Sisters

We always expected that Sam's transition from being an only child, to a big sister, would be challenging. So we were pleasantly surprised when, in the first few weeks, Sam seemed only enamored with baby Nina. "Maybe this isn't going to be so bad after all," we thought.

We've now realized that there is a certain honeymoon period in the evolution of sibling-hood. And now, reality has set in.

I'm not saying it's all rocky at this point, but it's certainly got its challenges. I like to refer to Sam's interactions with Nina as "aggressive affection." My mom, who was visiting last week, had another good description: "smothering mothering." Let's just say that Nina gets a LOT of hugs and kisses, and lots of headfuls of curls in her face, and that sometimes that affection gets a little overabundant. Sam has also found ways to sometimes incorporate Nina's name into songs in perhaps not the most positive way, i.e., (to the tune of itsy bitsy spider): "...down came the rain, and WASHED the Nina out!" You have to hand it to her, she's clever!

Still, though, recognizing the massive shift in family dynamics that Sammy has had to experience in the past few months, she is doing remarkably well. She's certainly not one to ever ignore Nina, and she's still always quick to let us know when Nina is crying, or to bring toys or blankets to Nina. Her affectionate name for Nina is "Nina-bo-Bina," and, at school the other day, she got to make a Valentine for a selected friend or family member. You can imagine how happy I was to see this in her cubby:

Maybe we're turning a corner?