I don't know why I didn't think of this sooner. We've got two babies, both striving for the same developmental milestones. We never know who's going to be first to achieve the next one. They're both raised in the same conditions, the same environment. It's one big experiment in nature vs. nurture. So, why not make it a little more interesting, if you catch my drift?

I won't participate, of course, because it would just be wrong for a mother to bet on her own children. The last thing I want is to be known as the Pete Rose of the mommy blogging set. But as disinterested (and perhaps slightly interested?) bystanders, you can get in on the game. 

Ever since they've been pulling up -- starting back in September for Elsa -- people have been saying they'll be walking "any day now." I think they've still got at least a month to go, personally. But who knows. Sometimes developmental progress happens in fits and starts. But the question remains: which twin has the Toni? And by Toni I mean not a bad at-home perm from the 1950s, but the will, the determination, the get-up-and-go to do that which separates man from meerkat: WALK! On two legs. (Meerkats can't do that, can they?)

Before you make your prediction, please take a moment to get to know the contenders, and consider their respective strengths:

On the right: Elsa "Give 'em Hell-sa" Margaret Moock

Eyes: Blue

Hair: Sedona Dusk 

Body Type: Tall and sturdy.

Interests: Nursing, bathing, cat food, Cheerios, peas, puttting blocks into a bucket, climbing stairs, squealing, whacking her sister on the head in glee, postmodernism

History: Elsa has traditionally been the more advanced of the Baby Squared twins when it comes to gross motor skills. She rolled over first, sat up first, started crawling first (7 months) and started pulling up to standing first (8 months). She's a confident cruiser, and has lately been doing a lot of getting up on one knee as if to stand, but hasn't made the final push to independent verticality. She's also gotten much more interested in more sedentary things of late, like cuddling and pointing at pictures in books. So, does she have what it takes to go bipedal? No doubt. The question is, when?

On the left: Clio "O Sole Mio" Rose Moock

Eyes: Hazel

Hair: Calistoga Taupe

Body Type: Compact and tightly coiled

Interests: Drinking from a cup, sticking tongue out, putting fingers in people's mouths, giggling, Cheerios, bouncing, taking blocks out of a bucket, thrashing, ska, hedge funds

History: Clio has always done things at her own pace, unfazed by the gross motor skill progress of certain other babies and generally preferring to focus on social and verbal skills / bemused observation. But in the past couple of months, she's made great strides in the mobility department. In October, she went from getting up on all fours to zooming around like a little roadrunner within the space of two weeks. She was pulling up by early November. And -- get this -- in the past couple of weeks, she has started letting go once she's up and standing completely unsupported -- at times for as long as 15-20 seconds at a time. Sometimes while clapping, to boot! Clio just might be the dark horse entry in....

THE ULTIMATE WALKING CHALLENGE!!

So, my friends, who will be first to take their first steps? The intrepid Elsa?

Or the maverick Clio?

Mesdames et messieurs, les jeux sont faits!