Dear Tess and Nora, Eight Months

Dear Twins,

Nora, the queen of nicknames, you go by all of the following: Norberta, Eleanora, Norma, Nors, Nordy, Norsky, and of course, just Nora Beth. You are my little finger-sucking cutie. You have always been the more mellow twin. You sleep better and I think your finger-sucking has made you a better self-soother. You love any and all food. You took longer than Tess to learn how to roll over, but have learned to roll as a means of getting places sooner. You are still not sitting and don't really like your jumper either. You are content to spend time on the floor, or more preferably, in Mom's arms.

Tess, my sweet little, miniature Britta. You remind me so much of your oldest sister. I know it sounds crazy because you have an identical twin sister, but I think Britta was your first twin. Your round little cheeks and big noggin remind me so much of Britta. You are the slightly bigger and more active twin. You have always been a tad bit fussier than Nora and not quite as good a sleeper. If someone is crying in the middle of the night, I can be sure it's you. You are also the pickier eater. Baby food? Forget about it. You spit that right back out at me; you want the real stuff. You have recently started sitting and I think you will be so happy once you start crawling. Every now and then something (usually Elodie) strikes you funny and you have the most adorable belly laugh.

Words can't describe how happy I am to have you both in our family. I was far from excited to have twins. In fact, I was downright terrified and actually a little mad that I was being asked to take on this huge undertaking. I could not have been more wrong. When you and your sister arrived, I was so overcome with love and gratitude for the two of you. You bring such a spirit of joy to our home. You are my most mellow babies. I wonder if that's a byproduct of being a twin and learning from the get-go that you have to share everything, including Mom's attention, or if you just came hardwired easygoing.

I still can't tell you apart when you're crying and you are so in sync that when one of you is crying, usually the other one is too. It amazes me the ways in which you seem to be completely identical. Your schedule is eerily synchronized (which I love). You both want to be held at the same time, eat at the same time, and sleep at the same time.

Even strangers seem to be as enamored with you as I am. I get stopped all the time by people who just want to fawn over you. Your big, blue eyes just melt people. You just might be the cutest duo there ever was. I know we all can't get enough of you.

We love you!

Love, Mom