Personality!

Being a mother of two children that are polar opposite of each other, I'm always looking for glimpses of their personality. I've learned that I can't parent Luke the exact same way that I parent Ella. Don't get me wrong I strongly believe in holding each child up to the same standard, just getting there is a little bit different for each. Seth and I have re-instituted our weekly date night (thank heavens!), and on our last date we talked about our kids' personalities and how people really make misjudgements about them. So I have made a list of common statements that people make about our children that are not correct.

Lets start with Ella. Ella's personality can at times be complicated. If you just look at her external behavior without talking to her, you can be really fooled. So here are some statements I've heard recently that I want to set straight.

1. She's shy - That's dead wrong. It is true that she is an introvert and her need for talking to people is on the low end for her. She just rather not talk and she doesn't have a problem with it.

2. She's a pushover - Are you kidding me? She has a stronger will than Luke. If you observe her in a group setting she's not the visionary leader, but she is also not the follower. She does what she wants to do on her own terms...doesn't really seem to care if someone else follows or not (I know that she gets that after me)

3. She's has a timid personality - I will be honest that even Seth and I, until recently, have fallen for this one. We are now realizing that she is a perfectionist and has a competitive edge. She just rather not try something unless she knows that she can succeed and be good at it. (To any experienced mother, have any advice on this one for us?)

So lets move onto Luke. Luke's personality seems to be a little bit more like...what you see is what you get. However, I think some will be surprised.

1. That kid is not afraid of anything - Nope not true. Grant it, he is more of my risk taker and most people are amazed at the risks he actually takes (like yesterday I open the garage door and I find Luke hanging on to the garage door about 5 ft in the air). Here's the truth...he is scared to death of loud noises.

2. He is not as smart as Ella - I think people say this because of his early speech problems. He literally only had one word at 22 months. By the way, he no longer qualifies for speech therapy and tested on a 5 year old level and he is only two. He is also my kid who self-taught himself to count to 10, self-taught his colors, self-taught his shapes, and potty trained himself (no joke). Now, his love for books is not apparent as Ella's, but I read books to him, that are on a 1st to 2nd grade level, and he is able to focus and comprehend them. Don't tell me my son is not as smart as his sister.