Brothers!

Two year olds are unpredictable. Yes, they have their definite patterns and can be very particular about how they want things (warm milk in a sippy cup!), but in new situations, it's anybody's guess whether they will dive in, hold back, or run away screaming. We did our best to prepare Owen for baby brother by reading books, giving him his own baby doll, and talking about baby coming like it was part of our day to day life. But, we really didn't know what would happen when we brought Josh home.

Both Scott and I were hoping for curiosity and prepping for dis-interest and even dislike or frustration. I realize that we will probably go through those stages, and many others including jealousy, anger, and annoyance. However, the meeting of the brothers has been light-years better than we anticipated. That homecoming was possibly the most awesome parenting moment I have experienced.

Due to H1N1 restrictions, Owen wasn't allowed to visit the hospital, so Grandma had him waiting for us on the front porch when we got home. He ran to greet mom and dad (took a nice digger in the driveway in the process) and then Scott brought out the baby. Owen was so, so, so excited and kept saying "Hi baby, hi baby, hi baby" in a higher and higher voice as he got closer and closer to Josh. I think he would have climbed in the car seat if possible.
Right away, Owen wanted to hold the baby and carried on a running dialog of "Hi Baby, Baby Joshua, Hi Baby Josh..." He squealed in delight as Josh moved his arms and legs and even touched Owen's face - toddler bliss. Mommy delight.
We're doing our best to ease him into the big brother roll. Between daycare and outings with grandparents, he's only been home for a couple hours here and there. But when he is home, he continues to check in on the baby in between playing with his new Little People School Bus (a gift from baby brother) or new lego man from Grandma. Of course, we have a long road to go (and new movies ready to help with the transition), but I'm optimistic the excitement will dominate the jealousy in the long run...