Having a baby sister is a lot of work. I would know because my baby sister likes to play with stuff that's not hers

Like my toy cars....

....and my blocks....

and even the books I got from

grandma on my birthday!

Mom and Dad said that's just how baby sisters are but we have to make sure she stays safe and doesn't get hurt.

"I won't let anything hurt her!" I said.

Mom and Dad said they didn't want me to get hurt either so, how about we work on keeping safe together? I thought that was a great idea.

.

I didn't know how

to start being a safe big brother but, mom

helped. She said all

we needed to do was

open a window.

I was confused.

"How does that keep

us safe?" I asked.

"Sometimes our lungs need fresh air." She explained. "When we open a window on a nice day, some of the old air we've been breathing goes outside and new fresh air comes inside. That's called ventilation and it keeps our lungs nice and strong."

Next, Dad said it was time to clean up.

Clean up?! "But Daaaad..." I whined.

"I know it doesn't sound too fun," He said. "but keeping our house clean is important. Your sister could pick up small things from the floor and put them in her mouth. We also don't want either of you getting hurt on sharp objects like scissors. Letting too much lay around is dangerous."

When he said it like that, it made cleaning sound a little less boring.

Dad took care of all the stuff I shouldn't play with and I put away my small toys.

He said babies can easily choke on things like coins and marbles because their throats are so small and they haven't developed all their muscles yet*.

...Yikes! I don't want my baby

sister to do that!

*(Levin & Smith, 2010)

Being a safe big brother is a lot of work and it made me hungry. Dad said he thought he heard a big ol' bear in the room! It was just my tummy growling.

"How about you take a break and have lunch with mom and your sister. I'm going to clear out some old furniture." he said.

"Okay... but why?" I was confused again.

"Some things, like old furniture and

toys, used to be painted with lead

paint. It's especially toxic to children

because your brains and nervous systems are still developing." He explained. "Lead poisoning can lead to lots of health problems and

make it really hard to

concentrate."*

*(Chaudry & Tullai-McGuinnes, 2016)

.

After lunch, Dad said we need to fix the leak in the basement.

I couldn't

hold the tools

because I was too

little but Dad said I

could hold the flashlight for him.