Sisters

When we first found out that Elodie was indeed a girl and not a boy, I think I was the only one in the family who was secretly elated. I always thought I wanted a hoard of boys when I was younger, but after having a girl who thinks its fun to dress up, put toys where they belong, and help me sweep I was terrified to have a boy who would want to play with bugs and jump on my furniture. Plus, I was so excited for Britta to have a sister close in age to her.

I was worried, however, that Britta would have a terrible time adjusting to the new baby. She was the poster child for "only child syndrome." Everything was "mine" and even her cousins couldn't sit on my lap without a meltdown. People would ask me if I thought she understood that we were having a baby and to be honest I wasn't sure. She kept saying that baby sister was in her tummy. And let's be honest, the concept of a person growing inside of me was mind blowing for me to comprehend at times, so let's think about it from a two year old's perspective. Add to that the stories of my older sister loathing my brother as a baby and continually asking my mom when they could "take that baby back to the hospital" and I was convinced we were in for a rocky ride.

When Britta showed up at the hospital the day Elodie was born, she came right in all smiles and wanted to hold the baby and show her the stuffed giraffe she had brought for her (courtesy of my sister in law). She was enamored and has been to this day. Every morning the first thing she asks is where her baby is. She squeals with delight any time the baby makes a noise--in fact at the hospital she kept asking her great grandma to make the baby cry so she could hear her (sounds mean, but it wasn't). When we went to have newborn pictures taken, she kept telling the photographer we wanted our baby back, as she does when anyone other than Chris or I holds her for too long. All in all, I could not have asked for a smoother transition. She loves to give the baby her binkie and help in any way I ask. She especially likes to watch me feed the baby from my "tiny horns" (her words, not mine). She was even caught trying out the breast pump last week.

Sisters from Erika Herman on Vimeo.