My amazing little girl

 This is for all women who have been through a lot in life and survived!! Say this out loud "I am strong because I know weakness. I am compassionate because I have experienced suffering. I am alive because I am a fighter. I am wise because I have been foolish. I can laugh because I have known sadness. I can love because I have known loss..... I have weathered the storm.... and still love to dance in the rain."

 My daughter is amazing... Sometimes I have to stop and remind myself that she is only 12.  Along with my 3 boys she has been handed a life that is trying and frustrating and hard, and she handles it all unbelievable well for a 12 year old.  I keep looking for the moments when I think she is going to break, and it worries me that she will. She proves me wrong time and time again.... Now she is far from perfect, she is after all 12. She started Junior High this year, which brings it's own set of problems and challenges.  Make-up....boys...clothes...hair...homework and she has good days and bad days.  But  I just can't say it enough...she AMAZES me. She is beautiful and talented, she plays the violin and she loves to sing and she is unbelievably confident. In fact I keep wondering where this child came from. I was the shy, please don't call on me in class, please don't notice me girl.. I wish I would have had half of her confidence when I was her age.  I don't think there are many people who even remember me from school, because I just tried to blend in and disappear. 

So why am I talking about my daughter today.....honestly I was thinking earlier how much I love her laugh. It's very infectious....you can't help but laugh yourself when you hear her...I love it.  I was thinking about an incident that happened the other night between her and her dad.  She was in the kitchen using the blender making fruit smoothies and Todd walked in ....all I heard next was "DAD...WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"...and then she was cracking up uncontrollably...so I went into the kitchen to see what in the world was going on. "Mom....dad just dumped a full cup of sugar in the blender!" to which my husband said "What? it was supposed to go in there".....which started the laughter all over again.  The point is....she could have gotten completely upset with her dad because he totally ruined the smoothies...but instead she decided to laugh about it.

As we grow up, we learn that even the one person that wasn't supposed to ever let us down, probably will. You'll have your heart broken and you'll break others' hearts. You'll fight with your best friend or maybe even fall in love with them, and you'll cry because time is flying by. So take too many pictures, laugh too much, forgive freely, and love like you've never been hurt. Life comes with no guarantees, no time outs, no second chances. you just have to live life to the fullest, tell someone what they mean to you and tell someone off, speak out, dance in the pouring rain, hold someones hand, comfort a friend, fall asleep watching the sun come up, stay up late, be a flirt, and smile until your face hurts. Don't be afraid to take chances or fall in love and most of all, live in the moment because every second you spend angry or upset is a second of happiness you can never get back.
- Unknown

Dear daughter, there will always be times in your life that are hard, remember who you are and how important you are in this life.  Learn to forgive...it's not as easy as it sounds. Sometimes it takes years, in fact I still work on this one every day. You will be hurt by people you love...and it's not easy to understand. Remember to stand up for what you believe and for who you are. You have a strong, confident voice that people will listen to....and always...always remember to enjoy life ..every moment that you can....Love...Laugh...and always dance in the rain....