side by side

When I was pregnant the second time, I was so curious to see what this baby would look like. I imagined that we could only make Annabels. But if we were to make a non-Annabel, I figured she would look completely different - dark hair, dark eyes, totally different face.

Lila is (I think) shaping up to have the blue eyes and blond hair that Annabel has. (Fun fact: both Gabe and I had blond hair as little kids.) Beyond that, I hardly see any resemblance. Lila is on the left in both pics:

And from Annabel's first days I could see myself and Gabe in her, and I still can. This new little one is just so 'new' to me. I sometimes see Gabe's mom and grandma in her face, especially the eyes. I think she looks a bit like Gabe in the eyebrows and mouth. I don't see anything that reminds me of me. It occurred to me recently that I just assumed she would stay this little indefinitely (which brought along some mini-panic attacks about how to manage all this). But I put Annabel to bed tonight and realized in two very short years, this teeny newborn will be doing the same sorts of things: brushing her teeth, carefully picking out her bedtime stories, giving me big kisses without my asking, and arguing with me about how our dog doesn't actually have a tummy. It made me appreciate all the more this fleeting stage of froggy legs, first coos and naps that last the whole trip to Trader Joe's and back.