So Much for Kissing Cousins

My sister came up to visit this weekend and the kids didn't play together anywhere near as nicely as the weekend before.  That weekend must've been just a fluke because they were right back to pushing, shoving, yelling, taking things from one another, not sharing... sigh.  As unfair as it may be, my nephew gets most of the blame simply cause he's older and should know better... but Punky had her fair share of not-so-angellic moments.

And I suddenly felt like my mother as I spouted some classic mom-isms without any thought or hesitation.

"If you can't share and play nice with that toy, I'm taking it and neither of you can play with it!"

"Give me that!  You're gonna poke your eye out with that thing!" 

"You're gonna get hurt! Settle down before you fall and bust your face!"

"No shoving your little cousin!"

"No hitting your big cousin!"

"No yelling!"

"No pulling more toys out until you clean up some of these!"

"Put that down! It's not a toy!"

"Leave the bedroom door open!"

"Get down now! No jumping on the bed!"

They were jumping on the little cot in Punky's room.  I know she can climb up on it herself, but only if the mattress is pushed back and the bed isn't made so she can get her little knee up on the frame.  That wasn't the case so I think some little boy I know had a definite hand it getting her tiny hiney up there.  Thankfully they got caught before anyone fell off and broke something important... like a face, arm, leg...

After they left yesterday and silence was restored, Punky was exhausted a ready for a nap.  While we rocked, I thought about how different the dynamic is in the house when there is more than one kid. 

If I had another, I would have years ahead of me exactly like this weekend.  And I'm not just talking bad behavior and discipline, but more about how hard it is to divide your time with two battling for your attention.  I know, moms everywhere do it with much more than two, but part of me feels like I would be neglecting Punky and I never want her to feel that way.  I don't see it ever being an issue for us anyway; as of now we have decided not to have any more... as much as I'd love to experience it all again... 

But it will be an issue for my sister.  Shortly.  She is twenty six weeks pregnant and my neice will arrive via planned induction (due to medical reasons) in the third week of May.  Yeah, that's right, I said neice.  A few months ago I mentioned I was going to have a new neice or nephew come spring, but I never followed up with which it would be...