It happened over the weekend, on Mother's Day to be exact. My darling Miss 9 graduated and is now Miss 10! Although there wasn't a lot of family around to celebrate with her, we had a good day and she was quite spoiled as I suppose is normal with your youngest child.
Yes, that is still the tag on her new sunglasses. She had just opened them and was trying them on for the first time. She has always loved to pose for the camera, just as she has always loved playing dress up. Miss 10 has two full boxes of dress up clothes, 1 upstairs in her room and one downstairs in their playroom. It never fails that when she has friends over they are digging in the dress up clothes for a costume of some kind to go with whichever game they have decided to play. Often they play with the sequined capes sewn by Grandma J. With a cape you can be a crime fighter or a princess, the possibilities are endless. I love that Miss 10 has a very vivid imagination.
Miss 10 is also an athlete. Over the weekend she ran a mile footrace despite the fact that she was home on Thursday with a migraine, and the temperature at race time was only 37 degrees. In fact she hasn't even been able to train much due to one illness or another, but still was all gung ho about running this race. And run she did taking 5th of all the girls under 16 and 14th overall in an 8:27 mile. That's with walking included when she had to stop and cough for a while. (leftover junk from a cold) Believe me, she wasn't forced to run, in fact I would rather have stayed home in the warmth for another hour or so before we had to watch Miss 14 and the band in the parade. This is the 5th year in a row she has ran this particular race, yes, that means she started running it right before she turned 5 years old! Miss 14 ran with her then, keeping pace with her and walking when they needed to. Miss 10 spent the afternoon after the race running like a crazy woman with her friends. Miss 10 is like the energizer bunny, she never stops moving. (Well, unless the tv is on, then just try to get her attention. That's why tv time is limited at our house)
Of my three children Miss 10 is the one who has always been the most willing to show her feelings. If she really, really loves you at the moment, "I love you!" and a big hug are handed out frequently. If you are in the doghouse, the daggers coming from her eyes are enough to make you run and hide. She is a child of extremes in many, many ways and I wouldn't have her any other way. I've learned more patience from her then I ever knew I was capable of. I've learned that just going to school won't necessarily make you learn, that sometimes you need to see the same thing again and again and again, and that parents often make the best teachers. I've learned that being forced into a situation doesn't make it easy, that sometimes the only thing that works is time. I've learned that many adults see shyness as lack of respect, and that as a parent you have to stand up for your shy child in many situations. I've learned to explain Miss 10's quirks to everyone who might spend time with her, because it makes her life easier and less stressful. Miss 10 has taught me that having a third child was exactly what I needed.
Happy Birthday Miss 10, don't tell your siblings, but you are my favorite 10 year old!
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