My boys have a love hate relationship, they are just close enough in age to like of some the same things, but just far apart to be competitive about everything. 

I grew up with brothers, I watched them fight and make up, but I don’t remember it being quite so drastic. every.single.day.

My boys ask about each other first thing every morning without fail. They want to be together, but when they are… well it is a volatile situation.

The older one wants to be in charge, he’s convinced that since he is the oldest he should pick the game, make the rules, and always have the best toys.

His younger brother doesn’t agree.

The younger one is feisty, he has been known to sneak out of the room and attempt to flush his brother’s favorite stuffed bear down the toilet for no apparent reason.

I wonder if punching is how brothers communicate, it wasn’t how I communicated with my brothers (but then again I’m a girl) and it isn’t how my boys communicate with their younger sister.

They can go from mercilessly beating up on each other one second to doting on their sister together the next.

It seems like they have to compete over everything no matter how idiotic the topic/item/situation may be.

Many of the conversations go like this “YOU CAN’T HAVE IT ALL TO YOURSELF!”

Looking out for number one seems to be a big part of learning to live with a brother.

But sometimes they get along great.

I’ve walked in on them having a conversation about how they have the “best brother in the whole world” more than once.

They love to imagine, hide, and gang up on their parents together.

They greet each other after school with a GIANT hug (seriously the entire elementary school can’t help but watch them), they remind me constantly that “Mom ____ would like this too!”, and they love to spend hours together playing superheroes, Harry Potter, and dinosaurs.

Maybe part of being a brother is learning to work things out the hard way.

Maybe there’s something to going from punching someone in the stomach one minute and hugging them the next.

Whatever the reason for the insanity and screaming it is interesting and educational for the rest of us.