Being a parent is hard work

I know to those that are parents this is no news flash. I have been a parent for more than 10 years...it doesn't get easier. My boys are 10 1/2 and 8 (9 in Dec). And just when I thought that they were getting out of the be mean to your brother phase, it rears its ugly head again.

Benjamin is the younger of the 2 boys and he knows exactly how to puch the buttons of his more sensative older brother. Now pushing these button used to cause Jackson (the older) to attack Benjamin physically. Obviously not ok at any time to attack someone...so Jackson would get in trouble for attacking and Benjmain would be hurt but not in trouble. As a parent, you have to deal with the most inappropriate behavior first (and the one that causes phiscal harm qualifies as that). Anyway, as we became more savvy parents, we caught on to the game that was played by Benjamin. It helps that Jackson has calmed down quite a bit and very, very rarely attacks his brother anymore. So noe, Benjamin gets in much more trouble than his older brother....come to think of it, it was this age that Jackson was getting into so much trouble. Maybe there is hope for all of us!!!!

Anyway, Benjamin is also a drama king. He is very strong and very tough for his age. Excpet when his brother does naything al all to him...like touch him. Last night we were out buying new soccer cleats for Benjamin. He was testing them out in the store and ran from the carpet to the hardwood sales area. As you might have guess....SLIP.... right on to his bottom. Now this wasn't a simple slip and fall. He was running full speed and when I turned around to tell him to stop before he got onto the hardwood...too late. When I turned he was mid-air about level with my stomach. I am 6' tall so you do the math. WHAM...right on his bottom. Gina and I held out breath for a minute and when he smiled, we let out a sigh and started to laugh with him. This coupled with the fact that as a soccer player and an attacker at that, he gets knocked down and tackled all the time. He pops back up and keeps going. However, if Jackson shoves him or grabs him, the shrill he lets out you would think that Jackson has actually pulled his arm out of the socket or he was shoved into a glass window.

Luckily, we don't let him get away with this much. It is hard as a parent to discern what is real and what is not. We tell him the story of the boy who cried wolf and such in hopes that he gets it, but only time will tell.