Everett in the wrap so I could carry him on my chest, my mom waited by the trunk of the car with James. An older couple walked by and James exclaimed to them, "I have a baby brother!". They laughed and told him that they could see that. James responded, "I'm a big boy!!". They smiled and said he was. James came back with, "I get cookies!" (he was excited about getting the free one from the grocery store). It really is adorable to see how excited James is about having Everett around. I can't wait to see how their relationship develops!