Lorelai Turned Ten This Year!

Holy cow, I have a daughter who is ten years old now. When my girls were all babies, I remember hearing the older moms say, "Oh, the time with your kids goes by so fast..." To which I'd nod distractedly, because I had a diaper to change, or a collar to grab as one of my little girls tried to run out into traffic. But those older moms were right! I can't pinpoint exactly when the time starts to hurdle forward so fast...maybe it's when they enter school. At any rate, I now have a kid in the double-digits; a fifth-grader who plays piano and trombone; who plays golf and volleyball; who's excited about starting middle school next year (yikes!); who talks about cute boys in class; who got her ears pierced last weekend (more on that in a bit)!

How did my cute little baby turn into this tall, skinny, complex creature? I am still not sure, but I can definitely say her growth doesn't appear to be slowing down. So, to all those moms of newborns, I have to say...I know right now you may not believe that the time will go by fast (especially during your late-night feedings), but trust me...it WILL! You'll be as surprised as I was.

Anyway, back to Lorelai's birthday. The celebration this year was spread out over a long time...like, a month and a half! The main reason being we decided to get her "big" present a little early...

Lorelai spends more time riding her bike than our other girls combined; it's one of her favorite activities. Yet her bike (we called it "Franken-bike") often broke down under the force of all her affection! We got the original frame for free at a yard sale, and then spent a bunch of money getting new wheels and upgrading it (something we'll never do again, by the way...not worth it!). Over the years, we've had to constantly fix little things on Franken-bike; the kickstand would be loose, or the chain would keep falling off, or the handlebar grips wore off, or (most often) the tubes in her tires would get punctured and deflate. Even when we bought the "indestructible" gel-filled tubes, this kept happening! Nathan and I had privately thought that Lorelai deserved a brand-new, "proper" bike once she got old enough. And when the rear tire blew out yet again just before our Colorado vacation, we decided to finally take the plunge and get her a brand-new bike (with a little financial assistance from the grandparents).

Since her new bike wasn't a big secret, Lorelai got to go to the store and help pick it out. We bought it the day after getting back from vacation; she'd spent much of her time in Colorado eagerly anticipating that moment! She has been in love with it ever since, and takes it out for a spin at every opportunity. I expect she'll be riding it more and more as the weather continues to cool off!

She was so happy to get a new bike that she put a temporary tattoo on her eyeball...

Yeah, she is weird sometimes.

Most of the rest of the birthday celebration came later. Since her birthday fell on a Wednesday this year, we opened a few presents quickly before going to school.

 

Nothing super-fancy here, just a couple of DVDs and a full-sized sleeping bag. Now she is ready to camp like an adult. We have a few Dora The Explorer and Barbie kid sleeping bags, but our girls are starting to outgrow them. Over time, we hope to have everyone properly outfitted...but Celeste and Aurora have a little more time.

 

I told Lorelai she could have a "pool party" on the Saturday after her birthday, and invite several friends (one advantage in having a summer birthday in Arizona...pool parties are a must!). About seven friends showed up, and everyone had a great time getting wet and goofing off. For lunch, everyone ate Subway sandwiches and birthday cake.

It was a cinch to plan everything, and it all worked out great! I still have birthday parties to plan for my other girls this winter; however, those will be "themed" parties (since they are eight and under), and I am a little more nervous about throwing those together. Having a party for ten-year-olds was pretty great; it's nice when the kids can entertain themselves, with the parents acting more as supervisors than directors!

There was one more big milestone for Lorelai with this birthday...something she'd anticipated almost as much as getting a new bike:

She finally got to get her ears pierced! We had to wait an extra week to get them done due to our busy schedule, but better late than never.

I've never actually had my ears pierced. When I was younger, I was a big chicken and worried a lot about the pain. Now, as an adult, I am too lazy to do it. And before I hear anyone say, "Get your ears pierced at the same time as your daughter! What a cute fun thing to do!"...no thanks! I don't wear earrings because I hardly wear any jewelry, period. I can barely be bothered to wear my wedding ring half the time; not because I don't love Nathan, but because I don't think to put it on. The thought of dealing with earrings makes me shudder; no thank you! I am happy with my low-maintenance lifestyle!

However, if my girls want to get their own ears pierced, I am more than fine with that...as long as they are responsible enough to take care of them. Lorelai started asking for pierced ears back when she turned nine, but I suspected she would be a little flaky about the maintenance. Now, at ten, she eagerly cleans her piercings every night and organizes her earrings in her room, so I suspect she'll be just fine.

 

I was impressed with her bravery; she sat stoically and patiently, and didn't shed a tear (all I heard was a couple of "ouches"). She was over the moon with her new look, and bragged about her pierced ears for days. Frankly, it got a little old!

Celeste, being the girly girl she is, spent much of that evening shedding jealous tears and complaining about Lorelai's overt happiness. I am not letting Celeste get her ears pierced until she is at least nine years old, for a few reasons: A. I want her upcoming eighth birthday to be about her baptism, not about getting her ears pierced; B. I want her to be more responsible and diligent about taking care of herself (Celeste tends to be my flightiest, most disorganized kid, and I wouldn't be surprised if she got an ear infection as a result); and C. I don't want Celeste's ear-piercing to come too soon after Lorelai's, so as to keep each occasion special and personal, without one girl's event overshadowing the other's.

So now I have a big ten year old, with a brand-new bike and brand-new holes in her ears. Lorelai's only complaint about her birthday this year? "I knew what all my presents were before opening them!" (well, except the Ninja Turtles DVD). My response? "Welcome to old age, kid...birthdays tend to lose their surprise!" Here's hoping that her next birthday (and all that follow it) don't lose the joy and happiness.