HIS BIG SISTER

On Friday when I came home from work and pulled into the driveway, the first thing I heard was Lula's voice exclaiming delightedly over the most recent delivery of baby gear: a box of clothes and other items from Joedy's parents and a car seat and bassinet from my parents.

I walked up the short flagstone path to the front door, which was open, and stepped into a colorful mess of empty packaging, clothes, blankets, the partially-assembled bassinet, teddy bears, wrapping paper, a dog or two, and, in the middle of it all, Lula.

"Look, Maman, look, Joedy! This one has cars on it! This one is awfully cool!"

She held a t-shirt up to show us, then waded through the disarray to the couch, where a stack of clothes was steadily growing. I dropped my backpack to the floor and sank down next to the clothes and Lapis, who was testing a soft blue blanket for its nap-ability, and I spent the whole evening sitting there, watching Lula express her obvious happiness at getting a little brother.

When the excitement of presents (even these practical, not-for-her presents were "so great!") wore off and it got close to bedtime, she gathered a few of the new teddy bears and began to dress them in Malko's clothes; when she'd covered every possible inch of their furry bodies in unmatched and totally ridiculous outfits, she nestled them in the car seat and draped a sheet over them, heads and all. It looked a little morbid to me, but I could see her point: now they could chew--and swallow!--their entire stash of suspiciously damp, dog hair-embellished Bubble Tape in peace, without fear of detection by The Parents.

"Baby, baby" she murmured in a low voice, rocking the car seat and its shrouded occupants, and I was struck by the sweetness in my little girl--my little girl who has been so car/truck/plane/train-oriented, only slightly interested in dolls and only slightly more interested in stuffed animals: she'd play with them in the past, but rarely would they so clearly take on the role of "her charges." It was fun and very touching to witness this display of affection towards the pretend babies, towards the baby brother she'll soon have, and it gave me a taste of the comfort most parents must get from knowing their children are close. It made me even more excited about Friday, when Lula and Malko will meet for the first time--when their relationship, their own special Lula-Malko relationship, will begin.

All weekend Lula displayed her happiness at the upcoming addition to our lives. She was cheerful, funny, animated, and helpful, and even tonight, when a massive organizing/laundry/cleaning operation was under way, and it became evident that "Malko has many more clothes" than she does, her noting of the fact was made without bitterness or resentment--it was just a simple disinterested statement of a fact (ok, maybe not totally disinterested). I'm sure some of the present good-naturedness she feels towards her sibling will wear off, like when her rock collection is turned into slingshot material or when she is beaten every. single. freaking. time. at gin rummy, but for now the horizon is rosy--any future sibling rivalry is far from sight.

Malko is lucky, because his big sister loves him already. Joedy and I are lucky too, for the same reason and many, many more.