How do you get Siblings to Play Nicely?
Please report back with the answer!
My daughters regularly fight. They like to scream at each other until one of them explodes with frustration and begins smacking the other. They are either best of friends or arch-enemies. There is no in-between.
I have watched my one-and-a-half-year-old face up to my eldest, her shoulders squared, chin stuck out and eyebrows furrowed. I have heard her shouting ‘mine!’ as loudly as she can for no other reason than to agitate her. And I have seen her smack her sister without provocation.
Likewise, my 4-year-old snatches toys daily, triggers screaming matches, and will aggressively wag her finger in front of her sister’s face. They are both as guilty as the other.
I was expecting sibling rivalry. I know that arguing is healthy to an extent and that it’s how they learn. I just wasn’t expecting it to be so aggressive and so soon!
Don’t get me wrong, they don’t fight all the time. They love to cuddle, dance together, and laugh conspiratorially as they jump all over my couch. But when they do fight, they put their absolute all into it!
I attempt to reason with them (obviously, this is almost impossible with my youngest!) or put them in separate rooms until they calm down. But with arguments breaking out hourly, it gets tiring. Super tiring.
How do you get siblings to play nicely? Does it simply come with time? Is there even an answer? Please report back for the sake of my sanity!
