Bonding Brothers
“Yali,” Puck sighed. “I won’t always be around to pick these things up for you. Don’t throw toys off your highchair.”
Yali just grinned. Huge dimply white teeth – not sure how they’re still that white – grin.
Saturday morning was going well. Puck had adopted the role of “big brother” exactly as I expected him to do. They were perfect together, like two puzzle pieces, peanut butter and jelly.
Friday night when Puck had bunked down across the room from his sleeping brother, he prayed the prayer he’s been praying for years.
“…and thank you for my baby brother in Colombia…” Pause. Giggle.
While I dumped out all the bags that morning and started about six loads of laundry, Oxbear took the boys shopping for things that you remember you need for two year-olds when you get a new two year-old.
This included a gate for the basement door, which included a mini swinging gate for Crackers. Problem is, once they installed it, we discovered that Yali could also fit through the cat gate. This was an unexpected dilemma.
We ended up running errands together, the four of us, that afternoon. The heat index was a little too high for the park, so we made a second trip to Menard’s for a new ceiling fan remote for our room – one of those models that doesn’t work without it.
On the drive, Yali took off his shoes and socks to smell his feet.
“Just like you do,” I told Puck. “You actually have more things in common than I thought.”
“Yeah,” Puck replied proudly, “we have a lot of commonarities.”
At Puck’s request, Oxbear switched on his playlist, which included a tune by the name of “Hooked on a Feeling”. Puck sang along until…
“I’m high on believin’ … that I’m in …” Puck stopped short. “I realized I just almost said something inappropriate for my age.”
“What?”
“Uh … in love with you?”
After the boys had been scrubbed clean for the night, there was a brief wrestle together as Yali threw himself over Puck’s back, giggling in complete happiness. Then he began smacking his lips, headed for Puck’s cheek.
“AHH! He’s trying to KISS ME!” Puck laughed.
Clearly he wouldn’t do well in France, either.