Little Brother to the Rescue

Brushing my 7 year old daughter’s long, fine, naturally curly hair each morning is easily the worst moment of the day. For us both.

Add the rush of getting ready for school, and it only increases the adrenaline and adds an additional layer of stress (and therefore drama) to the scene.

She prefers me to comb it out, versus her father. I remember the days of knots at the base of my neck, and how painful it can be to comb out long, tangled hair. So I douse her with de-tangle spray, and try to take my time.

But tug too firmly just once, and she correspondingly kicks the drama up a notch and really starts to holler. There was even a stray tear out of her right eye on this particular morning.

As her protests increased in intensity and volume, even her baby brother toddled in to the bathroom to investigate the ruckus.

Natural empathy and an inborn tendency to imitate his older sibling combined in him, and he aligned himself next to this poor, tortured sister. He scrunched his face into a similarly pained expression, grabbed a little handful of his own hair, and started mimicking her, shouting “Oww!  Oww! OOOOWWW…!!! “.

It was funny and sweet, and enough to break the Meltdown Cycle his sister was experiencing… even getting her to stop the fit and start giggling instead. Little brother to the rescue!

And yes, she successfully taught him that this is what you do when your mom combs your hair.

Now I get it from the 1 year old, too – every time I comb out his (short and virtually tangle-free hair) hair:  “Oww!  Oww! OOOOWWW…!!! ”

*o*     *o*     *o*

Do you have sibling imitation going on in your household?  Does it end up being a force for good, or bad?  Or like us, a little of both?  🙂