Sibling Rivalry

Yesterday my son remarked that he hated his sister. He’s all of three years old. My first reaction was to wonder where he heard that phrase. But I think he’s heading into the prime sibling rivalry years. He and his sister are 26 months apart, and now that she’s getting old enough to play with his toys, he’s had his fill of it. When she doesn’t get her way, she lets out a piercing scream.

But then, there are moments like last night when they were giggling and chasing each other around upstairs. Or the time when they each grabbed their respective blankets and snuggled into her bed and he pretended to read her a story. I think it’s very much a love-hate relationship. He adores having a sister, but not when she disrupts his things. She worships him as a role model but gets frustrated when she can’t keep up.

It’s fascinating to me, to watch them. My own relationship with my brother was very different. He had physical disabilities and my role was that of protector. It will be interesting to see how my children change and grow. I have a feeling they’ll be very close.

How about you? Were you close to your siblings when you were growing up?