Let me tell you about my babies.

Henry was baby A. He was born at 4:03 PM on a Tuesday in November. He was not prepared for the cold, bright world and squalled tremendously when he was born. He is my sensitive little boy. He gets startled easily and will cry more readily, but he also explores relentlessly and laughs easily.

He likes to see. He wants to know what is going on, and he is easily distracted. He doesn’t want to face you when you hold him; he wants to face outward so he can see the world. When he focuses, though, he is fully absorbed.

As you can see, his eye is no longer bruised – an experience that did nothing to quell his enthusiasm for exploring. When he’s in focus mode, he is as likely to have his tongue sticking out of his mouth as not.

He is nearly 8 months old; he weighs 20 lbs 5 oz. He can sit up (he is still prone to tipping over), get up on his hands and knees, scoot his knees (but not crawl quite yet), do downward-facing dog, and get stuck under the couch/swing/bouncer easily and frequently. He can pick up things between his fingers and thumb. He has two teeth.

Eleanor was baby B. She was born at 4:15PM on the same Tuesday afternoon as Henry. True to her nature, she silently balled up her fists and wildly eyed everyone in the room when she was born. Even though she wouldn’t have been able to see anything very well – if at all – you got the distinct feeling she was noting this indignity down for reprisal later. She is tough. She will cry when she’s frustrated, but it takes her a while to get frustrated. If she is startled, her arms spring up to her ears (we call it “stick ’em up”) and she looks all around for the source. She smiles for us, but you have to earn laughter.

She concentrates on tasks. She wants to figure things out. She wants to play and see how many different things something can do; whether it makes a good sound when it’s banged on the floor; whether it’s good for chewing on; whether it’s crinkly.

Eleanor likes things to be just so. If she wakes up in the car and doesn’t want to be there, woe to you. If she has reached her frustration level and things haven’t been resolved for her, she will let you know. She loves a thrill – she will swing all day long at the park.

She is nearly 8 months old; she weighs 20 lbs 15 oz. She can sit up, stick her bum up in the air, roll around, and kick like a mule. She can pick up things with her fingers and thumb. She has three teeth, with at least one more coming in.

They are not identical. They do have some similarities, though. They both have a yen for a particular bird in their mobile, and they have both caught it multiple times. They both have two different ears. They both love peek-a-boo. They are both adept at pulling coverings off their heads (from hats to lovies, when we play peek-a-boo with those). They both like stories. When they are tired, they will happily snuggle; otherwise, they are too busy to snuggle anymore.

They are interesting people. Every day they learn to do something more. They are genuinely funny and like to make us laugh with them. They are our beautiful babies.