Just one more thing to complete the outfit

Ane’s friend at church, Gracie (L.’s older sister), has kind of (but not completely) passed through the princess phase and is now firmly in the horse phase. She outgrew most of her princess phase just in time for Ane to grow into it – and her hand-me-down costumes. Ane now has several different princess costumes, and it has been a source of endless fun for her to play “dress-up” for some months now.

Now, of course, she has her princess shoes (courtesy of Grandma and Gichan), and a lovely tiara (courtesy of Aunt Lynda), so she really does feel quite royal when she comes sweeping through the house in her regalia. I even have to address her by the correct princess name – and if I don’t, I get reprimanded. Funny, I remember giving birth to Ane, but not to Belle, Ariel, Snow White and Cinderella – and yet they all call me “Mommy.”

A few days ago, she was in her Belle costume (which is one of her favorites, because “it has roses on it”), and was prancing around in the kitchen while I prepared dinner. Suddenly, she stopped, and began looking at herself critically. She stared at her yellow shoes. She adjusted her crown. She pulled at the waist of her dress – and then let out a huge sigh. “Mommy, I just don’t fit this right,” she complained.

“Why do you say that?” I asked, genuinely curious.

“I need those,” she said – and then pointed to my chest.

“You mean… you need breasts???” I asked, incredulously. She nodded, very seriously.

“Umm, honey, you will get these when you are older,” I told her.

“How much older?” she wanted to know.

“When you are as old as Auntie.” We always use Auntie for these kind of questions. You see, Mommy is old, but Auntie, at 15, is not quite as old and her age seems more attainable to Ane.

She let out a huge sigh, but resumed her princess play. My heart resumed normal function. And you wonder why I’m not looking forward to her teenage years??

This entry was posted on Monday, January 28th, 2008 at 2:43 am and is filed under Children.
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