Brotherly Love

I have come to realize that I live in a house full of boys. They are loud. They are busy. They move all the time. They eat constantly. I have begun making a big breakfast and giving two snacks a day to help fend off the perpetual question of, "What do you have for me, Mama?" This question is always in reference to food. Last week I made Staci's baked oatmeal recipe. It lasted four mornings. This was a 9 x 13 baking dish full of oatmeal!!!


Lately they have taken to a very primal form of communication. When Nathan is defending his "toy territory," he growls. Mark doesn't back away. Instead, he gives the "Mark-o-saurus" yell. It's a high-pitched scream that definitely answers the growl. Neither one is really intimidated by the other. They are each standing their ground.


So, I find myself realizing that I'd better pray often for brotherly love and peace. And I can be pleasantly surprised and count it as a blessing when they do actually get along. Like when I have them hug each other after a "fight." Those are sweet moments. Mark usually runs right up to Nathan and initiates it even when he's the one who has been wronged. (The photo below was staged. No fight precipitated this particular hug.)


I have to relate a funny conversation I had with Nathan last week. We had been to PetSmart on Thursday morning to visit the animals. That afternoon we were playing on my bed and waiting for Greg to come home. I told Nathan that Daddy was going to be glad to see his boys and his wife. Nathan said, "Mama, who is my wife?" I said, "Well, you don't have one yet but we will pray that God gives you a good one." He said," Well, they have some wonderful animals at the zoo, and one of them can be my wife." I asked him which animal he liked the most. "Well," he replied," I like the lion the best. The lion can be my wife."