Hellobee

We’ve been very surprised by how much Lion and Panda play together! Although we wanted them close in age in the hopes that they would have a tight sibling bond, we thought that it would take time for Panda to get to an age where Lion would be interested. Lion took an immediate interest in his little brother, though, and has been showering him with toys since birth.

Lion loves to cover Panda with small toys. Here he is at two months. I promise he was enjoying it much more than expression lets on.

While Lion has always wanted to play with Panda, in the last couple of months we have seen a lot more interaction on both sides. It’s amazing to us that a twenty-three-month-old and a five-month-old, who are really at very different developmental phases, can have such a great time together. Earlier on, we thought that Panda was simply tolerating his older brother when Lion would cover him with toys or force him to kick a ball. Lately, though, they have been very interactive and it is clear that Panda is enjoying their playtime just as much as Lion! Here are some of the ways they play together.

Playing with trains: One of the toys Lion plays with every weekend is his Thomas trains and tracks. He often wants Panda to play with him, though obviously Panda doesn’t understand how to put the tracks together or how to push the trains on the tracks. They seem to have found a compromise with Lion building a track around Panda; Lion will push the trains around while Panda gnaws on an extra piece of track.

Apparently, the tiger was the train’s conductor and drove the train to the farm. Or so Lion tells me.

Peek-a-boo: Lion is still at an age where he finds peek-a-boo to be a fun game. He loves to “hide” underneath a blanket or behind a curtain and enjoys hiding his little brother under blankets, too. He will call out “peek-boo” when he covers Panda up. Panda really started enjoying this game at around four months and squeals with delight when they play this game. Sometimes Lion doesn’t get Panda fully hidden under a blanket, but that doesn’t seem to deter their fun.

Trying to hide Panda underneath the blanket he’s currently laying on top of isn’t very successful…

Hiding in a fort: What child doesn’t like to play in a fort or tent? Whenever we’ve built one for Lion, he insists “Panda come too!” One of the easiest ones we’ve done is placing both kids in Lion’s crib and throwing a quilt over the top. In the last two weeks, Panda’s been generally sitting very well independently (we usually still put a nursing pillow around him, just in case; Lion was still falling over at eight months, so I’m a bit nervous leaving Panda without a safety net) which makes this game a lot easier for them to play together. When Mr. Dolphin or I peek underneath the quilt, we usually get scolded by Lion because he wants to share this special world with Panda alone. They often get into shrieking wars while in the fort, with Panda initiating the shrieks, Lion copying his brother, then Panda dissolving into laughter followed by more shrieking. This game gets loud but I really don’t mind when I hear the two of them enjoying their time together so much.

Hanging out together in the fort, sharing the flashlight. I managed to sneak this photo in about three seconds before Lion noticed, started saying “No, pictures Mama!” and pushed my camera away.

Jumping around: Panda’s not one for the Jumperoo, but occasionally we’ll test it out to see if he’ll be interested. Lion loved the Jumperoo when he was younger and shockingly seems to remember it. He used to clamor to play in it, but we’ve finally convinced him that he’s too big and it’s for Panda to play in now. Whenever we put Panda in it now, Lion will stand right next to it and say, “See Panda? Watch Lion!” and start jumping up and down to demonstrate to his little brother how the toy works. Panda still hasn’t caught on, but he usually smiles and laughs while Lion starts jumping like a maniac.

Reading: Lion loves to “read” to Panda. He’s been doing this since Panda was born, but now Panda will reward him with smiles and actually look at the pages. Lion will either point out the various images on the pages or will say phrases he’s memorized from the books like “I’LL EAT YOU UP!”

Singing: In the past two months, Lion has been on a real singing kick. He now knows most of the words to “Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed” as well as fragments of many others. Lion loves to sing to Panda who is happy for the attention. Lion is desperately trying to teach Panda how to clap, though I think it may take another few months before he catches on.

Playing with Magnatiles: Panda is obviously too young to understand how to play with Magnatiles, but that hasn’t stopped Lion from finding ways to play together. Lion will build boxes and place them in front of his brother. If Panda knocks it down, Lion will respond, “Uh oh! Is okay. I fix it, Panda!” Now that Panda can sit independently, he enjoys watching Lion build structures more.

“Here you go, Panda! I make box!”

Laying down and talking: Whenever we put Panda down on the floor, Lion almost immediately rushes over and lays down next to him. Lion will often grab Panda’s hand and start talking to him. Panda will respond with his babbling and pterodactyl noises. More recently, these conversations turn into Lion copying Panda’s noises—whether it’s shrieking sounds or raspberry noises. The amount of time they can spend just holding hands and making sounds amazes us.

Lion and Panda are constantly surprising us with the ways they find to enjoy each others’ company and really play together despite being in different developmental phases.

Have you been surprised by the ways your kids find to have fun together? What are other games a toddler and an infant can play together?