As Different as Two Can Be

Update: This morning, Noah saw an ant crawling on the table and asked me:

"Mom, how do you die an ant?"

To which I responded, "You smash it with your hand!"

His response: "No way, I can't do that! It might stain my hand!"

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ORIGINAL POST:

Noah was such an easy toddler. He was so well behaved, well mannered, calm, neat, cautious, obedient... I referred to his two's and three's as the "Terrific Twos" and "Terrific Three's".

At the time, I thought I really had the "parenting thing" down pat!

When my friends asked me questions like...

"How do you keep all of these decorative things out on the tables? Don't they get broken?"

"How do you get him to sit still for an hour while you get your nails done?"

"What do you mean he doesn't climb on your furniture?"

"How do you get him to obey on the first attempt?"

I just thought I had done a really good job at mastering the parental skills necessary to teach my child boundaries, respect, and self-control. Although I would never say it out loud, I often thought that parents whose children didn't act like Noah had just not taught them well :)

And then Emily Kate entered our family...

and I quickly learned that Noah's behavior and demeanor had much less to do with my parenting skills than I had thought! Of course, I believe that nurture plays a large part in a child's personality and behavior, but I quickly realized that, to a large extent, he was just born that way! I had to give much of the credit to the God who created him!

And Emily Kate... well, let's just say that God definitely made these two as different as two can be!

It even started with my pregnancies...

I rarely felt Noah move. Vance never felt him move. Due to the high-risk nature of my pregnancy, I went to the OB almost weekly. She had me drink coke in order to get him to move and sometimes resorted to palpating his head. He was just very still... and still is!

Emily Kate, on the other hand, moved all the time! With her, I felt those huge kicks that I had heard other mother's describe. I could actually see her moving around my belly. She moved all the time... and still does!

I marvel, almost daily, at their God-given differences.

And over the past few months, I've noticed a few things that just confirmed that although these two might look alike, they are...

As Different as Two Can Be!

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Noah has never had an owie that required a legitimate Band Aid.

Emily Kate skinned BOTH of her knees this weekend... and one did legitimately require a Band Aid!

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Noah cannot stand to have dirty hands, hates bugs, and is an immaculately neat eater.

(cleaning his hands and asking me for a wipe after feeding a goat at the petting zoo)

Emily Kate... she refuses a bib, delights in getting her hands (or feet) dirty, requires almost daily stain treatment of her clothing, and isn't afraid of playing with bugs!

(discovering an ant family)

(stomping on said ant family with dirty, bare feet)

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Noah has always been content to allow me to assist him with things such as getting dressed or brushing his teeth and never argues with me over what I've picked for him to wear.

Emily Kate... if she can't do it by herself, it doesn't happen (very easily)! She is even ready to start changing her own diaper and loves to dress herself (even if the clothes happen to be her brother's underwear!). On several occasions, I have gone to get her from her bed... only to find a completely NAKED baby girl pointing towards her diaper drawer!

(one of said self-dressing experiences)

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Noah was scared and very apprehensive of the fireworks and spent a good portion of the night in the garage with his friend.... with their fingers in their ears!



Emily Kate... she never flinched at a loud bang and clapped with delight at the "pretties" in the sky. She ran towards the "launch pad" and even took a taste of one firework.

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It took almost 2 years of year-round private swim lessons, a lot of money, and a specific pair of goggles to get Noah to voluntarily put his head in the swimming pool water!



Emily Kate... she lunges into the water and I can't keep her face out of it!

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Noah loves to watch movies and kids programs on TV. When he was colicky for almost 3/4 of the first year of his life, I learned that Baby Einstein videos calmed him down. At the time I felt "mom guilt" for allowing him to watch much more than the American Academy of Pediatrics "recommended viewing times"! But... when he knew all of his colors and shapes on his 2nd birthday, I decided that Baby Einstein really was educational and abandoned my "guilt"! Today, he still loves to watch TV and has an attention span that seems unparalleled for a 4 year old.

Emily Kate... she doesn't care a thing about TV! In fact, I'm actually a little disappointed in this because I'm not sure she will rival Noah's milestone in shape and color recognition without the help of Baby Einstein!

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I only need to give Noah a stern look, followed by a sternly voiced "No, Sir" in order to deter unwanted behavior. He immediately obeys (most of the time!).

Emily Kate... she thinks that look combined with a stern "No, Mam" is some kind of a joke. She laughs at me and keeps right on doing whatever behavior I am trying to deter! I actually had to (gently) give her a little spank this weekend to show her that "No" is not funny... she cried. Not because she was hurt but because I think I hurt her feelings for not playing along in her little game!

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If I tell Noah to stand and/or sit somewhere, he does it and doesn't move. Even at birthday parties, when the other kids start surrounding the birthday child during present opening time, Noah stays put. The same was true at his school field trip... when all the other kids started to surround the horse demonstrator, Noah stayed "behind the line" where he was told to stand!

(this is where they all started... where they were placed by the teacher)

(this is where they ended up... Noah is the only one still in place!)

Emily Kate... she doesn't stand still... ever! She is like a teeny tiny Energizer Bunny... she just moves and runs from place to place... all the time!

(I don't know why the picture is turned this way, but you get the picture anyway!)

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Noah does a great job of looking at the camera, on command, and giving his cheesy "cheese" smile.

Emily Kate... she just plain rarely looks at the camera at all... despite plenty of prodding!

But every once in a great while, she proves my assumption wrong and gives me a picture perfect grin...

For years, I've listened to friends and mothers proclaim the differences among their children and now I know what they are talking about! For as you can see, my Noah Robert & Emily Kate truly are as different as two can be! But I love them both and truly enjoy experiencing the differences between them... even though I am picking up a lot more messes, tending to "owies" and just plain running around (or should I say chasing) more these days!