This past weekend, we went to a wedding. At the reception, N had his first real encounter of the feminine kind.

For those that don’t remember, N is 16 months old.

We were standing and chatting when this little cutie in a red dress – who was right around 2 years old – came running over and pecked him on the cheek.

He was quite surprised, but by the time he looked around she was disappearing into the crowd. A case of peck and run, if you will.

C, also, was having social issues. He’d spotted a girl, this one about 6 years old, and was trying to get up the nerve to dance with her. It was the first real case of shyness that I’ve seen him get.

10 (or so) minutes later everything came to a head. The two boys were staying pretty close to our table, dancing occasionally, but mostly just watching what was going on. I should say that N was watching what was going on. C was staring longingly out at "his" girl while she danced with someone else. In any event, that was when N spotted the kisser.

Without a word, he ran out to give her a kiss. She turned to face him at the last minute, and they shared a liplock right there in the middle of the reception.

General applause erupted, and N staggered away, more than a little disoriented. I will also note that the girl was staggering a little bit as well.

C, however, was not to be outdone. With a quietly shouted "My turn!", he ran out to kiss the 2 year old also.

I called him, back, of course.

I’m not really sure why I did it. I don’t think anyone would have objected to a 3 year old and a 2 year old kissing. It just seemed wrong, somehow – him kissing the girl his little brother just finished smooching.

C never did manage to dance with "his" girl. So…Round 4 to N!

The previous battle, as you may remember, was won by C.