It Takes a CRAZY Village...

Yesterday my two boys (ages 3 and 5) heard they were soon going to have a baby brother and they immediately took their job as older brothers VERY seriously. They both began telling me EVERYTHING they planned to teach the new Cole boy in order to make him as cool as they were (in their own words that is!).

Judah was jumping up and down with excitement, “I can teach him how to swim, climb trees, and how to jump…and blow…and how to clean his hands!! “

Gideon would NOT be out-done by his little brother and quickly interrupted with his own list of talents, “I can teach him how to ride bikes and swing from the hammock with just your hands and how to jump like a frog!”

The war was on.

Judah shouted even louder, “Yeah, and I’ll show him how to shower…or take a bath and how to put on underwear and super-hero costumes!”

“And I will teach him everything!!”  Gideon grinned and went on, “I’ll teach him how to wear goggles in the water, how to brush his teeth to get all the bad germs, how to eat a popsicle…”

And on and on…and on it went!  I actually enjoyed listening to them share the joy of being big brothers together.  It also made me reflect on how each one of our children is unique and different BECAUSE of the influence of their siblings.

For example, I’m quite sure EvaLee wouldn’t have asked for help to get into a Spiderman costume the other day or strut around wearing a clip-on tie if it weren’t for seeing the “big boys” do it first!  

They are also the reason she does an extra twirl when she is wearing her pink princess pajamas, she knows Judah always comments, “Wow, look at how PRETTY EvaLee is!”  when she does.  EvaLee has an extra bounce in her step because of her proud older brothers.

I don’t think Gideon would have put on such a brave face last week when he underwent numerous test at the doctor if it weren’t for his younger brother standing by his side the entire time, carefully watching Gideon for his every reaction.  Gideon is a little stronger because of Judah.

I know Judah is more gentle because of Gabby, his youngest sister.  He is naturally a little rough n’ tumble dude but when he sees that dimpled little girl toddle into the room, he (in his own words), “takes it down a nut” and saves the karate-moves for another time.  He’s also become quite a little show-man for the simple fact that his two sisters will giggle themselves to oblivion over his antics.  Judah is more gentler and more full of joy because of his sisters.

And I’m positive our baby, Gabby, would not point excitedly downstairs (the usual location of all her siblings) the moment she wakes up from her nap, anxious to check out the action.  She would definitely be a little more bored without each one of them, after all, you can only play “patty-cake” and “tummy-tickles” with Mommy so many times before it starts to get a bit old!  Gabby is more enthusiastic about life because of her older siblings.

I was so focused on what I would be teaching our children when we first found out we were expecting a baby, that I never paused to consider what they would one day teach eachother.  I’ve heard it takes a village to raise a child and some days, it seems like a CRAZY village around here…but I am quite sure each one of my children would not have the depth of character or their special personality traits if it weren’t for the relationships they have with each other.  I think it takes a village of FAMILY to raise a child…even if that village is a little crazy sometimes, we are all better for it!

Afterall, what would a kid do if he didn’t have a big brother to teach him how to jump like a frog or wear goggles underwater!?  Those are some of the things I hadn’t planned on teaching him…but thankfully, someone else in the village here has it covered!