Natalie has been requesting for me to take her shopping for a training bra for about two months now. I asked a couple of moms with older girls when they started wearing them. I had one friend tell me her daughter had NO modesty until she started wearing them and then she became SUPER modest.
Well, I finally gave in and took her shopping. We went to Target (they had the most selection). I let her choose matching underwear to go with them. She was very proud and excited. We all know that underwear that doesn't come in a package is oh, so much more fun. Well, we made it to the car and she immediately put on her new "clothes". SO FUNNY. She had to call her dad and tell him. You know how dad's LOVE this part of their little girl's growing up. He was very good and acted excited for her. He was excited on one hand, but of course sad on the other, because it is one more step to her growing up. (He is much more sentimental in these areas than I am)
We left Target and went straight to JBQ (Junior Bible Quiz) Semi-Finals.We hadn't been there long and I I very quickly found out that unlike my friends daughter she has lost all modesty and makes a very quick announcement as soon as she gets all the girls together, and even shows them in the cabin. I had to inform her that while it is fine to be excited and share this with our girlfriends, (we all know that this kind of sharing is vital in a circle of girlfriends) we have to make sure that there aren't boys or men around and that we should not be showing at all. She got all embarrassed and snugly. Then ran off and of course had forgotten the whole conversation by the next day when sharing with her aunt. She goes back to school on Tuesday and I am sure there will be lots of giggling and sharing over her new "items" with the girls there.
I absolutely LOVE the excitement and sense of adventure during all of these changes, lessons and experiences that Natalie has. She is of course longing to grow up much faster than she should, but doesn't argue too much when we pull back. She will be 8 this Thursday. It doesn't seem that long ago that we were enrolling her into Kindergarten, enrolling her into Preschool, moving to Indiana to start a new life without any family around, or even sitting at Brookwood Hospital waiting for her to be born. All of these very important milestones in our lives and her life. All of these things seemed like they would last forever, and yet here we are entering into her eighth year of life. We have had some hard times, and lots of great times. I wouldn't change any of them, because they are making her the person she will be, and us the family we are. Natalie has a huge heart, and values friendship. She chooses her friends very carefully. She loves God, and wants to obey and serve him. She has entirely too much knowledge for her own good and is so very intuitive. I can't wait to see what God brings about in her life. As for now, she is a little girl, who loves a lot and wants nothing more than to have fun.
