Almost ten

April 10, 2009

My oldest will be 10 next month. She has been a joy to parent right from the beginning - really. (This can't be said of all my children!) Everything has been very smooth sailing until... now.

Are there any other parents of ten year old girls, or almost ten year old girls out there nodding their heads right now? Please share any wisdom, I'm all ears.

I want to respect my daughter's privacy, she reads this blog and I want her to know (Celine, I want you to read this part) I absolutely adore her. When I think about it I start to cry, as in right now I'm tearing up. I can't say enough how proud I am of her and how happy I am to be her mother.

But almost ten is throwing me for a loop because I feel it's throwing her for a loop. She's ready for new challenges, responsibilities, freedoms and experiences but neither of us are quite sure what those are. We're on the cusp of something, tottering at the edge of a change.

At least for now her room is still the same. Stuffed dogs and horses, a tidy bed, 4 inch stack of bedside books and porcelain dolls on the windowsill. My little girl.