Aren’t they so cute? Don’t they seem like they just love playing together? You would never guess they don’t always show love each other would you?

Well, they are sisters aren’t they – Recently while coloring and making fun paper things they showed that they are sisters too. This was pieced together from reluctant confessions so it might not be as accurate as we would hope. While Mama was out of the room, Julia decided to do something to Emily. She walked over and cut some of Emily’s hair. This made Emily mad and Emily returned the thought and cut a selection of Julia’s hair. Julia’s hair damage is really not noticeable and without the confession it would have taken Mama awhile to find it. Emily’s cut section is a lot more noticeable to Mama. Noticeable enough that it is the reason Mama discovered the act.

Mama’s concerns – Julia thought it was funny and now that she has had a taste of hair cutting she is likely to try it again. It is also interesting that the girls didn’t tattle on each other and all the hair remains were cleaned up before Mama returned.

We went to visit Ms. Mary for Julia’s first “real” haircut today. What makes this one a “real” one versus the other cuts? First, we made this trip especially for Julia’s haircut. And secondly, the only other times she had her hair trimmed it was just a few snips to keep her from feeling left out during her sister’s haircuts.

Emily was very insistent that she would be getting her hair cut and it would be short. Given that she wanted to go first and Julia became very shy when we entered the hair salon, Emily got her haircut first. She got a trim and it is shorter, but not by too much. She loved all of the curls that Ms. Mary put in her hair for her. Mama thought she looked a little Shirley Temple-like.

Julia warmed up after being in the shop for a while. A little boy in the salon befriended both girls and played with them as long as he was there. Between the new friend and just seeing how things worked in the room, Julia lost her wariness. She sat very still (at least for a two year old) for Ms. Mary to both cut and style her hair. When we asked Julia if she wanted short or long hair she decided long. So Mary cut some hair off and then gave her a style too. With all the curls it is hard to tell what the cut looks like, but she too was proud of her curls.

Both girls played with a model head while Mama got a haircut and then they helped Ms. Mary sweep up all the cut hair from the floor. They were good helpers and didn’t stop helping until it was done. Mary is so sweet with the girls and lets them play with her combs and clips. We were sad that she couldn’t have lunch with us, but maybe next time.

Julia’s before photo. She was unusually willing to look at the camera and say, “cheese”. Mama marvels at how big her baby is getting!

A during haircut & styling shot. She did a good job of holding still. She enjoyed looking in the mirror and watching herself move her tongue.

An after-styled shot. Something in this photo makes she seem so angelic. Again, she willingly looked at the camera and said, “cheese”.

Julia and Ms. Mary

Emily’s before shot. Mama couldn’t pass up an opportunity to take a picture of her big girl.

Emily showing off her cute curly style with Ms. Mary.

Today was the day for Emily’s hair to be cut. We made an outing of the event and even took a favorite doll with us for the haircut. The new look is really cute, but quite different than the long wavy hair. Time will tell if the wavy hair will remain, but the ends still had some wave to them before they were straightened. It was fun for her to get her hair styled and straightened like a big girl. Actually, Emily’s favorite part was dancing around the big open floor the the salon. Julia got a little trim to keep her included in the event.

The Before

The After

The girls and I had fun playing one morning with curlers. We didn’t have to be anywhere, and Emily asked to have her hair curled, so we curled hair. There was no way that Julia was going to be left out of the fun. She was willing to sit still and let me put in a few rollers. It was good that her hair was long enough to hold them. She couldn’t leave them alone and pulled them all out on her own. Emily thought she was big stuff and didn’t complain when I put them in or took them out. Usually, she complains anytime I run a brush through her hair.

We had some fun with curlers and Emily’s hair. I actually questioned whether Emily would let me put them in her hair at all, or how many she would allow me to get in. To my surprise she let me do her whole head. The video that we watched probably had a lot to do with our success. We left them in for about an hour, which was the point that she started to pull at the curlers. For being dry hair only that was in curlers for an hour, it added an amazing amount of curl added to her hair. We might try it again soon for real instead of play and see how it goes. She is two, so, who knows.

Wow – it has been four months already for little Julia. I have been holding her this week and thinking that she is so much heavier and getting a little chunky. Well, chunky for one of my daughters.

I try to document all of Julia’s significant changes around the time they happen, but I realized that I missed a big one. Julia has neck control and holds her head up really well. At one point she was close and I thought it would be much longer, and then the next thing I noticed, she was a pro at it. I guess I blinked. But she has been doing this for weeks, and I am just now journaling it.

There are some things she has been working on this week that I haven’t missed. She has found her voice. Not in a crying way, she has been working on that one since birth. She has found a coo & a holler. She can keep a conversation with you and at other times she joins in on loud conversations or attempts to get our attention. Tonight, I could have sworn that she was making noise to get Emily’s attention. It is really funny and I love it.

Something else that she is working on is trying to flip over. For a while, she has been doing leg lifts. She alternates between lifting her legs and then lifting her head/shoulders. Her leg lifts get pretty high and now she is adding a twisting motion to them that is getting her close to a flip. She will roll herself over and on her side when on soft cushions like the couch or bed.

Julia has the most beautiful bald spot on the back of her head. I would prefer her to not have it, but she just loves to rub her head back and forth. She likes to have her head rubbed on in general so she must be rubbing it herself. She will quit soon enough, and her hair will grow and it will be a distant memory.

One of my favorite thing she does is hold on to our fingers. When she is fussing herself to sleep in our arms, she pokes her hand out of the blanket in which she is swaddled. If we put one of our fingers into her hand, she will grip it, start to relax, and fight less. She will then drop into sleep, relax, and make herself so heavy. Julia is starting to not need to be swaddled to fall asleep. I remember Emily moving into the stage of not needing swaddling. It will coincide well with warmer weather, but I will miss my baby bundle.