Sean has loaded up the Baby Bjorn and gone out for an early morning walk with both of the girls as babies.  Liev had late walks with the sun going down.  He saw the concerts in Battery Park City and people drinking beer in the outdoor cafes along the water, and people lounging on the grass.  But, the girls have gotten their Daddy walks on the other side of the day before the city has had time to wipe the sleep out of its eyes.  There are dogs and prep chefs and construction workers and runners.  People are clinging to their coffees and walking briskly to the subways to begin their work day.  They are all business.

Since Mira was a first child and very, very fussy, Sean would take her out every single morning for an hour or sometimes even two hours.  They went when it was August and steaming hot.  They went when it was February and freezing cold.  You could see how much Mira looked forward to her Daddy Time, kicking her legs and smiling when she saw him putting the Bjorn on, like a puppy who catches sight of its leash.

With Genevieve, third child, mellow girl, Sean has only taken her out early twice.  She is usually a very, very good sleeper, and we can snuggle and sleep in the early morning.  Every baby has a bad night or two, though, and when she has had one-up cluster nursing or preparing for a growth spurt- and when her daddy doesn’t have a huge work load for the day, Genevieve and Sean have been out and about.

When they have walked early like that, so many memories surfaced of that first girl riding in her Bjorn, coming home with pastries from Balthazaar or Bouley.  She would have a gigantic grin on her face, so happy to have been out to see the city and treat those all-business-people to an early morning smile.

One of the biggest jokes in our family right now is just how much these two girls look alike.  I love opening up pictures of the two of them at the same age and having the kids guess which one is which.  Often, they guess wrong.  Honestly, if I did not remember the details behind each picture, I might guess wrong, too.

And you?  Can you tell which one is which?

Need some more EARLY in your life?  Check out these other Corner Views from around the world:

jane – ian – joyce – francesca – kasia –isabelle – janis – kari – jgy – lise – cate –otli – dorte – ali – sunnymama – daan –ibb – kelleyn– ninja– theresa – cherry b – cole – lucylaine – skywriting – anna– rosamaría – tikjewit – juniper –valerie – mlle paradis – wander chow–don –flowtops – susanna – tania –kristin