Dear Nina,
Although I missed writing you this letter when you turned 9 and again at 9.5, I don't think you've really changed that drastically over the past year, so this age 9.75 letter should suffice. Actually, I take that back; you may not have changed much as far as interests, hobbies, or personality, but you are growing taller by the minute. You are already the tallest in your class, but I think you've grown at least 2 inches in just the last couple of months. You used to come up to Elise's mouth, and now you come up to her eyes. I definitely think you will pass her in height before high school. Thankfully, you like being tall. I can remember being very self conscious about my height growing up, so I am thrilled to see you are more confident in that respect. You embrace your height (as you should) and wear high heels as often as I will let you. You would be walking around in stilettos 24/7 if I would allow you to buy them. Sadly for you, you are stuck with low heeled boots and chunky wedge flip flops as our compromise. You have gotten your braces off, and it is nice to see a non-metal smile again.
Art has been a big interest of yours in the past year. You have taken numerous classes in cartoon sketching anime and manga characters. You love it. You come home from class with all your sketches begging to buy fancy Japanese brush pens online. You have also been to several art camps and enjoy pulling out watercolors to paint in your free time.
You love science, and in writing this letter, I realized I neglected to write a blog post about your cool science themed ninth birthday party. I'll throw in a few pictures here to make up for that oversight. It was a lot of fun. You can tell by your face in the pictures that you were having a blast.
You have great friends in the neighborhood, and on evenings and weekends, you are rarely home. When you are here, there are always friends with you. Sleepovers are popular with your gang. I'm not a fan, but you manage to twist my arm into having one here once a month or so. It is 9:30 at night as I write this, and you and a friend just ran here in the dark with flashlights from the friend's house to get your sleeping bag and PJ's for a sleepover. You all thrive on independence and making your own plans. You and your friends are so active and creative. I never find you together zoned out in front of the TV or playing video games. You play with dolls, do gymnastics, do science experiments, build zip lines, create craft projects, set up lemonade stands, or give each other manicures.
Speaking of lemonade stands, one of my favorites was when I told you I was going to run to the grocery store to buy lemonade mix and cookie dough. I wasn't gone more than 15 minutes. When I returned, your dad was in the garage and said to me, "Take a deep breath when you walk in there. Just remember they are really excited." I walked in to this.
Six girls in my kitchen making a pitcher of lemonade out of the single serve Crystal Light packets
and "treats" out of crackers, marshmallows, Magic Shell, and sprinkles.
Like he said... deep breath. Deep breath. They were excited. They took initiative. They were creative. All those are good things. My kitchen was destroyed, but what else is new?
Overall, I think nine has been fun for you. School is going well. Friendships seem a bit easier than they did at eight. You are generally a happy, fun kid. Sometimes, I think being the middle child is tough for you. You have your share of protests: "It's not fair", "She always gets that because she is the oldest", "She never has to do that because she is the baby", but you push through it. It is your lot in life, and you're learning to deal with it.
You definitely have a tender, sensitive side that was seriously tested this year when your dad had his bad bike crash. You struggled so much seeing him hurt and seeing me upset. The school counselor helped you through it, but I think you will always be easily affected by situations like that. That may be both a blessing and a curse. You'll be compassionate and sympathetic but vulnerable to your feelings. That is part of what makes you my Nina though.
Keep having fun being nine, Nina! Those double digits are coming up fast!
I love you,
Mama
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