If I were ever put on the spot and asked what the best part of raising four kids is ... I'm pretty sure that I know what my immediate response would be.
The best part is something that I actually had no control over, and that is that I was given two girls born back-to-back and then two boys that followed.
Whether they know it now or not, those pairings are the potential recipe for a lifetime of friendship. They are truly the best gift that I could have given them, even though I can't even take the credit for it. And watching them grow up together has taught me so much. The girls are as different as night and day (both with their looks and their personalities) and I wonder if the boys will be the same.
Jack and James are brown-eyed and blue-eyed, respectively (just like the girls), and they continue to challenge me every day. Jack is an all-around rough and tough guy who likes both working and playing hard. No job is ever too big for him and he rarely stops moving. And now his little brother is starting to follow in those same footsteps.
I used to gently remind Jack that Jimmy was smaller than him; not to play so roughly. And now I just bite my tongue because Jimmy can certainly hold his own. There may be almost three years age difference between them, but I suspect that James may surpass Jack in height one day.
James is the more giggly one of the two, at least right now. And Jack is the protective one, always looking out for James and offering to drive him around on the four-wheeler. If Jimmy cries, Jack comes running with Jimmy's soft blanket and immediately attempts to comfort him.
I can't wait to see what the next couple of years bring, as their personalities develop even more into the people that they will become. It's an honor to play a role in that ...
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