Something weird has been going on with my kids lately. They’ve been getting along.

At first, I thought I was imagining things. Rita’s is nearby, and it’s not uncommon for us to stop on the weekends, or, more typically, for G to make a run over after a long day of working outside.

There have been major episodes in the past where he “forgot” to ask his sister what she wanted. I learned to just order what she would want because I wanted to keep the peace more than I wanted a frozen treat.

So, the first time that my Life360 alerted me that G was leaving and E was apparently with him, I figured there was a glitch in the system.

The following weekend, he actually said he had to wait for E to go with him. I almost fell over. There have been days when I’ve driven her to school separately, because I worried their fighting would lead to distracted driving. Voluntary trips to get ice cream together? Unheard of.

A few nights ago, as I made my goodnight rounds, E asked me to chat with her which, on its own, was a nice surprise. A few minutes later, G bopped in and started touching her trinkets on her bookshelves.

I braced myself for the inevitable screaming and throwing of a pillow, or something harder, at him to “get out of her room.” Room privacy has been a relative nonnegotiable, especially since Steve died, because we all “need our space.”

I was shocked when the screaming did not commence, and instead, an actual conversation occurred about a new addition that he noticed she’d added to her shelf.

Our little chat continued for quite a while, and as they shared various anecdotes from track practice and other school activities, it became clear that they’d actually been spending some time together outside of the house, as well.

Color me even more surprised when both opted to leave their track meet with me, to run some errands, instead of heading home on the bus.

I warned them that they’d probably get home later than they would if they went with the team. Both asked if we could grab pizzas after the errands, and considering how late the evening was getting, they weren’t going to get an argument from me.

In the past, if one wanted pizza, another invariably wanted Chinese, or Tex-Mex, or anything else, just to be different. It doesn’t sound like much, but agreement on takeout cuisine is a really big deal.

Even A noticed that things had changed, a little, when he was home for spring break, noting that he seemed to be able to have longer conversations with both of his siblings.

He was even more surprised when E wrote an essay about how much of a positive influence he had been in helping her decide to join chorus and play a musical instrument.

Of course, I couldn’t just let this ride. I had to get to the bottom of it. I’m automatically suspicious of any deviation in typical behavior, but I was also just so curious about what caused this shift.

G’s response involved several facial contortions, indicating that he had zero desire to have any discussion about anything remotely related to “feelings.” E told me that she’s getting excited because G will be leaving for school soon, and she will essentially be an only child, so it’s easier to be nice to him. That’s what I get for asking.

Steve and I often worried about how well our kids would get along as they got older. When the boys were younger, they were often mistaken for twins, they were so inseparable. But, as they got older, they each seemed determined to forge a path that was independent of the other.

While E was happy to tag along when she was younger, as she’s gotten older she’s works hard to distinguish herself from them.

Last summer, on our family vacation, it seemed like all of us were happiest when we were doing things apart from one another. We always ended the day together, sitting down to dinner, and discussing our adventures, but not many of them took place together.

A has theorized that we might all be afraid to depend on each other too much, after losing Steve, and while I don’t think he is wrong, I know Steve would be terribly sad to think we felt that way.

At the same time, just like every other parent out there, I can’t force my kids to get along. I can hope and encourage, but at the end of the day, they have to find their way to each other.

Whatever their motives are, I need to just enjoy it while it lasts, and hopefully, it lasts long enough to become a habit.

Liz Pinkey’s column appears on Saturdays in the Times News