She is so mature, so sophisticated. She has always loved using large words and would work them into a sentence so nonchalantly. When she was four, Emilee was pestering her and she looked straight at her and said "Emilee, is that really necessary?" Necessary is four syllables! lol She has always been so grown up, always taken that oldest sister role and went with it. She thinks for herself and comes to conclusions for herself and she stands firm in what she knows. She is friendly and opinionated. You can correct her and she blushes but registers that information for a later date. She always asks questions, she wants to know everything she can know. She is brutally honest and will tell me "Mommy, you shouldn't wear that, it makes you look fat." She loves her sisters and told me a few weeks ago, "Mommy, I am so glad that you gave me sisters. I don't know what I would do with out them."
She wants to be a veterinarian. She has wanted that for as long as she can remember. She loves animals, all animals. When she was five, a dog that my mom had caught a baby bunny and she marched right up to that dog and took the bunny out of his mouth and tried to make it all right. When the bunny died, she cried for him. She still cries. In a time when many kids are hiding their tears and just dealing, Amanda still cries. If you hurt her feelings, she will cry.
She is helpful and organized. When she puts the dishes away, she puts them where they belong. She doesn't half ass things. She pays attention to what's going on around her and she knows when I am sad. She loves to read and write and make up poems and that is so me. She looks like me. God, she is me. She is my little clone in looks, in personality, in interests, in temper.
She is a good friend. She won't betray her friendships and she genuinely loves her friends. If they are mean to her or mad at her she just doesn't understand it. She writes notes in school and tells secrets.
She has a mad crush on Jesse McCartney and if it is with in my powers, she will meet him at a concert one day. I don't care how much the tickets cost.
But she has changed. Oh, god, she has changed. She doesn't need me the way she did once. She doesn't run to me with everything and ask for help, for answers. In fact, most crisis' pass by without my ever having known about them. After the fact, I get a recap and she explains how she handled everything and I am left in awe watching her walk away. I know that she will leave me shocked so many times becuse I know that so many of my firsts will come with her.
Like today, it's just she and I driving to gymnastics and she tells me she can't wait to be ten. I asked her why and she told me that she thought when she was ten, she would have boobs. I laughed and told her that she probably wouldn't have boobs when she was ten. But she has noticed, just as I have, that her body is changing. That she is growing. She and I are having conversations now that are more grown up than kid stuff.
I could list accolades for days and those of you who know me in real life know that I do. That I will call you, out of the blue, to brag about my kids. Amanda won a spot on student council (via election) at the end of this past school year. Next year is the first year she is eligible and she will be on student council. She won first place in the art competition for her school and third place for an out of school art competition. She is A honor roll every year.
I could go on for days, but the fact that I am trying to get across is that she is so exceedingly cool. She does things, every day, that reassure me that I am doing a good job as her mother. Which is nice since she has reallyguineahe guinnea pig, what with being first and all.
She still kisses me goodbye and public and runs over to hug me if I come to school. She still wants me to go on field trips and hang out with her and her friends. I am still cool today, still her friend, still her confidant. She may argue with me and get angry, but she doesn't say she hates me or she wishes she had another mother. In fact, to her, I am still 'the best mommy in the world'. And I am relishing every second of it because if it weren't for her, I wouldn't be me.
~Kate