Life ... Actually!

This weekend my 10 year old niece, Tara, spent the night at our house. She is a pip, let me tell ya! She has red hair, like me, and the attitude to match that hair of hers. Recently I've been noticing her "pre-teen" personality emerging and it ain't pretty! There are times I want to just strangle her, and then there are the days she is so much fun to be around. Tara and I butt heads often, but truth be known I just love her to pieces. As my husband puts it, she is a "mini Heather". I have to assume that means she has many good qualities to go with those tantrums she throws. :)

Ever since Tara was a baby she has spent time with me. I am her "Aunt Heather" and she loves to come over and hang with me. We bake cakes and cookies, find new recipes for dinner, and we CLEAN!!! When she was 5 years old she told me tearfully (when I was making her take a bath), "I'm never coming back to visit you again! All you make me do is clean and take baths!" Oh the drama! I am happy to report she did continue coming over to clean and take baths. She has been known to exaggerate sometimes. Like the time about 3 years ago when we tried to help her ride the pony grandpa bought her. She got scared, turned on the tears, and this is what we hear in her shrill hysterical voice "You just don't understand ... I didn't grow up on a farm and I'm not used to ponies!!!" Mercy - that child! Oh, and how about the time she had to spend "50 thousand million hours" working on homework ... when she was in kindergarten! Once my mom asked 3 year old Tara what she wanted to be when she grew up. Tara quickly replied "A Payforter!" "A what?!" my mom said with a puzzled look on her face. "You know Grammawww (said with a southern twang) one of those people at the store where you take your stuff to pay for it?" "Oh, yes, Tara ... a PAYFORTER!" Our little redhead had high ambitions of becoming a cashier at the local Wal Mart. :)

Tara is the funniest kid. I've enjoyed knowing her all these years, but I'm truly dreading these next few years as she heads full throttle into bcoming a teenager. Right now she is a straight A student, an avid reader, is a loving older sister, and wants so badly to please others. Her smile can light up a room. She is a child after my own heart. My prayer is that these finer qualities shine their brightest as she gets older.

ciao~