Puberty

My adorable kids.. Jack, 9 1/2 in March, and his older sister, "Savannah" (as she would have liked to have been named in another life), who turns 11 in a matter of months. When I first was pregnant with Jack, the OB/GYN called my kids "Irish Twins", which I have to say is both stupid and amusing. My son thinks this means they're actually twins, and I have to explain that no, they're just really close together in age.

I've been noticing little things here and there with my daughter, leading me to believe we're on our way through puberty. She's still quite small (barely 70 lbs), and only just started noticing a visible difference "up top". She did try to show me some hairs under her arms, but I'm not sure that's anything more than the peach fuzz she has elsewhere. I have been gradually talking with her about body changes for some time now.. probably since she was 9, as another mom told me that some 9 yr old girls in her daughter's class had already started their periods. That is too early to fathom, and I'm really hoping Savannah will be another couple of years away from that monthly drama. But I knew all of that stuff before I was 9, and it just makes sense that my daughter is well informed about that part of puberty before it happens.

Both of my kids were given deodorant last year, to get them into the habit. Neither have the greatest hygiene habits yet. I think Jack uses the deodorant more than Savannah does, and he is more eager to bathe/shower, too. (Although he absolutely hates getting his hair washed). She wants her bath when nothing else sounds good (ie., she's bored), or when it's really cold out. She'll sit in a bubble bath for as long as you'll let her, and play with dolls or whatever. She washes her own hair, but she isn't great at it. In fact, sometimes I see her right after a bath, asking why half of her head is still dry. She also sucks as brushing her teeth. I get that my kids are still young, so I try not to get too worked up over it, but Jack has 2 cavities, and Savannah is well on her way if she doesn't start brushing the way she needs to.

Yesterday, Jack asked me to put some lotion on him when he got out of the shower. Being that he has Autism (leaning towards Asperger's), he isn't as concerned about privacy as his big sister. While I make sure to let him know that has a right to privacy, (sometimes he says "Don't look, mom!", and I make sure to let him know that I have no intentions of looking), he isn't as self-conscious about being naked around the rest of the family, as Savannah is. So I put lotion on his legs, and much to my surprise, there seems to be a growth of hair where I wouldn't expect to see it quite yet. "Precocious puberty" would, for boys, start before 9 years of age. But with everything else going on with him, gosh darnit.. is this what I'm seeing? Nothing else seems to be happening (puberty wise) as far as I can tell. He has an appointment with his doctor on Thursday, so we'll see what he says.

Two kids going through puberty at the same time. Doesn't sound pretty, does it? LOL