"Baby... baby!!!"

It has become very clear to Mommy B and I over the last couple weeks that Alli really loves her little brother. Ever since we brought him home from the hospital, he's always been "baby" to her. As Aiden battles through his reflux, she often refers to him as "baby sad" - because we try to explain to her that when he's crying it means he's sad. Being the smart little lady that she is, this name as stuck pretty well with her. In an attempt to curb this so he's not forever known as "baby sad", we've corrected her by saying "baby bro". So now whenever she sees him, it's now "baby bo" (she's still working on her R pronunciation).

Followers might recall that Alli had a mini-meltdown when we took Scarlett in to get her nails trimmed a couple weekends ago. The sight of a stranger taking her doggy away was just too much and the flood gates opened up. I can't imagine how it's going to be when they take Scarlett away to that big dog park in the sky...

Anyway, last week I was getting them both out of the car to take them into school when one of Aiden's teachers walked by and offered to carry him in since he was still in his carrier. Having my hands full anyway, I kindly accepted her offer while I got their bags and whatnot out of the car. Alli started freaking out when she saw Ms. Velma walking away with her little brother. She started welling up, yelling "Baby! Baby!" and pointing to him as they walked away. It was the cutest thing I've ever seen!

First, Alli had the same teacher back when she started school - so it's not like Ms. Velma was a total stranger. Although, Alli was really young when she had her as a teacher, so she probably doesn't remember much from the blob-days... so I'll give her credit on that one. But we were walking in right after them, maybe 10 feet behind - and Alli was still having a fit. We walked in the front doors and there her brother was, safe and sound and at her eye-level, and she still cried. She cried all the way into his room until she saw me put him down and start unloading his things. Once she realized everything was OK, the water works stopped and she was set for the day.

Yesterday, Aiden woke from his nap a little grumpy... rightfully so being that his nose was filled with snot from his first bout of "daycare crud". Needless to say, this woke Alli up from her nap too - luckily it was about time for her to wake up anyway. As I was downstairs tending to the snot-factory, Mommy B was upstairs retrieving Alli from her room. When she walked in, Alli was standing in her crib, facing the door with a very concerned look on her face and started saying "Baby? Baby?!" Mommy B could tell she was genuinely worried about her little brother who was crying downstairs. Once she brought Alli down and she saw that Aiden was OK, she calmed down and settled in for an afternoon with Elmo in Grouchland on DVD.

This morning was no different. Aiden was throwing a little post-snot-sucking fit as I was putting Alli in the car. As I buckled her in, she realized that her little brother wasn't in the car next to her and she said "Baby? Baby?" as if to ask, "Isn't baby coming with us?" I told her that I had to run back inside to get him and that he'd be joining her shortly. She started to sob a little, but luckily I returned to the car with Aiden in hand before she had another meltdown. As soon as I buckled him in and climbed in the car, she was all giggles as she put on her cool-girl shades and began talking to her little brother.

Even though she's a girl, she's still the "big" sister and he'll always be her "little" brother. I can only hope that she'll continue to love her "baby bo" this much as they grow up.