Do your twins have vastly different personalities?

I have 2 boy twins.... Ryan & Nate. both were preemies born @ 32 Weeks due to Pre-E and IGUR of Nate. Ryan was 4.2lbs at birth and Nate was 2.9lbs.

Anyhow, they both did great in the NICU and were mainly there to feed & grow. Nate actually got out 3 days earlier than Ryan even though he was the small one, since he picked up the feeding from the bottle & body temp for open crib faster.

Anyway, I have no other children to compare them to so I hope i'm not over-analyzing or being ridiculous but I worry so much about Nate b/c he was born SO small and because he's the quieter of the two boys.

Ryan is always laughing, talking, smiling... you don't have to work hard to get a rise out of him. He's very verbal and fun to be around (when he's not mad, then he's a monster!). He's a loud happy baby.

Nate on the other-hand is much, much quieter. You really have to work at him to get smiles and he doesn't talk all that much yet. He also doesn't nearly cry as much as his brother, and has a thumb-sucking addiction. He's also 3lbs smaller than Ryan (only 11lbs now, to Ryan's 14lbs). Besides being quiet, he's a happy baby and active - loves to move his arms & legs around a lot.. but he seems so serious...and the fact he doesn't make a lot of noise talking or crying or anything sort of bothers me.

I'm pretty sure it's just that they have 2 different personalities and I have no basis of comparison except to one another, being a first time mom. And it's probably just that Ryan is more outgoing and social, while Nate is perhaps more serious & shy. Does this sound right to you? Or should I get him checked out? I mentioned it to my Pediatrician and she didn't seem to be worried, said he looked perfectly normal and healthy and was doing all the right things.

I just worry.... Do you all see big personality differences between your twins?

 

Oh yes, they are definitely different. My son is more independent and used to cry all the time (colic). After about 4 months of age, he became so much more mellow. My daughter is the crazy, active one that talks and chases after any thing and one.

 

You know, my Colin started of like your Nate. He was just very withdrawn almost. Had VERY high stranger danger. He was meeting all his development goals but like I said... withdrawn. You really had to work at getting him to smile. He hardly ever fussed. He was such an easy going baby. Really the best baby I have ever had. Active, but like yours serous. Not a lot of noise, not at all very needy. Then at about 6 months things changed. He is still not fussy or needy and still the best baby I've ever had, but now he is very outgoing. Talking, playing, a goof. Loves people and showing off. He's still laid back, but definitely coming into his own more. Having kids, I think 6 months is when they really start to come into their personalities the most. But Colin and Lia are NOTHING alike. Like I said, Colin's easy... Lia.... Right!

 

My twin girls are SOOOOO different. Size, looks, personalities, you name it. Maya is my smaller one, much more active, much more outgoing, laughs, cries, pulls her sister's hair, fidgets all the time, doesn't sit still. She is also a pain in the butt to feed. Rebecca is bigger, much more mellow, eats really well, doesn't fuss all too much, but also takes much more work to get to smile and laugh. She is content to sit in one place while Maya is the total opposite. I also have a toddler who is also different from the 2 of them. I really think those are all normal personality differences. People are different and babies are different, and it makes sense. No two babies are alike. We tend to worry more because we constantly compare our twins. I bet you wouldn't be as worried if you didn't have them side by side to compare. If your ped isn't worried you probably shouldn't be either!

 

Your little guys sound so much like mine. Born at 28 weeks due to Pre-E and IUGR, Andy was 2 lbs., 15 oz. and Will was 2 lbs., 3 oz. Now they consistently stay about 4 lbs. apart. Andy is my little chunker at 19 lbs. and Will is 15 lbs. I was worried about Will for the longest time. He didn't seem as bubbly as Andy, he rarely smiled, always had serious looks on his face, kept his startle reflex longer than Andy, his little arms and legs stayed tucked in all the time. Then when they got to about 5 months old, my little Will started coming out of his shell. Now I can't keep him quiet. He babbles all the time, giggles, squeals, he rolls over all the time when Andy seem to have no interest in rolling over. Now they just seem to have different personalities rather than Will having a lag in development. I'd say that Nate will probably start coming into his own soon. Good luck!

 

Our little gals (fraternal) have two very unique personalites. Kelsey was born first and has always been bigger than her sister. She's content playing all by herself and is generally happy most of the time. She can also be very stoic at times and makes you work for a laugh or smile. Madison, on the other hand, likes to be the center of attention. She's very verbal when she's happy or sad and likes to be held constantly. She can also be very stubborn and protests when you try to get her to do something she doesn't want to do. It's not uncommon for her to demand you come and play with her inside the superyard, despite a viable playmate being just feet away.

They've both got very big personalities but choose to express them in vastly different ways!

 

Our little girlies have opposite personalities as well! Carly, the oldest and (was) the biggest at birth, is very content, loves to snuggle, likes to "look around", patiently awaites for her bottle to be fixed, smiles constantly and blabs at her mobile and my silk tree that's in the living room..lol

Madison, the smaller of the two (at birth)is FIESTY! Always has been. She is my baby who kept pulling out her feeding tubes, pulling the leads off of her chest....And get this, she was only 2 days old and was pitching a fit for the nurse who was working with her and got sooo mad that she passed out! Yes, she was screaming and all of a sudden her little head dropped. Of course it was scary at the moment, but the nurse put her oxygen on her and she "woke" back up only to continue her fit! We look back on it now and just chuckle...She has outgrown her sister by only a pound, but nontheless. She is very demanding, doesn't have any patience, and you can only love on her when she wants you too. I really think we're going to have our hands full with her! But we wouldn't trade her for anything or even take a million dollars for her!!


TWINS, WOW!!!!!!!

 

I wouldn't say that mine are vastly different because DH and I have similar quiet personalities. Ryan is more easy going and is a risk taker while Jake gets frustrated easily and is clingy. Jake used to be the risk taker though and Ryan would observe before making his move. They both have interests in similar things but I do notice more personality differences as they have gotten older.

 

My girls are definitely individuals and have actually had some of their personality traits since before they were born. (That's what I believe, anyway) Amelia used to always hide for the ultrasounds and be difficult, my OB once said "this baby will be the reason you'll need a C-Section" (meaning b/c she wouldn't cooperate) and to this day Amelia is my more stubborn child. Not that Lily isn't stubborn though!

Right from birth Lily loved having her picture taken. Even in the newborn photos they take in the hospital Lily was wide awake making pretty faces for the camera. (As much as a newborn can make a pretty face.) She looked beautiful in the newborn pics! Amelia - not so much. In all the professional pics we have and the majority of the ones I take at home, Lily is smiling and loves the camera.

Other than stubborness and love for the camera I wouldn't say that one of them is one way and the other isn't though. They have a lot of similarities.

 

Oh boy do they! My girls are fraternal. Josie (born 2 minutes earlier) started out a bit smaller but she is my mellow, easy going, smiley, happy girl. Libbey - intense, needy, smaller, always active and flipping everywhere. She never stops and just now is showing really happy moments.

 

I have b/g twins and mine couldn't be more different if they tried. Especially in the personality department. They're reaching milestones at vastly different rates and although they are both good babies, don't really share many of the same interests or interact with us in the same way. They're not even that big into playing with each other. It sounds normal to me and don't be surprised if it changes all of the sudden. My little man was so serious and almost grumpy until he learned to roll over, sleep on his stomach and suck his thumb. Now he's a big ham and the life of the party.