Double Digits

Stinkerbell turned 10 today and I'm a little bit freaking out because my babies are growing up. Sniff, sniff.

It sure doesn't seem like it's been ten years since the Stink came into this world screaming and madder than a hornet on fire. In fact, she looked extremely angry for the first four months of her life. She had angry eyebrows and every time she cried they turned bright red.

Thankfully that didn't last and she began to look like a normal, pleasant baby.

From the get go, Stinkerbell was serious about her food. Just like her Mama.

She would have her mouth and both fists full of food and still she would be spray shouting "More! More!" It was alarming and impressive all at the same time.

Stinkerbell has always been her own person and she could care less what everyone else thought of her, a trait I tend to admire. I think she'll survive the trials of peer pressure.

The flip side of that is that she is extremely stubborn. She gets that from both her parents.

I don't know how Zoe Bug lives with the lot of us.

I put this picture in Annie's ABC album when she was a toddler, and it sits on the page for "A" is for artist. Little did I know when I snapped this picture that she would blossom into quite the little artist. She is happiest when she is spending hours drawing pictures, making cartoons, and writing stories.

Which is why we got her this for her birthday. She is over the moon happy about it.

I miss the days when I could dress Stinkerbell in girly things and she paid it no attention. These days I can't even hand her a pink shirt without her retching violently.

Which is why I so love this picture of her in her pink and yellow girly room. It's only purpose anymore is to serve as a juxtaposition to the person who sleeps in it.

Kinda like this. My sweet little princess.

This may very well be the last picture I have of her wearing something so girly. If ever I am successful in wrestling her into a girly outfit, she ruins the effect by walking around in it like a truck driver, belching and passing gas impressively.

That is to say not dainty and hopefully wearing underwear.

As much as I miss dressing her in girly things, I love that she has her own tastes and she won't be bullied by the likes of me.

Maddening as it is.

I love that Annie wears her glasses and she likes wearing them. So, parent of the year story. Another one. There are so many.

Annika's teacher has been telling us since parent-teacher conferences in November that we need to get her eyes checked and we just recently made that happen. Apparently it had been three years since her last eye exam and her eyes had changed considerably. My bad.

In our defense, I intended to get them checked last spring, but then we had that whole absorbed twin thing with Zoe and there went all our medical flex money for the year. In fact, we just got those medical bills paid off, finally.

Anyway, long story short, we're driving home from picking up her new prescription lenses and she's in the back seat, all dramatic and laying it on thick, or maybe it was real, who knows, but it felt like she was rubbing it in how much I suck.

I have guilt issues.

Anyway, how many times can I say anyway in one blog post? Anyway, she's looking out the window and exclaiming "Wow! I can actually see the bricks on the building and not just the color!"

I suck.

Yeah, I suck, but I love that my kid knows how to put me in my place when it's needed and deserved.

Most recently, I love watching Annika learn how to care for and ride a horse. For such a little thing, she has no problem getting the horses to do what she wants them to do. Although I still get nervous watching her pick a horse's rear hooves. I worry that she'll get kicked, but she worries she'll get pooped on.

Story of my life.

Anyway, Happy Birthday, Stinkerbell! Our family wouldn't be complete without you.