Nature Versus Nurture
I'm watching my 2 kids today (as they torment each other) and thinking about how we perceive ourselves when we parent. And about how much credit we give and take.

When we had just one, we took credit for everything. Didn't we do a marvelous job? Isn't she so smart? Aren't we wonderful?

Then we had 2. If anyone who has more than one actually reads this, I'm sure you're laughing your ass off just now. I understand; it's okay.

BUT...

I'm listening to them today, and thinking that it's really quite simple - if they act alike, it's our fault/credit; if they act differently; it's just their nature.

Since they are so high energy these days (and really quite smart, which is not so much a plus as something to bear) and can just tire me out so quickly, this makes it a lot easier for me to decide how much time to spend obsessing about whether I'm failing them as a parent or not.