When I was 10...

So for my Feb. 12th daily authentic self adventure...I found some photos of when I was 10 years old or at least around that age.  For me, it seems like sooooooo long ago that I was 10, which it really was long ago.  I love looking back on pictures because it really makes me understand and be grateful for the AMAZING childhood I was blessed with.  I did so much as a young person and have such an awesome family that was and still is close and super loving.  I loved growing up with my brother and sister...and even though we did have a differences...especially when we were all going through our teen years...we were all really close and still are today.  I was even close with my cousins.  We had an annual New Year's Eve party (that we waited ALL year for) where we would write a play and then perform it for the parents/grandparents.  In this picture we are performing to the cassette tape of "Alvin and the Chipmunks" (I asked for that for Christmas!)  So great, always so much fun when we all got together.  I'm surprised I am not in more theater related stuff.  We were always performing!

  I lived in a super nice house in neighborhood that was FULL of children...it was quiet, had great bike paths and we actually had neighborhood cookouts!  All the kids were friends.  During the summers we would ride our bikes to the local UDF to get ice cream.  We probably did that on a daily basis.  I always thought that my room was little...but actually it was probably the right size for me, I was a tiny thing.  Because of my LOVE (extreme love) for all things Disney...my room theme was The Little Mermaid and then it went to Pocahontas.  I also remember being upset about having a twin bed instead of a double like most of my friends. :)   At school I had a best friend that I would spend every waking moment possible with her.  We lived close enough together that we could again ride our bikes to each other's house.  For 5th grade I had my first male teacher...and LOVED him.  He was really a great teacher.  I was always writing notes and passing them and folding them in special ways.  I remember doing an Andy Warhol inspired art project in art class and I was a lumber jack in the choir performance.  I do remember the smell of play dough, but probably more because I still work with it NOW!*

I was playing soccer in a Rec League.  This picture was my first team that I was a part and I might be a little younger than 10 but pretty close.  I think this picture describes me pretty well.  The way that I am posing shows my personality.  Can you see it?  I loved being active.  I also don't remember having any one doll that I loved loved loved.  I did however super love Barbies.  I had so many of them.  I loved dressing them, naming them, making them dance, decorated their Barbie house.  One year for Christmas we got Barbie horses...I thought I could play for the rest of my life and NOT get bored!  I don't remember my favorite color...it was probably blue.  I think at that time I wanted to be a teacher.  I did a lot of pretend teaching, even going to the educational stores to get posters, stickers, etc.  I gave a lot of spelling tests.  HA! 

This picture was my school picture for 1994 when I was 10.  This was what I thought my coolest picture.  I thought I had an awesome outfit, my earrings were hand-crafted, and my hair-my brother told me I should wear my hair like that! HA!...When I think about being 10, I remember no worries, that all my dreams were possible, that I could watch two other older people do things before me...my brother and sister...so I never did things the first time.  Interesting how I still find myself thinking about doing things that my brother and sister have already done.  If I could go back to when I was 10...I would still tell myself to do everything like I have done (even though at times it's easy for me to think about all the things I would do differently) because it has made me who I am today-Pretty cool thing to think about.  Even if I still have some digging to do to re-discover my authentic self.