Photo: Katie Dubuis
When I was pregnant with my second baby, Juliette, I remember having a conversation with my mom about how your parenting has to adjust to the strengths, weaknesses and personalities of each kid. She told me she approached every situation with the child in front of her in mind, knowing the message that needed to be received but tailoring her delivery based on which of her four children she was talking to. I remember thinking that made sense but I couldn?t imagine that this second baby would be completely different from my then-toddler Sophie. They were from the same gene pool!
Wrong. I was so wrong.
Parenting my children is comparable to parenting Margaret Atwood (creative, prim and stubborn) and Katniss Everdeen (brave and bold, and maybe a little too daring for my poor heart). Or maybe Evel Kneivel (infamous daredevil, minus the drugs and assault charges). Sophie, four going on 24, is an old soul who speaks like she?s an adult. She said her first words at eight months but refused to walk until she was 18 months old, even though we caught her doing it when she didn?t think we were watching. She?s creepily intuitive at times (the other morning, as I sighed after brushing her hair, she put her arms around me and said, ?Don?t worry, mama, I won?t grow too fast?). She hates being ?in trouble? when she?s disciplined for something, and will apologize in a second. She?s also a little too sneaky for my liking, and she?s quick to tell a fib. She?s like Ms. Atwood...