My Girls, age 2

 It is now time to compare the girls when they were all the same age Vivian is now. Isn't it just the most fun game?!

While I was looking for pictures of Elisabeth and Julia at around 2 years old, I stumbled upon videos of Elisabeth as baby and toddler. Julia really liked seeing a very small Elisabeth while Vivian just kept saying, "That Yin-Yin!" (Yin-Yin=Vivian). But, Vivian was right in that Elisabeth looked and sounded a lot like Vivian does now. Lots of the same facial expressions, but way more brown curly hair than little blonde Vivian.

Elisabeth 

Julia

Vivian

As Ebeth keeps getting older (despite my threats to her not to), I forget things about little Ebeth. What her little voice sounded like. How much she sang all day long (soooooo much). That she used to be small enough to hold on my hip. I feel like I am too young to already have forgotten so much about my oldest child's baby and toddlerhood. Does this mean that some day I will be on this blog crying about how I can't believe how little she was at 11?! (say no!)

One thing I do love about looking back at old pictures and videos is that a lot of the clothes I see on Elisabeth and Julia, Vivian now wears. Hooray for being stubborn about storing and moving all those girl clothes with us for future children!

Isn't it funny how much they look alike but how much they all three differ? I feel all parents of multiple children should play this game, and let your kids compare the pictures. Julia noticed that she has the straightest hair, but that she and Vivian smile the same in pictures. 

A friend expecting her third child recently asked if going from 2 to 3 kids was the biggest adjustment. I would have to honestly say no. Vivian is by far our craziest child (yesterday she pushed over the kitchen garbage can just for fun, drew all over the dining area floor, dumped her water cup, and was generally the most two any two year old can be), but I wouldn't say that it was harder when she joined the family. Yes, my girls are not super close in age like some who have 3 or more kids, but I feel like when we had Vivian, the biggest adjustment was logistics of who would have which kids on busy schedule days. I am still holding firm that the biggest adjustment was going from zero kids to one kid. What a learning curve that was! And, Ebeth was our easy breezy kiddo! Totally should have taken advantage of that more than we did.  :)

I will say that the dynamic of having more than one sibling is interesting to watch. Evan and I each only have one sister, so we don't have any personal reference points for dealing with more than one sibling. Even though Elisabeth and Vivian are 9 years apart, they are really close. Vivian definitely relies on her like a surrogate parent when Evan and I are not around. Elisabeth often volunteers to help with Vivian and loves to cuddle, read to, play with V. Julia and Vivian are best buds. Vivian shadows Julia in all things and definitely wants to be Julia when she grows up. The Elisabeth and Julia dynamic is still the same--total opposites who either get along like angels or are fighting like rabid dogs. But, with Vivian in the mix, Elisabeth and Julia have more times where they get along and work together. Elisabeth remembers very well hearing the very same speeches I am now giving to Julia--"You have to treat her the way you want her to treat you", "Pick your battles", "If she's hurting you, MOVE AWAY! Don't sit there and let her hit you!". Elisabeth is now the wise older sister that Julia can turn to when Vivian is driving her crazy. It's really amazing to watch their relationships develop and evolve. 

 

One day this school year, I brought the younger two to eat lunch with Elisabeth on a school day. They love visiting Elisabeth and eating with her in the cafeteria. All three girls were sitting in a row and one of Ebeths's classmates sat down across from them. He looked up and slowly looked from Elisabeth to Julia to Vivian and then said, "Whoa, Elisabeth, it's like watching you grow up right in front of me! You all look the same!". Which is why I always label the back of our pictures--I'm worried that some day I will be too old and senile to be able to identify which girl it is at age 2 in a picture!