Transferred from my other blog: The Adventures of Sisterhood.
First published: 6-18-12 at 10:36 PM EDT
I don't love my little sister because her chubby cheeks are cute,
because her tiny nose is adorable, because the little ponytail she wears
on the top of her head is absolutely endearing. I suppose I love her
first and foremost because she's kin, but besides that, it's every new
thing she learns how to do or say, every moment of self-satisfaction
when she chooses to be carried by me, every time her childish soprano
shrieks with happiness. Of course, my psychological deductions are
neither accurate nor qualified. Turning to the never-ending fountain of
scientific and behavioral knowledge, ScienceDaily, I perused through the psychology archives.
What
I happened upon didn't surprise me once I finished reading it. It's all
in the structure of a baby's face.There's a region of parental instinct
in our minds, which Robin from How I Met Your Mother is clearly
missing. Renowned zoologist Konrad Lorenz says that the big-cheeked,
wide
foreheaded, bulgy eyed baby facial structure is the reason our brain
immediately registers it as innocent, helpless, and in need of
protection.
While I'm not sure how much the zoology
theory applies to adolescents and other children, I can say that I don't
think I loved little kids until my baby sister was born. Yesterday, I
spent most of my afternoon volunteering at our local park's dock. My
duties consisted of fitting customers with life vests and helping them
in and out of boats. The girl working with me remarked that I seemed to
handle kids and dogs the best, with all my "sweetie" and "kiddo" and
"munchkin"-ing. In my mind, every kid I saw I compared with Kylie's
timeline. The ones younger, I thought of her just a few months earlier,
and the ones older I observed with anticipation and excitement for when
my sister would be like that. It wasn't so much their unblemished faces
and innocent grins as their funny remarks and all the little actions you
start to notice when you've been watching people go by for hours.
I'm
not sure that I really have a point today. Everything I've written is
fractal and discombobulated. Basically, I love Kylie. My mom loves
Kylie, my dad and my grandma love Kylie. Why do we love Kylie? Because
she'll take one look at a laptop and demand "Elmo." Because when you ask
her a question of responsibility or possession, any "Who" question, her
response is always herself. Because she's happy and smart. I guess,
well, because she's ours.
-Chichi
Showing posts with label babies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label babies. Show all posts
Monday, June 18, 2012
Monday, February 6, 2012
Kylie and Chichi
Transferred from my other blog: The Adventures of Sisterhood.
First published: 2-6-12 at 4:33 PM PDT
My baby sister is named Kylie. Currently, I'm watching her chug milk from the sippy cup that she's balancing with one hand and pick at a plate of egg-bits with the other. She was born on October 22, 2010, and is currently 15 months old. She and I are 12 years and 8 months apart, and I love her with all of my heart.
For the almost 13 years before Kylie was born, I was an only child. As I got older, our schedule completely revolved around me and my extracurriculars. When my mom told me that she was pregnant, I didn't believe it. Literally. I thought she was joking. I thought she was far too old to have another baby. When reality hit, I'll admit, I had my doubts about having a sibling. How was I supposed to go from the only kid to the older kid? Sister? That word was foreign to me. Would we be close? Would she do gymnastics like me? What happens if she asks me to do her hair? I could barely do my own. For a few weeks, those were the only thoughts that ran through my mind. The one friend I told about her nicknamed her "the baby cow" completely by chance. I gave updates like, the cow kicked today! or the cow is 20 weeks old! Mutual friends would look at us like we were crazy. The day that Kylie was born, my science teacher gave me permission to text my dad to ask for pictures during class. He sent two, of her laying inside a little NICU, and the moment I saw them, I knew I had the most beautiful baby sister in the world.
At 15 months old, Kylie can walk, almost run, clap her hands, and say about a dozen words in Chinese and English. Her shining eyes are brown-black, and her hair is thin, short (we shaved it twice so she'd have full, healthy hair in the future - it's a long backstory), and also brown-black. She's petite for her age, and she likes to be tickled. She loves reading books and pointing to the pictures to ask you what they are. She knows how to share her toys. She loves sliding. Her favorite part of stuffed animals are the eyes and the tag. She likes to copy the sounds that you make. She dances when she hears music. I could go on for days about her, but at her 15 months old, our adventures together are just beginning.
-Chichi
First published: 2-6-12 at 4:33 PM PDT
My baby sister is named Kylie. Currently, I'm watching her chug milk from the sippy cup that she's balancing with one hand and pick at a plate of egg-bits with the other. She was born on October 22, 2010, and is currently 15 months old. She and I are 12 years and 8 months apart, and I love her with all of my heart.
For the almost 13 years before Kylie was born, I was an only child. As I got older, our schedule completely revolved around me and my extracurriculars. When my mom told me that she was pregnant, I didn't believe it. Literally. I thought she was joking. I thought she was far too old to have another baby. When reality hit, I'll admit, I had my doubts about having a sibling. How was I supposed to go from the only kid to the older kid? Sister? That word was foreign to me. Would we be close? Would she do gymnastics like me? What happens if she asks me to do her hair? I could barely do my own. For a few weeks, those were the only thoughts that ran through my mind. The one friend I told about her nicknamed her "the baby cow" completely by chance. I gave updates like, the cow kicked today! or the cow is 20 weeks old! Mutual friends would look at us like we were crazy. The day that Kylie was born, my science teacher gave me permission to text my dad to ask for pictures during class. He sent two, of her laying inside a little NICU, and the moment I saw them, I knew I had the most beautiful baby sister in the world.
At 15 months old, Kylie can walk, almost run, clap her hands, and say about a dozen words in Chinese and English. Her shining eyes are brown-black, and her hair is thin, short (we shaved it twice so she'd have full, healthy hair in the future - it's a long backstory), and also brown-black. She's petite for her age, and she likes to be tickled. She loves reading books and pointing to the pictures to ask you what they are. She knows how to share her toys. She loves sliding. Her favorite part of stuffed animals are the eyes and the tag. She likes to copy the sounds that you make. She dances when she hears music. I could go on for days about her, but at her 15 months old, our adventures together are just beginning.
-Chichi
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