Distinguishing marks

Most people think that all identical twins are exactly the same, carbon copies. Not true. How much they look alike depends on when the fertilized egg splits. The older the embryo is when it splits, the more twins will look...well, identical. If it splits early after fertilization, you get twins that look similar but not necessarily alike. Just because someone is an identical twin, it doesn't mean that the genes do the same thing with each baby as they develop. The map is the same, but not all roads are taken.

My daughter, Carly, has a dimple on the right side of her face. It's the only distinguishing mark (at first glance) between the twins that's visible to the public. She also has a skin tag on her chest and a birthmark on her butt. Keira has none of these. I love this little dimple. I wish I could see more of it. She's my more somber baby so I really have to work for the smiles. She's just not easily impressed. I was very happy to get a picture of her today that showed the dimple. Don't mind the messy bed head, she just woke up from a nap. She got her first two teeth today. Both of the bottoms ones popped through. This little grin was her way of saying "There's no way you're getting a picture of my new teeth." I tried. She was right.