Siblings

Before Matthew was born, we read Alyssa and Jackson books about being a big sister/brother and babies. I worried a bit because in some of the books, the sibling was resentful of the baby. I'd heard countless stories about older siblings asking when the baby was going back.

We didn't experience resentment issues when Jackson was born, but we attributed it to the fact that Alyssa was still so little (19 months).  When Matthew arrived, Alyssa was 4 and Jackson was over 2 1/2.  We were a little concerned because they were old enough to resent this new being creating havoc in our lives.  But Alyssa was over the moon for her baby brother before he was born.  Each night before bed she would kiss my belly.  The moment she saw him just hours after he was born, she was beyond in love.  And though Jackson wasn't as affectionate at first, he never showed resentment for Matthew.  Just the opposite....when Alyssa or Jackson get mad at us, their typical statement is "I don't like anyone, except for Matthew."  Matthew is lucky to always have Alyssa and Jackson on his side.

The last almost 10 months Alyssa and Jackson have had to endure the normal baby annoyances like "Shhhh.  The baby is sleeping", "No, we can't go yet because Matthew needs to eat (or I need to pump)."  And they've endured changes to their schedule (Matthew and I have spent 20 nights in the hospital) and seen their little brother look scary (102 stitches across his head). Through it all, they have never shown resentment or asked to return our sweet baby boy.  I'm so thankful! 

In my heart I know Alyssa and Jackson will be better people because Matthew is their brother, but I fear it may challenge them at times.  I pray that they are always his biggest supporters!