Social victory

Tonight we had a small victory with #1. Before I tell you the victory, I need to explain the background a bit...

While his brothers have really gotten into the social scene and talk about various friends at school or church, #1 has not really mentioned a friend. Don't get me wrong, he is an extremely friendly little guy, but he just hasn't been quite as social.

When I asked #2 which friends he wanted to invite to their birthday party, he named off a litany of friends. I then asked which friends he thought #1 might want to invite, #2 responded simply, "He doesn't have any friends. He doesn't know how to make friends."

His sweet and simple statement hit the nail on the head. I think #1 really wants to have friends, but doesn't know how to go about it. He has built-in friends with his two brothers, and they play together while at home, which is good practice for his social skills. The statement made me very sad, though. No mother wants to hear that her son is friendless.

In the past few months, whenever I would ask #1 the name of his best friend at school, he would respond, "No, you are my best friend, Mommy!" Although I am honored that he chose me, I also want him to have a peer to be his friend.

So...here's the small victory...
Tonight #3 asked if he could sleep in #1's bed with him. They said their prayers and as I turned the light out, I heard #1 say to #3, "You're my best friend!"