Togetherness

The girls have finally discovered each other. They'll wave and say 'hi' to each other and smile and laugh back and forth and copy each other. As soon as one of them starts banging on her high chair tray, the other one does it too.

Tonight at dinner, Mae was wagging her head and Adi tried to do it by shaking her whole body side-to-side. They took a long break from the meal to point at each other and touch hands, then laugh and do it again. And after breast feeding, they spent over five minutes reaching toward each other and laughing-- both the jake-brake fake laugh they use and real giggling (the most I've ever heard from Mae).

Since they are both mobile now they also crawl to, on and over each other. So far there isn't much perception about personal space and we're getting more and more complaining when one pushes the other down in an attempt to get past, or grabs a handful of hair or ear or cheek. I'm struggling with how much to moderate their behavior toward each other-- I want them to learn to be gentle with each other (and other kids) but also be able to defend themselves and their toys, especially from other kids.

Their mobility and interest in each other is particularly challenging during diaper changes. It's hard enough to try to clean up a twisting, crawling, grabbing-at-the-diaper-or-the-wipes-or-the-trashcan baby but when her sister is either taking the toy that is supposed to distract the changee or grabbing her hair or the dirty diaper, it's downright impossible. I've sometimes resorted to changing them in the laundry basket because it keeps the changee still and provides enough of a barrier that the other can't do too much damage. Most of the time I try to get one of them interested in the exersaucer first, so I can trap her there, and even when that doesn't work sometimes they just get stuck complaining for a while.

But please don't think I'm complaining. Maybe I'm still on my 2-babies-x-2-hour-nap high from this afternoon, but it is *so* much fun right now. They are changing every day and having so much fun with their new skills. I'm trying to get a picture of them crawling down the hall when it's time to go read books in the nursery-- I really feel like a mother duck with her ducklings-- but the camera is never quite in the right place. Like right now: it's in the nursery where they are sleeping so I can't post the picture I took today of them banging on the upside-down laundry basket which is serving as a gate for the moment. (It won't last long, since Meredith has been expending a lot of energy trying to breach it).


Here's a picture from last week: Dave and I re-tiled our entry while my parents babysat (multiple days) and the girls found it fascinating to watch us working. (Adi's on the left, Mae on the right; in their 4th of July dresses from Grandma Coleman).