(written by Footywife)

My little son has a love-hate relationship with the son of my close friend.

When they’re apart, they want very much to play together.

When they’re playing together, they inevitably fight.

The other day I went to my friend’s place to fetch her kids over to my place to play.  In the car the easy banter between us all developed into a shouting match over who should speak first – both wanted to talk to poor me (who was concentrating on the road) at the same time.

“I talk first” one would say.

“No!  I first” the other would counter.

“NO I FIRST!!”…

“NO I FIRST!!”…

At my place, they played amicably together for a while and then inevitably one (usually my little son because he is in his own territory) will snatch a toy from the other and a snatching fight would ensue.

Whilst watching Bob the Builder, my son (for whatever reason) sat on his friend’s lap and immediately received a kick in the rear that sent him running tearfully into the kitchen.

The next day, after our little guest had left, my little son told me ,“Mama I want Joshua to come to my house and play”.

Do you call this a love-hate relationship or what?

(this is written by my wife on the day I posted the previous post)

My husband is away again. But this time my little son noted his absence. On the day my husband left, my little son came to me and exclaimed “Papa’s birthday is coming! Let’s go and buy a present for him!”

HUH?! What does a barely 3-year old fellow knows about buying presents for an adult?

Anyway, I played along. We went to the shops to choose a toy because according to my little son, “papa likes toys”. He chose a red toy car. Toy cars, are incidentally my son’s favourite.

“If it’s for papa then you can’t open it”, I said.

“OK” came the reply.

However, even before reaching home, the little one changed his mind.

“Let’s open it and put it in the toy box”, he said.

I played along and the red car, which was meant for papa’s birthday, had its box torn open immediately upon reaching home. My little son has been playing with it in the last 2 days, bringing the car to his bed to sleep, something that he does with his “favourite toys”.

“Is this car yours or papa’s?” I asked.

“It’s papa’s. When papa comes back I will give it to him,” he said.

I can’t wait to see what happens to the red car when papa comes back.