Differences

The differences between my 3 girls always completely amaze me.  Here are three children  of the same gender, from the same gene pool, raised in the same environment - and in so many ways they are completely and utterly unlike each other.

Take getting up in the morning for example... 

Abby wakes instantly and is immediately ready to get out of bed and go hunting in search of sustenance. Food is always on this child's mind and breakfast is no exception. My little huntress arms herself with her beloved blankie (which can't just be left alone in her bed) and is ready to face her day - after a large bowl of cereal, of course.  By mid-morning she is begging for snacks and asking when lunch will be, every 5 minutes. Now that she's learning to tell time, she'll ask how many hours until lunch. Or dinner. Or snack time.

Hannah awakens slowly and only under protest. She curls up underneath her blanket, thumb in her mouth, hand tucked securely against her belly button, and ignores all attempts to prod her awake. She'll open an eye and peek out until she gets your attention, and then quickly shut it again.  When she finally does decide to emerge, she slithers slowly over the side of her bed until the tips of her feet touch the floor. Then she'll quietly collapse back into a boneless puddle of Hannah mush that requires the creative use of bribery, threats, and if all else fails - just picking her up and carrying her out of the room seems to do the trick (for now, but I have this vision of carrying a 16-year-old out to the living room to get dressed...). She'll often forget to eat breakfast - conveniently remembering that she's hungry about 30 seconds before we need to leave the house.

My little Becca seems to be closer to the 'Abby' version of waking up. Many mornings she'll hear us up and around before we come to get her and will begin fussing and calling out 'Mommy' or 'Daddy' incessantly until one of us goes to get her. Even now that she's in a toddler bed, she will sit there and cry and call us until we open the door. Then, she's all smiles as she begins her busy day. This little girl is always on a mission and rarely stops moving. She'll collect her stuffed animal friends and head out of her room - to eat  breakfast, watch tv, see her Daddy, or whatever else catches her fancy. And she's a determined little thing - any attempts to detour her from her chosen path are quickly, vocally and completely ignored or protested. At least she tries.   :)

I will be curious to see how each of them changes or remains the same as they grow older. As I think about it, the way they each wakes up in the morning is so very indicative of their personalities in general. Abby, the matter-of-fact, everything in black-or-white, no middle ground child. Hannah, the drama queen, always looking for attention and how to be in the spotlight. And Becca - well if she holds true to form, then I worry about our ability to handle this little one. She is our most stubborn, determined child and rarely lets anything get in her way or distract her. But she enjoys everything with a childlike abandon that I hope she never outgrows. She is a girl of extremes and will be the one to give us gray hair and heart attacks, I think.

Three little girls. Three individuals. And each of them special in her very own  (and very unique!) way.

So how do your kids wake up in the mornings? If you have more than one, do they wake up generally the same way or are yours as different as mine are?