From early babyhood, Elsie’s face has morphed from delightful broad grins into hilariously disgruntled gurns in a fraction of a second. Back then, it was so cute we would get her to pull a face as a party piece. She didn’t speak until she was two so this was her saving grace.Maria was more of a genius, as all first children are. A building block virtuoso. I do not know this for definite, but at the time, I imagined Anthony elbowing old ladies and pregnant women aside to get on the tube so he could set up the blocks for ten-month-old Maria.‘What colour is this, Maria?’‘Buh!’‘Blue she said blue!’‘.. the block is red.’‘Yes, but she’s recognising that things are different colours!’‘So she is! Quick pass me the Times crossword!’Anthony would get irritated at my scepticism. When his mother was around however, my indifference changed to unspoken pride. Short eye contact with her said,‘Yeah Grace, I didn’t want to say anything, but he’s right, we’re dealing with something pretty special here.’Anthony’s pride was never silent. In front of an audience, he would sit Maria on the floor and get her to point to all the blocks in turn and shout, ‘Buh!’She performed this trick even when the blocks did not belong to her. Anthony’s sister had twelve-month-old Christopher, who was struggling to say ‘Buh!’ in relation to colours, he had plenty more to say for himself but Anthony ignored that. Grandma would assure Maddie, Christopher’s mum, that girls develop faster than boys. Chastised, Anthony would cease the display of Maria’s superior intellect and offer words of comfort.‘Of course they do, he’ll get there Maddie.’ As though Christopher had already been diagnosed with a learning disability.Anthony was relaying this funny story for the girls over dinner one day. By then, Maria was thirteen and very much average, while Christopher was the high achieving pride of the family. Anthony may have used an unacceptable term to describe his thoughts on Christopher as a baby, laughing at his own ridiculous behaviour.A while later, following a gathering of Anthony’s family, Anthony got a call from an outraged Maddie to say that Elsie had called Christopher ‘backward’.Anthony made Elsie apologise!Far from being cute, these days Elsie’s scowl is just annoying. According to Anthony, she looks like me. He only says this when she is grumpy.For comparison to my daughters, I have a handful of photographs of myself as a child. Two school photographs, one of a day at Strathy beach and the hidden picture. Big Colin Sinclair, Mum’s on-off boyfriend must have taken the beach one. In it, I am wearing a blue and white striped swimsuit and have my arm around my mum. I am smiling widely and happily like I am the luckiest child in the universe. Behind me, endless sand, and dunes as far as the eye can see. Not another soul in sight.Over time, my accent has faded. People have said it’s a shame to have lost it. Once, a bit drunk at a dinner and deliberately trying to sound mysterious I replied,‘It isn’t the only thing I’ve lost.’Anthony heard me. He looked gutted. I read the route his memory had taken and didn’t know how to backtrack. I had not meant what he thought. I quickly put my arm around him and said chirpily.‘But look what I found!’