Adventures Of Fatherhood

Adventures Of Fatherhood
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Based on how rough his big brother is with him at times, Carson is going to grow up to be one tough kid.

Beckett can get away with some of the things he does now because Carson is smaller than he is and not quite as nimble on his feet as him. However, 16 months is not a major difference in age and my guess is one day soon they will be the same size and Carson is going to let Beckett know it’s unacceptable for him to be so rough with him.

Until then, our major parenting responsibility is to keep the roughhousing to a minimum and protect Carson from the antics of his big brother.

Most of the time Beckett does not intend to hurt his little brother. At least, that’s what I say to myself often and prefer to think.

It’s usually just silly frolics involving Beckett approaching Carson and giving him a bear hug and then using him as a springboard to bounce off, resulting in Carson tumbling to the ground. The hug is usually entirely too rough but the brush off looks like a violent push. In Beckett’s mind, he’s simply acting out a human version of “Angry Birds” and doesn’t think about the fact he’s being too aggressive.

In another example, I don’t think Beckett intends to cause Carson harm when he gives him a kiss on the cheek and then squeezes Carson’s cheeks entirely too hard before running off, saying, “you’re too cute, Carson.” He just gets too excited, as evidenced by the red marks left on the little guy’s cheeks.

Neither does he intend to hurt Carson when he sits on him on the floor or tries to walk across his stomach, (oddly enough). Beckett just doesn’t understand entirely what causes pain for someone and what doesn’t.

The same goes for when Beckett and Carson are holding hands and walking and Carson falls to the ground. I truly do not think Beckett wants to hurt him when he doesn’t let go of his hand and continues to walk or run, despite the fact Carson is now being pulled behind him. He just doesn’t think about it, right or wrong, and the fact Carson is usually laughing does not encourage him to stop.

However, while I tend to give him more of the benefit of the doubt than Pam does, there’s no mistaking there are some times when he intends to hurt his little brother and consequently does just that.

There’s no other conclusion to draw when he says good morning to Carson and slaps too hard on his back or when he swims up to Carson, who does not know how to swim yet, and intentionally dunks him. That’s a move that’s only happened once because he was punished as a result.

Another for instance was the other night when I watched him as he stood over Carson, who was lying flat on his back on the floor, and dropped a toy directly on his face. That resulted in a significant bruise and Beckett being sent to his room.

Fortunately, those sorts of ridiculous acts are few and far between, and most of the rough treatment at the hands of Beckett is not as terrible as that. Most of it’s innocent, but simply comes across as abusive.

The fact is Beckett is just a rough kid, but Carson is beginning to show signs of having enough of this sort of treatment, as he has landed pretty significant slaps and pushes on Beckett when he has had enough.

Nonetheless, it’s clear Beckett is far ahead in the assault category.

One day, and it may be years from now, Carson is going to reach his boiling point and erupt, unleashing years of reciprocation on his older brother.

It will probably only take one time, but I have to admit I’m sort of looking forward to
seeing how that all goes down.
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There are some funny exchanges that come with parenting, and I get a huge kick out of them.
There were a couple recent ones involving my wife and Beckett that still make me laugh.

There was nothing remarkable about the first situation, but what came out of my wife’s mouth was special.

“Beckett, you have to stop fish hooking Carson,” she said after what had apparently been a frustrating stretch of time.

For some reason, Beckett likes to stick his pointer finger in his little brother’s mouth and pull, resulting in the image of Beckett “hooking” his brother like a fish. He hooks his cheek and then yanks him around. I have no idea how this came about, but it’s one of his favorite moves of late.

The problem is Carson seems to enjoy it so Beckett feels like it’s no big deal, but I do agree with Pam it’s not okay for one brother to stick his finger in another and lead him around the room or yard.

Another memorable moment came while swimming in the pool last weekend.

Beckett is a crazy man in the pool and it often carries over to the pool deck where he likes to run, like every other kid his age I know.

After countless remarks about not running, Pam at one point turned to Beckett, asking something along the lines of, “how many times have I told you to not run today?”

“I don’t know, maybe 50,” Beckett quickly uttered.That was about right.

About The Author: Steven Green

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The writer has been with The Dispatch in various capacities since 1995, including serving as editor and publisher since 2004. His previous titles were managing editor, staff writer, sports editor, sales account manager and copy editor. Growing up in Salisbury before moving to Berlin, Green graduated from Worcester Preparatory School in 1993 and graduated from Loyola University Baltimore in 1997 with degrees in Communications (journalism concentration) and Political Science.