Increasingly Opposite

When Gabe was born one of my first thoughts was, "Hello, Mr. Julia." As a newborn he looked a lot like his big sister. And he acted like her too: He had two strong little legs that kicked like crazy inside and out of my tummy. He was no snuggler. He was alert and active. He required some serious "sleep training." He was almost always happy and smiley. (Here we are comparing newborn Gabe to a picture of newborn Julia.)
As Gabe has grown, the differences between Julia and him have greatly increased. He looks like me, while she is still a mini Jonny. He trips, falls, crashes, and gets a new bruise every day. I could probably count the number of ouchies Julia had as a toddler. He is even louder and more rambunctious than Julia was. And I thought she was pretty wild.

There are many more differences between them, but the one that stands out the most right now involves the vacuum. It was one-year-old Julia's greatest fear. Only in the last year has she come to terms with the monster. But Gabe? He is in love. Now that he is too big and not content to stay in his exersaucer while I vacuum, I am realizing just how fascinated he is. It is pretty counterproductive to try to vacuum while he is around. He chases the big loud machine like it is the ice cream truck. Once he reaches it, there is no use trying to clean the carpets anymore. He sits on it, hugs it, he was even trying to eat it the other day. Wish I had a video of his adoration.

What is it that he loves and Julia was terrified of - the noise, the vibration, the forward and backward motion? Whatever it is, Gabe is all about it. Makes me laugh and wonder every time.