Poor Allie

You all remember my cousin Allie? If not, I'll tell you about her briefly. Allie is a couple of years younger than me and she's from Germany. Her father (my mom's brother) is in the military and sadly her mom passed away a few years ago. I hadn't seen her since she was a baby when my parents suddenly announced she was coming to live with us and would need to share my bedroom. That was over a year ago, and I love having Allie here now. We're really different, but she's still a lot of fun. But lately, I've been really worried about her.

Around Hanukkah, Allie's dad came to visit. It was really wonderful... I'd never seen her as happy as she was when he was here. She and her daddy are really close. Our whole family did a lot of stuff together while he was here, but he had to leave too quickly. Allie has been really down since then. I mean, I understand that she misses her dad, but I still hate to see her so sad.

She's been talking about going back to Germany to stay with her godmother, Frida. She used to live with her, but she came here when Frida got too sickly to handle a kid. Frida is healthier now and would love to have Allie back, but we'd all hate to have her go. My parents say Allie has to make her own decision... I just don't know what she'll decide.

Any ideas how I can help her stop feeling so sad so she won't want to leave?

Blog changes

You may have noticed that I changed up my blog a bit.  I added a couple of links at the side, moved the pic of me and Quinn to the top, and got a neat new tie-dye background.  But the biggest change would be that I'm once again the soul author of this page.  Quinn has decided that she's not interested in blogging anymore, and that's fine with me.  If she ever does have something to say, she can borrow my blog, like she did in the good ole' days.  And Bre has been banished, as well.  She has her own blog about doll collecting here, which you should be following and reading if you're not already. =P  For a while, mine was the only blog so it became the sort of catch all place to post about anything, but now there's a better place for that.  You could sort of say my blog is being completely refocused.   Maybe I'll be more diligent about updates, now. =P

The Winter Dance

Hello, friends! I've sure missed talking to you all. I have something to tell you about. =)

Sometime last week, I was walking home from school with my friend Peter. He usually has to take the bus because he lives clear on the other side of town, but this day he was going to his cousin (and my friend) Ashley's house. Ashley and Nicki left us alone to walk together... which was embarrassing, but nice at the same time... if that makes any sense.

When we were close to my house, Peter finally started to tell me about this dance that he had to go to. You see, Peter's dad was permanently disabled a few years ago, so he stays home and takes care of Peter and his sister and the house. And he's really involved with charities and community affairs, so he kind of planned this dance at the youth center. And since Peter had to go, he thought I might like to go with him.

It felt sort of weird. I mean, Peter stressed the fact that it's not a date and I agreed to that, but I had never been to a dance like that, and certainly never with a boy. But Peter is my friend... and I like him. I mean, I'm not ready for a boyfriend obviously, but Peter is also sort of more than a friend. Don't tell anyone about this, but he's told me that he likes me, but he's not ready for a girlfriend. It's sort of hard to explain, but I guess you could say he and I have an understanding. So, with all that considered, and considering the fact that the dance did sound like fun, I had to say yes.

But that didn't stop me from being nervous all this week. But I didn't really have any reason to worry.

The dance was on Friday. Peter and his dad picked me up that afternoon early, since his dad had to be there to set up. We couldn't get out of the house without my mom taking a picture.

So we went to the dance and helped Peter's dad and the other committee members set up. Some of the committee members had kids there as well, and we spent a lot of time talking to them and goofing off when the adults weren't looking. When the dance finally started, Peter and I spent a lot of time talking to each other and other kids, eating cookies, drinking punch, and enjoying the music. Neither of us likes to dance much, so we only danced twice. One song was fast, so that was easy. The other was slow.

Okay, I'll admit it... I was extremely embarrasses when he put his hands on my waist. I think he was too, because he was blushing a little. I thought he might feel weird dancing with me like that since I'm taller than him, but he seemed okay with it. He told me he was having a wonderful time and that he was glad he invited me. I told him I was glad I came, too.

When he and his dad took me home, he walked me to my door like a gentleman. And right before he left, he told me that I was the prettiest girl at the dance. I blushed so hard, I think my cheeks are still hot! When I went inside, I called Quinn and we talked about everything that happened in detail for over an hour. I'm so glad I have a best friend!

So, that's what happened between me and a boy who is not my boyfriend on an evening that was not a date. I can't believe I'm saying this, but it was really and truly wonderful.