Tulips, Woods, and Juniper Wisdom

Happy and self-satisfied mountain biker

This week, I mostly have pictures of the beautiful spring forest.  Between my daily walks, and our family weekend mountain biking adventure, the woods are where we have been spending most of our collective time as of late.  Since I offered up some Linden wisdom last week, however, this week I'll offer some gems from the head of young Ms. Juniper.  I will also offer up this one, not super awesome photo from our experience with Ottawa's annual tulip festival:

Hanging with Claire!

My cousin Claire just happens to be in Ottawa right now, and spent a very fun day with us on Saturday.  She wisely suggested that we head to the pavilion to see what festivities were going on for the tulip festival, and we did just that: taking in concerts, displays, many large, painted tulips (such as the one in the background), and some of the glorious real variety (though the pavilion was not the hub of the real tulip display).  And amidst all that, this was the only picture I managed to snap.  An uninteresting background, Linden looking somewhere completely different, and Juniper covering up some of the tulip with her ball cap.  But - at least we have proof that it happened!  And at least we were able to see Claire and take advantage of the festivities - we missed out completely last year (as we had only JUST moved here).

Robin eggs always startle me when I happen across them.  So very, very blue!

So, Juniper. Juniper is, I believe, beginning to transition from a "little kid" to a "big kid".  I didn't really realize that such a transition even existed, but now that I'm in it, the signs seem unmistakable. As a case in point, she currently has an imaginary boyfriend, who she has named "Chris".  I know that this was not initially prompted by her own imaginings - she came home one day awhile ago, sourly declaring that the other girls at school "made" her pretend she had a boyfriend in one of their recess games.  But since then, she has embraced it, and Chris seems to be sticking around - at least for now.

A slithery friend, who posed just long enough for me to snap a shot.

 As I was tucking her in last night, she began telling me about the scenarios she imagined with her and Chris.  Topmost was the one where they were both on the school bus, and someone put his hands around Chris's neck, trying to choke him.  Juniper then turns on her "superpowers", swoops in, and comes to the rescue!  (and sometimes, in these instances, she also turns on her super hearing powers, and catches Chris sighing and muttering "I wish my girlfriend was here")

The kind of massive tree that, with just a few more leaves, you could almost imagine living in

Anyway, I wasn't entirely sure how I'd react to Juniper's imagined boyfriend scenarios, but at this, I laughed out loud, and gave her a heartfelt high-five for being the superhero and valiantly saving the day.  I know that when I imagined such things at her age (or, surely, when I was older than her!), I was always the one being saved.  I much prefer her version.

I found a tree with a winding fairy staircase!

I also very cautiously and vaguely discussed the concept of "having a boyfriend", and what you needed to be careful of.  High on my list were "being smart", making sure you didn't lose your sense of self or your other friends and interests in the process, and not doing anything dangerous or risky.  Juniper nodded sagely at this, and said, "Yeah.  Like taking a hot air balloon ride with not enough air.  You'd get up high, and then crash to the ground!  That would probably happen if you let your boyfriend take care of bringing the air.  I would make sure I was in charge of that".  Phew. One very pressing concern off my mind.

We tried out a new mountain biking trail, which was - as you can see - a little beyond our skill level.

Beyond imaginary boyfriends, Juniper is navigating the world of "friendships" at school.  This seems to be an incredibly frustrating ebb and flow of being "allowed in", and "kicked off" of teams, headed by the bossier or more domineering girls in her class. There is absolutely bullying and mind games that are played, and it kills me that there is very little I can do, other than offer advice.  My advice, however, is typically of the "just don't play with those girls!  Play with the kind people! Make your own "teams", which are loving and all inclusive!", and is only ever given cursory heed.  Playground politics are beyond any true grasp or understanding at this point, and Juniper will, I suppose, ultimately have to navigate them herself.

But other parts were met with gusto!

Other than that, Juniper is mostly a very sweet, enthusiastic, creative soul.  She loves reading -- enough that we sometimes have to lay down the law, and take books away, which seems ridiculous.  But once she's been on the toilet for the better part of an hour (when she's supposed to have already had a shower and gotten her pjs on), then things get real, folks.  She also loves to learn.  She will sometimes ask me to give her math problems, and is thrilled when she suddenly understands how to do something new.  She loves being able to now play the violin with some proficiency (though, depending on the day, practicing can be a frustrating ordeal). She is clever, sometimes devious (ask me about the candy incident one day), sensitive, and stubborn. but as long as we can nurture some of that "superhero" confidence, I think she'll do just fine as she muddles her way to adulthood.