This morning, both of my kids woke up before 6am. I can’t complain, as they both crashed last night at 6pm.

Except, now they are totally a #team,

which is awesome,

and only slightly terrifying.

So, their morning ritual is now this:

One child usually wakes up first. If it is my daughter, I can tell because I can see her light on from the hallway. If it is my son, I can hear him from his crib at the other end of the second floor.

Once they are both clearly awake, my daughter then goes into my son’s room, piles every single pillow hat she can carry under his crib, and helps her little brother to escape from captivity.

Either they play together (rarely)

or they come into our room.

They have slightly different styles.

Daughter: Whispering, “Good morning, mommy,” as she leans down and kisses me softly.

Son: “Mama! Dada! Mama! Dada!” he chants as he runs down the hall to our bedroom. He never walks. It’s always a run.

The best mornings, for me, are when both of my babies are in bed with us, snuggled up. My daughter and I usually sing some showtunes. My son demands food and milk (though this morning he sucked his thumb and cuddled on my chest for a good half hour).

This morning, it was my son to get up first. I heard him in his crib and checked to see that all of the lights were still off. But, he woke his sister successfully, and it was no time before they were both in our room.

And then, time went on.

And yet again, I was shown that my daughter and my son are completely different beings.

My girl went back into her room, snuggled under her covers and occupied herself with games and Barbies and, if I am being completely honest, the makeup game that she played on the iphone she sneaked craftily from our bedroom.

My son, however, was a bit different. As I mentioned, he snuggled up to me, and that was lovely. And then, when I got up to use the bathroom, he followed me. He closed the door behind us. I got down on my knees so that I could be at his level, hoping for a hug or kiss. He looked into my eyes. Then, he pivoted, opened the bathroom door, took off his glasses, threw them into the hallway and then slammed the door closed again, so that we were both back inside. I think that this is the human equivalent of a dog pinning another dog. Because after he showed his perceived “dominance” he then tried to knock me over. Yup. Again.

I love them both so much that sometimes it feels like my heart is actually going to get too big and burst from my chest. And I have to admit, I love them more for being so different. I love that my daughter can occupy herself for hours. I love that my son is a rebel and that when I look at the photos of him in school he is 3 times the size of all of the other kids.

Mornings as a mama may be different now, but they are, without a doubt, the best part of waking up.