Hang On; It's Going to Be a Bumpy Ride

The Princess is definitely approaching her teen years. Everyone has always said "Just you wait!" and I knew what they meant, but now we're really seeing it in evidence.

Neighbor Boy likes The Princess. He is the boy who sort of asked her to the dance and she panicked and walked away from him. He is also the boy who asked her out, point blank, and she turned heel and walked away from him, AGAIN, with no answer. The next day, the kiss of death: "I just want to be friends, Neighbor Boy."

Oh, the heartbreaker-in-training.

New Boy At School, noticing a school picture someone had: "Ooh, she's beautiful. Who's that?"
Person: "Princess"
Princess, happened to be walking by: "What?"
NBAS: grinning at her, "Wow."

We've had talks with The Princess, both about what we expect in terms of when she will be allowed to date and about how to treat boys, especially now when she thinks they are the grossest thing ever and they are noticing her. About how they have to get up the nerve to talk to her and ask her out (in 7th grade?!?!?!?) and how they face rejection -- and about how it is up to her to be nice and polite and give them an answer. (And how that answer has to be NO.)

Neighbor Boy got his seat moved on the bus -- and he happens to now sit with The Princess. Coincidence? Bribe of the bus driver? We'll never know.

Neighbor Boy came down the aisle and went to sit by The Princess.

The Princess told me, "Yeah, I told him 'Move in. You're sitting by the window!'" Goodness, she's already bossing him around.

NB turned to her and said, "I love it when you wear your hair down. It's beautiful!"

Meanwhile, she told me she had sat there and got it all figured out.

"What do you have figured out, Princess?"

"Exactly how to hold my feet on the ground so that when the bus goes around a corner, I don't accidentally bump into Neighbor Boy."