Best friends, bitter rivals

The sibling relationship is fascinating. Maggie and Audrey are closer to each other than anyone else in the world, they share everything (including a bedroom, their toys, and even some clothes), and most of the time they get along amazingly well.

Of course, they also fight sometimes. But what really cracks me up are the casual asides each of them will drop from time to time.

More than once, Maggie has said, "I wish you had stopped having kids after me." Or, "What is that thing you call a kid when they don't have brothers or sisters? An only child? I wish I was an only child."

Audrey has started on a similar theme, though she feels more generous toward Jane. Once, she waltzed past me singing prettily, "I love Mommy, I love Daddy, I love Janey, but I don't love Maggie...." And the other day in the car, out of the blue she told me, "I wish our family was just Mom, Dad, Jane, and Audrey!"

Audrey has also been telling me that she wishes she were a baby, that she were younger than Jane, etc. At such times I take my cue and snug her up like a little baby, sing her a lullaby, and even put her in Jane's crib. She loves it.

Maggie doesn't like to be treated like a baby, but she loves for me to make her feel special in other ways. One night recently I told her that when she was a tiny baby, I loved her so much that I couldn't bear to be away from her, so I quit my fancy grown-up job just so I could stay home every day and hold her and watch her get big. She got the biggest, happiest smile on her face, and she told me "That makes me feel really good!" Makes me feel pretty good, too.