So many kids, I don't know what to do.



Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Dear Daughter

Saigie,

You are going to be ten this month. Although I am excited for you and I know you are growing into a young lady I do not envy you this time period.  Nowadays they are referred to as the "Tween" years.  They are fun years and they are awful years. I myself spent three years of middle school trying to convince people I was a girl.  (It's true.  I haven't mentioned it before.  I try to block it out.)

They are fun years because you can do more and more things by yourself like bake brownies and ride around the neighborhood on your bike.

They are crappy years because your body has been taken over by hormones and it doesn't always look, feel, or act they way you want it to.

They are fun years because you can begin to make friends you will have your whole life.  They will remember fondly the pimple so big it got its own name and the awful shoes you insisted on wearing.

They are crappy years because kids your age can be cruel when they don't know any other way to get over their own insecurities. They can tease people who don't deserve it.  It's because they are worried about their own problems, but that is hard to remember sometimes.

I am looking forward to being able to to share interests with you and be the mom of a young lady. 

I am not looking forward to your unpredictable reactions to rational statements like, "We are out of orange juice."  I am not looking forward to seeing who wins the "eye rolling" battle.   (I will win.  It will be ugly.)

I do want you to know though that this too shall pass.  You won't always be a tween.  Your body doesn't want to betray you for the rest of your life.  I want you to know that although my role in your life may be changing I have never loved you more.  In a few short years your body will emerge from this awkward phase and you will be even more beautiful inside and out.

So when things seem impossible and depressing and confusing, remember I am here and I love you.  My lap will still hold you.  And remember when I am invading your space and infuriating you with my rules - that's my job.

Also remember your brother, Tanner, has vowed to beat the crap out of any boy you ever bring home, so pick a large one!  (In a few years!)



Got any funny/awkward tween memories you care to share?



18 comments:

  1. Wow, what a great post to your daughter! I did not enjoy my tweens or my teens at all!

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  2. Always such an awkward time. I think I started my period when I was 10!

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  3. My niece is a tween right now and the other one is on the cusp of becoming one. I don't miss those years - they are hard and you feel so inbetween during them!

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  4. My daughter just left the tweens and entered the teens..... I'm realizing I'm not that ready for it! As for my tweens, I started puberty (period and all) at 9. I was miserable during those years.

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  5. Oh, this is so sweet! I am not looking forward to the tween years.

    LOL @ the eyerolling contest!

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  6. Perfection. Can I save this for when my daughter is 10...I couldn't say it any better.

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  7. I love this so much, I may take the easy way out and lift it for Thing 1 who turns 10 nest month!
    Against everyone's better judgement, I wore the most god-awful red platform shoes from Goodwill to my Confirmation. So gaudy I think the priest even mentioned them. They will live on in infamy.

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  8. Love this letter! What a beautiful moment you can share with her again when she's finally out of the teen years.

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  9. This was precious! I especially liked "I WILL win! It will be ugly!" You are too funny!

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  10. What a wonderful post to your daughter!

    My little sister just turned 14 . . . and the last few years with her have been really rough. I seriously think moms of tweens are the strongest women around. lol

    Stopping by from PYHO!

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  11. Beautiful. I think it's essential to tell our girls that those years will be tough and oftentimes confusing when THEY don't even know why they're behaving the way they are.

    Having a 20 year old daughter, a teenage daughter and a tween girl, I think those tween years are the toughest as they navigate so many new things in their lives.

    It sounds like with her sweet mama's words, she's already got a head start.

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  12. Oh so not looking forward to this with my kids- can't those years just be skipped somehow?

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  13. I didn't think the tweens were as bad as the teens!

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  14. Oh, wow. Good luck to both of you! I hated this period in my life. It was so hard. Basically 11-17 was pretty much awful.

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  15. Aww - now I'm terrified of those years! And I have a BOY! They're easier, right? Tell me they're easier...

    Happy Early Birthday Saigie!

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  16. Oh the tween years, I do not remember them fondly. I hope your daughter gets through unscathed. I am not looking forward to it with my younger daughter.

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  17. Beautiful post. My son is 12, and oh so unpredictable!

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I always like to know someone is listening!