Like mother, like daughter

Sierra has her latest video up. Check it out over here...

Sisters are forever.
Sisters, I tell my daughters, are forever. I imagine that Moms with boys say brothers are forever, too.

It’s part reminder, part plea for peace, especially when they seem willing to shove each other off the nearest cliff, or into a bucket of purple paint.

Be nice to each other, I tell them, you’re stuck with each other. This can be a bad thing, but it is mostly a very, very good thing. When friends fade, when people move, when things you think are solid suddenly give way, you’ll have your sister, hopefully.

Your sister is the one you’ll turn to when you need to talk about how crazy your Mom is and she’ll be the only one who really gets it.

Your sister is the one who you’ll call in the middle of the night when you would worry about waking anybody else.

Your sister is the one person who won’t forget that time you had a cow in the grocery store and we all had to leave the cart in the check out lane. But it doesn’t matter, because you’ll remember when she freaked out over that alien in the movie that everyone said was a good kids movie and wouldn’t sleep with the lights out for four years.

Your sister is the one person who knows when you’re really hurt and when you’re just playing for some extra TV time.

Your sister is the only person who gets all your jokes, or at least laughs at them even when they’re really lame.

Your sister is the one you’ll turn to when you realize that the ground under your feet has turned to quick sand and you can’t remember if you are supposed to do the breaststroke or the freestyle to get out of it. She might not remember either, but she’ll probably have a rope to throw.

Most of all, after you finish arguing over all the silly things of childhood like who gets the most attention, who is too bossy, or who your parents like the best, after your spirit and limbs grow past the time where you fight with your family and into a time where you fight for it, everything will change.

You’ll realize this is your relationship; it belongs only to the two of you. And it’s forever.

What’s My Line?

(Sisterly love in action)

There’s been a great deal of talk at our house about careers. Sierra, who will turn 10 soon, had settled on an animal training track. Mireya, nearly 6, was still focused on being a veterinarian, as long as she could run her vet clinic out of our house since she’s never going to move out.
But a few days ago at lunch, things changed.

“Mom,” said Sierra, contemplating her sandwich. “Do you know what I’m going to be when I grow up?”

“An animal trainer?”

She shook her head. “I think I could be a librarian. Because I’m really good at alphabetical order.”

I gave that some thought. “You know, I have noticed that you are good at alphabetical order.”

It was that moment that Mireya, who has been trying to convince her sister that they should find jobs where they could work together for their entire lives, saw her opening.
“Sierra! We could…” she bit her lip. “Um, could we work at the same school?”

Sierra rolled her eyes. The very idea of working with her pesky little sister is enough to trigger the gagging reflex, but I’ve encouraged her to be diplomatic. “If we are going to work at the same school, I’M going to be the principal.”

“Okay! Okay! Then I can be your … Assistant!”

Sierra sighed. “VICE principal. You can be the vice principal.”

Mireya jumped to her feet. “Yes! Yes! I can be the VICE principal.” She smiled broadly for a moment, then her face fell. She was back to chewing her lip. “Does that mean I have to… see the bad kids?”

“Yes,” said Sierra with principal-esque authority. “YOU have to see the bad kids. Especially when I’m out of the office.”

It’s nice to know they’ve already gotten such a good grasp of administrative dynamics in their first year at the same school.

Still the goal of having a job in the same place as her sister was apparently worth having to deal with the “bad kids,” because Mireya reluctantly agreed.

Who knows what the future holds for these sisters. No matter where they decide to spend their working lives, they will have the trials and tribulations of officedom down pat.

Are my daughters related to each other?

Sure, they have the same parents, but they are so different from each other I begin to doubt the whole genetic thing.

I thought that one of the benefits of having two children—especially when they are of the same gender—is the cost savings. You've already got clothes, toys, furniture and all kinds of developmental items (which you found out were completely worthless but at least you wouldn't be compelled to buy them again!).

So when I found out that we were having another girl, the budget maven within was very excited. Until I discovered exactly how much variety is in two people's DNA.

Sierra, our oldest, loves jumping and running, hates wearing dresses and is big on music—the louder, the better. She's happiest in Capri pants and t-shirts, the less fuss the better. I can't keep her shoes on; they are like reading glasses at a high school reunion—off at the door. She's totally horse crazy.

Mireya, our youngest, was born as a princess without a country. She loves all things pink, frilly and sweet. Her shoes must be fancy and shiny and accompanied by "stockings." Lace is good, as are crowns, heels and taffeta. She doesn't care for music, unless it's classical and involves dancing like a ballerina. For which she has the appropriate outfit.

On a recent trip to a National Park I was concerned that Sierra was getting to be a Junior Ranger and Mireya, being too young, was being left out. As we were walking in I turned to Mireya, figuring I should prepare her. "You know Sierra's going to be a Junior Ranger?"

"Yes," she said in her pink long dress, the taffeta barely concealing her white paten leather shoes. This was in the Rockies, no less. "She's a ranger and I'm a princess."

No question who she thought had the better deal going.

So it has been completely worthless, from a budgetary standpoint, to have two girls. Not only are all the toys completely different for a bouncing, athletic girl and a ballerina princess, but now I have no hand-me downs. Zero. Once she got to the age of expressing her opinions, I couldn't get Sierra into a dress with a crow bar. So I stopped buying them, opting for pants, shorts and t-shirts. Mireya, on the other hand, hasn't worn anything other than a dress for over a year.

I've tried to find comfort in the fact that they wouldn't be fighting over any toys. Then they came out with the princess editions of My Little Pony. Those toy companies have it in for us, don't they?

Still, with the exception of plastic horses, I've got two very different divas on my hands—a rock star and prima ballerina – similar, but with vastly different wardrobes and set design.
So I wonder—were they switched at the hospital? Does someone out there have the other tomboy or princess?

More importantly, do they have any hand-me downs?