Wednesday, July 9, 2014

DNAsymmetry

Obviously, from a genetic perspective, Paige and I contributed equal parts of DNA to our boys.  In some ways, we all four have a lot in common.  But there are some distinctions that up to now align Charlie with Paige and Teddy with me.  Thinking about things that differ between me and Paige and between the boys, I then made a McKinsey & Co.-worthy matrix.

This list felt a lot longer and more definitive before I actually stopped to write it down.  And yet, I still can't think of a single thing to put in the Paige/Teddy box.  I've been sitting on this for a while, but I'm not getting inspired with more entries.  So I'll just put it out there and let people (especially Paige) weigh in.

Parent-Child Attribute Alignment

Paige Jeff
Charlie needs glasses
thick hair that can be shaped
freaky good memory
puts ketchup on food 
sleeps in

likes Taco Bell
Teddy
wears emotions on sleeve
soft, flimsy hair
perfect vision (so far)
gets up early pretty much every day

5 comments:

Paige said...

Paige and Teddy: competitive and--if character is not molded and discipline is not exercised--a poor loser. Resemblance in facial features (particularly my baby and toddler pics). Sometimes diffident about initiating social interaction. Likes drawing, coloring, and making little dioramas and figures out of paper and cardboard.

JFo said...

Wouldn't you also say, though, that Charlie is competitive, which would take it out of this matrix of differences in alignment.

You're always making those dioramas.

Paige said...

Charlie is competitive, but I don't think he's as much of a sore loser as Teddy is (and I would be if I hadn't worked on it my whole life).

I don't currently construct a lot of dioramas, but I did when I was little. Ask Mom. Maybe she'll comment and confirm.

Anne H. said...

Oh yes, Paige made little dioramas and the like. She was independent from an early age ("don't want to" age 2) and not as much of a people-pleaser as her sister. Paige was cautious about physical things and didn't like "motion rides." She loved to read and learned to read very quickly and easily. She was always precise, not prone to exaggerate. She was self-confident and would answer the door or phone for her older sister, who wouldn't.

Lauren Jackson said...

I clicked on comments to add the part about Teddy's facial features, especially his lips, which are definitely similar to Paige's at a young age. But Paige got to it first! And Charlie's gregarious nature definitely comes from Jeff. It's fun to note all the ways our kids are like us, but also how they are just themselves. Mike and I certainly see how each kid seems to be more similar to one parent, but then just in their own way, and I can even see some aspects of Paige in Trevor, too (the ability to argue for example). It's great to be a parent!