Gus never played with dolls. I wanted to give him a doll when he was two, to give him the choice. And with the new baby on the way, everything I read said that would be a good idea, get him a baby of his own. Watt said I could get him one but I couldn't make it a birthday present. That would be giving it too much emphasis. The whole idea made him rather ill. So I gave Gus the doll, one non-birthday morning. And shortly thereafter, Watt was gratified to find his son playing with his new doll by pulling off it's head.

Jacob, on the other hand, before he new better, preferred the "girl" toy to the "boy" toy at McDonalds. When I ordered 2 happy meals and the voice through the speaker asked, "Boys or girls?" I'd answer, "Two boys. And we want one car and one baby." That was before pier pressure kicked in (Gus and the neighbors) and Jake learned it was only cool to play with dolls if there was weaponry involved.

From the age of 18 months, Tucker has been known to cuddle and croon to anything he can hold in the crook of his arm. The big kids get a kick out of handing him a sock or a water gun or a shovel and saying, "The baby's crying Tucker, make it better. And Tucker will oblige and rock it and pet it and put it to bed and then stand and defend it if need be.

In the last couple of days, Jacob has gone over to Tucker's camp. They found a stash of stuffed animals we'd put up because no one ever played with them. And together, they've been wrapping their babies in sweatshirts and towels, keeping them warm. This morning as we were leaving for school, Jacob said to Tucker, "You take care of my baby till I get home, ok Tucker?"