Things Little Sisters Learn

When I found out we were having a second girl I was reallyreally excited, but I had no clue how fantastic it would be to have two girls.  I love to just sit back and watch how they interact with each other.  Even at such young ages I can see that they make each other better in so many ways.  It's fun to see all the things that Mattie has learned from watching and following her big sister.

+ Jilly got her first princess dress the Christmas after her second birthday and then during the next year her obsession intensified.  Mattie is still three months away from turning two and she is deeply entrenched in the dress-up phase.  At first it was Jilly wanting to put dresses on Mattie but now I find Mattie almost every morning in front of our dress-up corner debating what dress to wear.  And, oh the fights we have when I make her change to leave the house.

+ As the dominant older sister we almost always watch what Jilly wants, which means that Mattie's favorite shows are Dora and Doc McStuffins instead of Sesame Street.  Sometimes I feel bad about this, but I do not feel bad at all about skipping the Yo Gabba Gabba phase this time around.

+ Mattie has super fine and soft hair that she absolutely positively did not get from me.  Jilly, on the other hand, inherited my thick, wavy, and quite unruly hair.  Jilly hates to have her hair brushed and honestly I don't blame her, I've been there.  Mattie, with her beautiful, silky hair has nothing to complain about but she's watched her sister and she knows to scream "OW!!!" anytime I get near her hair.  Kind of drives me crazy but also hilarious.

+ I almost always read books with the girls together instead of individually so Mattie has experienced longer picture books much earlier than Jilly ever did.  I'm constantly impressed with Mattie's attention span for books; she'll sit for long periods of time and even lets me read every page (Jilly was an eager page turner at this age.)

+ Jilly has a few jobs around the house and because Mattie is always watching and wanting to be just like her sister she has picked up on some of these chores.  It's quite endearing to see little Mattie toss her plate in the sink or collect all the spoons from the dishwasher to put away.  And, it makes me want to have about 10 more kids (kind of.)