Twelve

At 12 Indie always has a new favorite song to share with you.  If you want to brighten her day, take a drive, roll down the windows, let her pick the music and get her a lil Dr. Pepper. 

Indie started 7th grade a day before her 12th birthday. She will don her jacket or sweatshirt every day to feel a bit more secure in facing the outside world. 

She loves keeping her nails long and to sing. They are not mutually exclusive, (as far as I know). She is involved in two choirs and takes voice lessons (and has ten long fingernails).

We are having so many conversations on, life, values and identity. Indie wants to be part of all adult conversations. She loves to chat but has a hard time coming up with what to say.  She listens well but can become overwhelmed when asked to express how she thinks or feels. 

Unless the topic is of course, Amphibia or K Pop Demon Hunters. She is always down to debrief you intensely on the storyline of a show or book. She devours books and music. Being the oldest we gave her more free reign to consume whatever she wanted, we are now pulling back in and she has been so gracious and mature about it. 

Indie holds her own emotionally, she does not get sucked in to other peoples emotions easily. A rarity in a household overwhelmingly full of highly sensitive people. It can be bit irritating as she can miss some subtle emotional cues from others, but that is not to be misunderstood as a lack of emotion. This girl feels. 

She cries at movies, wants everyone to be cared for, and is incredibly thoughtful. She led the little kids in filling out a love note to me on valentines day, and has written me several clever, sincere and witty cards. She is so good, kind, and wonderful.

Indie will write literally all day on her computer, if you let her, crafting worlds and stories. 

When she does emerge from the fictional worlds she's creating she will play sweetly with all the kids. They all adore her attention. Indie is a gem to have in your corner, she is genuinely helpful and with a kind heart and beautiful attitude. She is our only child to have grown out of whining and complaining when hiking. Even when sick hiking through Joshua tree, she was a trooper. 

Indie has a fun sense of humor. Although she does still think sticking her tongue out in every video and picture is a great idea. So, also still little. She also, we found out, saves her baby teeth, the last several she kept hidden from us. Which I think keeping baby teeth is creepy, but maybe its just symbolic of her being stuck in-between childhood and adulthood. 

Indie does not like talking about bodies or relationships.  It's made teaching and guiding things a bit tricky.  For example, introducing the choice of shaving ones body, should one chose, caused her to meltdown and hide in her hair. Revisiting such things intermittently through out the year as it came up created a similar withdrawal. When she came to me saying she thought she wanted to shaving, I bought the stuff and it immediately needed to be hid in a dark dark corner and pondered over for a week or two before it could be brought into the light, to be pondered on for a further week or two, before she was ready to actually try shaving.  

Indie likes a long time to process and grow comfortable. We love our Indie Girl. Getting to know her as she grows has been such an honor.  It just keeps getting better. 

Love you Indie!