So often, my ten year old wants to be seen as grown up. In the balance between child and teen, she vacillates between ridiculously silly, and incredibly mature. I know she can only maintain the “responsible” side in short bursts, but it’s important to notice those times, because she so badly wants me to.

This weekend, we were visiting with family and she and her 11-year-old cousin offered to watch the little kids so the adults could converse in peace. And the more often they watch the kids, the more we all trust them to do a great job.

But sometimes I long for the silly to continue just a few years longer…

In comments, please leave your link for current or classic Pass the Torch Tuesday posts. My comment plugin will leave your link automatically. Thanks!

Pass the Torch Tuesday Guidelines: Every week, we share simple and stupendous times kids MAKE US PROUD. Just write about CATCHING A KID BEING GOOD, or if you’d prefer to share your story in comments, that’s fine as well! Complete guidelines and former PTT links are >HERE< .

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Holly, who is a regular Pass the Torch participant, gets my LOL award today, and also Pass the Pitchfork. Go read Lessons of Motherhood and you’ll see why.

And then, like me, you’ll say, “I could have totally written that.” Thanks for keeping it real, Holly;)

If you’ve read a post that speaks to you — one that recognizes the parental and childhood foibles we admit to, and recover from — please let me know. It just might be worthy of Pass the Pitchfork! (One of my personal Pass the Pitchforks is Mommy, Queen of Nags.)

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***D’s Guest Post***

Welcome to Save-the-Earth Saturday! I hope you’ll join me with a story or a tip.

The second house I lived in was in Clear Lake WI, which was also the birthplace of Gaylord A Nelson Founder of Earth Day. I know a lot About Gaylord Nelson because of Clear Lake. The teachers say that he would visit classrooms often.

The first Earth Day was founded in 1970. It took 6 years to prepare the first Earth Day and finally make it a holiday.

Earth Day is a day to be thankful and enjoy our Earth. But Earth doesn’t enjoy us just sitting back! Earth wants to be clean so do some thing it likes such as riding a bike to school/work, take in your recycling. Remember! Earth Day is on April 22, 2007!

Next week, I will be talking about recycling. (The interesting parts any way!)

Please share any tips you have related to conservation, or to help people prepare for Earth Day. Here are some great Earth Day websites for kids:

Kaboose
Helpful Hints for Planet Earth
CNN

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This post is a part of the Carnival of Homeschooling at Alasandra.

My mom forwarded this to me from the uncle of a very assertive spam-hater. Oh, if only this could work.

STOP GIVEING ME THESE STUFF I’M ONLY 7 YEARS OLD I’M NOT LIKE 100 YAERS OLD WEIRD DOE I”M GETING REALLY MAD AT YOU I DO KARATE DO YOU WANT BE REALLY MAD AT YOU.

YOU BETTER STOP RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i’m so sorry of my adatud. BUT STILL STOP IT YOU KUKU HEAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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You’ve kept me giggling for 24 hours — taking pot-shots at my scraggly, flat-chested youcan’tmakemewearadress self. You made the brilliant, but unintended connection that this early-me could be the avatar for Pass the Pitchfork. Mom called me a joker. Jenny in CA suggested there may have been a noticeable scent. Holly thought I made a pretty good Popeye impersonation. Sprittibee noticed the veil of grit that covered every pore and follicle.

Mike Thomas used my pre-pubescent photo shoot as inspiration for the opening of a future best-seller,

“Just having come out of the safety provided by the trailer, the new boy ‘Tilbork’ looked disoriented with his surroundings in this new land….”

Robin and TNTChick inferred I must have just placed my strappy sandals in equine dung.

But Pamela — the incomparable Pamela — noticed the distinct Elvis sneer, and determined that I, a mere three years after his demise, had taken up where the legend left off.

And on the horseshow trail, the lyrics would have to be a bit different,

“Now I have to call them my brown suede shoes.”

Pamela, just email me your snail address and I’ll ship your prize book, Chicken Soup for the Soul: Celebrating Mothers and Daughters. Thanks to all of you who participated, and I’ll see you next Wednesday for my second installment in this series of photos. Ummmmm, it will show a different side of my insanely chaotic multidimensional life.

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