what big eyes you have

As of Monday I am officially the parent of a teenager. How did this day arrive so fast? I mean honestly, I can recall helping you in to your jammies and reading you bedtime stories like it was yesterday! One thing is for sure, I wasn’t really sure where this road would lead me. Being pregnant at 17 is a scary situation to be in. But I feel like I have accomplished something I can be proud of. She is the personification of my heart. My daughter is my favorite person in the whole wide world and she’s all I could have ever dreamed.

I was given the best advice by a co-worker a long time ago. She said I should take video of Alex every chance I get. She said that pictures aren't enough to remember...you'll forget the little things, like the sound of her voice. I followed that advice and now I pass it along every chance I get. It's true too. We go back and watch her videos every now and then and it's like a little gift I get to treasure for that moment...to be able to go back in time and see her. It's not the kind of thing you can put a value on because it's priceless. To those of you reading this with small children or babies...TAKE VIDEO OF YOUR KID(S)! You'll thank me in 10 years!

She's always been a source of entertainment for us and we've always tried to make the parent/child bond a strong one. We share music, movies, tv shows and I know we can always have fun together. Even if its going to the grocery store, like we did last night. The music was pretty good and we got a bit excited when they started playing Move Your Feet (via YouTube) by Junior Senior. So we did a little dance in front of the deli counter.

I was trying t o remember some of the funnier moments we've had with Alex over the last 13 years. I thought it would be even more entertaining if I let her comment too. Here's a random list of my favorite memories:

-Alex was always getting her head stuck in things. Between chair rails, the iron patio gate at our old apartment building, between the cubicle and the wall where Larry used to work. She just loved to see where that big head of hers could fit. Thankfully, we were always able to squeeze it out because a headless child wouldn't have been as much fun.
Alex's comment: "I guess you could call it a strange hobby?"

-How about that time I (unknowingly) video-taped Alex eating the scum off of the bottom of her shoe while performing at her schools' Christmas presentation. She was 4 years old, and, OMG, it was the cutest/funniest thing! She was wearing her little red dress, white tights, black maryjanes and a bow in that curly head of hair. At this particular moment I zoomed in to record her face. I noticed that she kept sticking her finger in her mouth like she was eating something, but I can't see what's going on because I have my eyes glued to the camera. I zoomed out and I find her sitting with her legs crossed, and indeed, she is licking the bottom of her shoe with her finger and eating whatever it is she's found. In front of everyone because she's in the first row! I still wish I knew what possessed her to do this...in the middle of her Christmas presentation...in front of everyone.
Alex's comment: "What? I wanted to keep my shoes clean...yes, even the bottom! And I was bored."

-There was the time that she conned my co-workers out of about $20 dollars. It was summertime and I would occassionally take her to work for the day. It was a few days before my birthday and she went around the office asking for donations for a gift. She promised that those who donated would also get to sign my birthday card and she raised some decent change with this little scheme. The day before my bday she asks me to take her to Target because she had some money and it was burning a whole in her pocket. I didn't ask how she got the money because I assumed her Dad gave it to her (I learned that I should always ask from then on). So, all of the money gets spent on toys and candy. A few days after my birthday one of my co-workers asks what Alex got me as a gift. I told him that I didn't get anything...and well, you can guess that we figured out what happened after that. My husband did the interrogation later that night. Secretly, we were both kind of amazed at her audacity because did I mention that she was only 6 years old?!
Alex's comment: "Well, I wanted to buy you diamond earrings, but I didn't have enough money...so I spent it on myself."

Nothing has ever brought me the kind of joy that I get from being Alex's Mom. I realize how lucky I am to have a healthy child. Every birthday that she celebrates is really a gift for me.