Genetics are coincidences??

When Graham & I decided to have children, we quickly realized that of the usual predictions that some people can make about what "dominant" features their children would get... we had MUCH too large a bucket - a "pool" - if you will - of recessive genes that made the guessing game almost impossible.

I obviously am a carrier of my native roots - my great-great grandmother being full blooded Native American from good old Nebraska. I, thank her for my somewhat almond shaped eyes (I have been mistaken for Asian a time or two in my life :)), dark & straight hair (and I mean STRAIGHT - I have to SCALD this stuff into submission for a little bit of wave, which usually falls out in a few hours anyway!), olive complexion & ability to tan, & rarely burn (thank you, Grandma!), lack of freckles & my inability to digest/process sugar (thanks a LOT, Grandma!)...

BUT, my father is blond, & was into adulthood. He also has naturally curly hair (missed out on THAT one!). I have 2 blond sisters; one with curly, one with straight. My youngest sister bares a striking resemblance to me with many of the same traits (though I believe her hair has some wave to it) - in fact at about 2, you couldn't tell our photographs apart if it weren't for the 70's clothes I was privileged to be subjected to :) We even were the only two "thumb-suckers" in our family - genetic predisposition?? Maybe...

My husband was also blond as a child (darkened in his early teens) & has a blond sister - who is still blond as an adult... but dark is dominant, right?

Well... 2 of my children were born with dark hair, which then fell out & grew back blond... my son was born with blond hair. Yet somehow, in this giant pool of genes to choose from, I am looking at photos of my sweet girls & they seem to have found a lot of similarities to one another amongst all of the "options".

Observe:

Brynlea - Today (4 mths) ......................................................Averie - 2003 (4mths)

Now, I know they aren't identical, but I am still amazed how similar they are. Sometimes when Brynlea is wearing an outfit that Averie wore, I almost feel transported back in time.

As a Mom, I can be a little harder on my eldest daughter, simply because I need her help. She will always have a "position" in our family that makes my expectations of her a little heavier than my other children. We are approaching Averie's birthday on August 9th & it is easy for me to remember how much we anticipated her arrival. How excited we were for her to make us a "real family"!

As a person who doesn't believe much in coincidences, and looking at all the options there were for our newest wonderful addition... I thank Heavenly Father for the "reminder" that Averie came to us just a short 5 years ago & though she is an amazing help & blessing to me... these moments are for reminding me that Averie is, and will always be my Baby Girl.

I love you, my sweet girls!