Sweet Sisters

Thanks to my patient husband, we captured these precious moments on camera before our Sunday afternoon walk. Everyday I see new signs of sisterly love... & frustration. Abby is protective of Katie & very often notices a need Katie has before I do & then takes initiative to address it. Yesterday, we went to a wholesale fish market to buy some salmon for dinner. While Abby & I were watching the staff clean fish behind the observation window, Katie was sitting on the floor in her car seat bucket. One of the ladies who was cleaning fish opened the door & stepped into the waiting area all decked out in her big rubber apron, boots & arm-length gloves. She walked right up to Katie &, before I could step in front of Katie, she leaned into her bucket & with her gloved fingers, pinched her cheeks. I held my breath & tried to stuff my concerns. But, then, just as I was wrestling with the same thought, Abby says, "Mommy, that lady had raw fish on her gloves." Then she climbed up on a stool, pulled down a paper towel & cleaned Katie's cheek... wow! I laughed out loud. She is already showing signs of being my daughter... as if she read my mind!

Anyway, Katie thinks Abby is magical and funny at all times... well, almost all times. Katie is a very happy girl (she wakes up talking and laughing 99.9% of the time), but every now and then, she lets it be known that she wants her space. "Back off" seems to be her message to her big sister, as she pulls out a new whine specifically made for the situations in which Abby is too much in her face. I have to say that Katie has a lot more patience than I do. It takes a lot less to make me whine.