By Lillian Cauldwell
Grandmother of Identical Twins
The twins, Pearl and Lily (Lily's the oldest by 1 minute), are hard to tell apart. You must look at their jaw line. Lily has a square jaw line. Pearl's jaw line is oval. Both love to dance. You put on any kind of music (except classical) and they jounce and bounce as they listen.
Lily doesn't like to share. She'll toddle over to Pearl and yank the toy out of Pearl's hand. On the other hand, Pearl loves to share. She'll pick up her bottle and Lily's and hand it over to her older sister.
Pearl is the adventurer. Nothing deters her from exploring. When we go to the playground, Lily squats on the dirt and surveys her kingdom. Pearl wanders off and explores. She walks over anything that's in her way. She'll walk up to strangers and look up.
Their vocabulary consists of: No, sock, daddy, and momma. They haven't gotten to grandma or grandpa. I guess too many syllables.
They love to eat. When any food appears, they toddle to it and grab it. They cram it into their mouths as fast as they can. The girls love Cheerios. Any time is Cheerio time. Bagels are the second favorite. Ice cream isn't up there yet. I think they're bored with it.
Pearl and Lily like feeding themselves and the floor. Their small dog, Toby, loves their leftovers. The floor is littered with their offerings to him.
Their clothing is different. They don't wear the same colors or styles. The parents want each of them to have their own identity. Eventually, they'll get their own rooms for privacy and individuality.
Consistency is a big part of their lives. No means no to both of them.
Don't leave furniture next to walls. They'll climb anything to reach what they want.
They love having their Daddy read to them over and over. They walk over to him. The book dangles from their grasps. They hand the book over to Daddy and plop into his lap. The girls point to the page and snuggle. Daddy reads them the book over and over until he's sick of it, but he continues to read.
