Belle

Bloggie Charlie has been posting family photos lately. It makes me a little jealous because a) he's led a breathtakingly fascinating life and 2) he was a very cute child, despite his mother's propensity to dress him in, well, dresses.

My mother dressed me in dresses, which was more than appropriate, but that's where the similarities end. I was a cute baby. I was cute up until about the age of 6. Then President Kennedy was assasinated. And 'round about the same time I was hit with a Goofy Stick and spent the next 12 years or so looking quite repellent. But I had a great personality. I think you see where I'm going here.

The Child was a cute baby. And she has continued cute. She has some snaggly teeth that have yet to be altered by orthodontia and she has an aversion to combing her hair but despite these points she is very cute. And, what with the whole journey to teendom, she's beginning to acquire, shall we say, attributes that are moving her from cute to knock-out. With as much objectivity as it is possible to muster I have to tell you that I think she is going to be a gorgeous woman.

Yesterday she got an invitation from Not-a-Boyfriend 2 to go to a fun center this afternoon. Not-a-Boyfriend 1 had also left a message inviting her to do something this weekend. She continues, far as I can tell, to keep a level head about all this. These boys are friends. When I speak to her about these things I do not use the "D" word or the "BF" word and treat such events as no more significant that a play date with one of the M Street Gang. Because, as I told The Spouse months ago, there couldn't be anything more important in her socialization than to have good guy friends.

The Child has a great personality. She's bright, funny, imaginative and sassy. She was born self-possessed and confident, unlike her mother who is still figuring all that stuff out. And she can cook. She has a lot still to learn about life and learn it she will. She won't be allowed to go on real actual dates until probably 16. (I note that the Family Rule Book makes no provision for this and a legislative caucus must be convened ASAP). She may not be the Belle of the Ball but frankly, the fact that she appears poised to avoid the Wallflower experience gladdens my shallow little heart. The Child's worth is resident in who she is, not how many boyfriends she has or whether she's always got plans for Saturday night. This is a message that will be reinforced. And I know that no one gets through life without at least a few dark nights crying into one's pillow. I'm just saying, between you and me, that the whole Ugly Duckling thing is over-rated and I don't mind that she gets to skip that.