Sisters

When Steve and I found out about a year ago that Caitlin was on her way, our biggest concern was how Brigid was going to handle the changes in her life. Not only was she our only child, but she was the family's only child. She'd never had to share attention with anyone before, because she was the baby, full stop.

So, we made a big deal about how awesome it was going to be, having a baby sister. We talked about all of the things she could do as the big sister that the baby wouldn't be able to do, since she would be too little. We bought books, and t-shirts, and all kinds of 'yay! sisters are fun!' propaganda. We let her come to the hospital, where they gave her a bracelet just like the ones that Steve and I and the baby were all wearing, because we all belonged together.

Caitlin gave her a soccer ball at the hospital.

I don't know if any of these things worked. I don't know if maybe Brigid was just destined to be a great big sister to someone. I don't know if she's totally just manipulating us to get more candy for being so darn sweet. But this kid? She LOVES her baby sister.

I don't always get a kiss goodnight, but Caitlin does. Sure, Brigid is happy to see me when I pick her up from school, but who gets the big announcement when we walk in? Who does Brigid make her teachers come say hi to EVERY SINGLE TIME? HER baby Caitlin.

Brigid brings me the bags I use to throw away Caitlin's dirty diapers. She picks out Caitlin's sleepers every night. She helps me brush Caitlin's hair. If Caitlin starts fussing, Brigid gives her a toy to help make her feel better.

She gets SO excited when Caitlin is awake. 'Her looking at me, mommy! Her so cute.'

She comes up to us when I'm holding Caitlin, pats her head, and looks at me so seriously, 'I 'ove her mommy. I 'ove her so much.'
I know that things won't necessarily stay this way forever. I know that part of the reason Brigid likes Caitlin is because people keep buying toys for Caitlin that Brigid takes to her room to 'hold onto until Caitlin gets older'. When Caitlin does get old enough to play with toys, we'll have a whole additional level of sister interaction/competition that we'll have to navigate. And I also know that there is a very good chance that even the toy conflict will seem like nothing when compared to the teenaged years that might be hell.
But I'm not going to worry about that right now. We'll deal with those issues as they arise. Right now, I'm going to focus on the fact that these two girls? I love them more than I ever thought was possible.

I am a lucky, lucky individual.