So here's a status update about Smallest. She's 20 months old. She's (mostly) always been a happy soul, but since she started walking she's been a little delight. Very cheeky, and much more naughty than Lily was.
Lily would soon learn what she was allowed to touch and what she wasn't. It didn't mean we could trust her 100% but she was pretty good about things. Isabel's been harder to control. Like Lily she soon learns what she's allowed to investigate and what she's not, but is much more likely to sneak off and have a fiddle anyway. She'll go for the DVD player or the amp, whereas Lily never touched these. She'll even do it when you're in the room and will look at you with a cheeky look as she switches the DVD player on. Little sod!
Bella's speech hasn't come on that far yet. By this age Lily was speaking pretty well, counting, learning colours, and lots more. Bella, in contrast, barely strings words together. She understands loads though and can usually get her message across without a problem. This frequently involves telling us she'd like some raisins, but she does also like reporting things to us. Through her own made up sign language and a few words, for example, she'll tell Anne that she was in her cot and Daddy came to get her, took her out of her sleeping bag, and then banged his head. Pretty clever stuff.
It's not surprising Child Number One was quicker to learn to speak. Lily got much more one-on-one attention. We spoke directly to Lily at her level loads. Isabel's had her share of attention, but spends a lot of time observing and playing with Lily rather than interacting directly with Anne and me.
Is this unfair on Bella? Has she got the poorer deal? In some ways I suppose, but it's swings and roundabouts and she also gets some big advantages that Lily never had. She's exposed to things a lot earlier than Lily. She certainly got chocolate earlier than Lily. We'd never have shown Lily a cartoon with a dragon attacking someone at 18 months, but Isabel will see whatever Lily's watching on TV. She's also got the huge advantage of having a big sister to play with and idolise. Lily didn't get that (obviously). She learns loads by copying Lily, and Lily knows it. Lily frequently tries to get her little sister to do things she knows she'd get in trouble for doing, like pouring a bowl of water out of the bath and onto the floor. When Lily's in a compliant mood however she can also be a great influence on Bella.
This also works the other way. Sometimes Lily, who may have become set in her ways, will see Bella do something she herself hasn't done and give it a go. We couldn't get Lily to eat any sauces for ages, but Bella's love of any sauce has widened Lily's palette and made pasta a much more interesting dish (she's always liked it, but would previously eat it dry).
Bella still has very little hair, which has meant she's stayed baby-like for a long time. It's with mixed feelings we can see her turning, slowly, into a little girl. I imagine, with Lily's influence, she'll grow up faster than Lily did once she gets to a certain age. Lily's got Bella to keep her interested in baby things, whereas Isabel will be pulled towards older things by her sister.
It's good for us to stop and take stock of where she's at every now and then. If Lily's anything to go by things move pretty quickly and can easily get away from you. We've applied for a school for Lily to go to next September already. How did it get to this stage already?
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