young lady
My great grandniece, Alice Green is growing up “so darned fast” as her mom tells me. Her parents, Melanie and Jake Harman really wish she would just slow down. Today, Alice is turning 10 and that just seems so impossible!! This coming school year will be her last year of elementary school. That seems impossible to me. I mean, she is only in 5th grade, but these days 6th grade is middle school, so there you go. Alice is a good student and works hard at her studies. I know that middle school is going to be a wonderful new experience for her, and I am so excited for the future changes that will bring, but for now, I know she will enjoy being one of the big kids on campus, and that will be fun for her too. It’s very strange that the older your kids get, the faster the years go by. The old song, “Don’t Blink” comes to my mind, with its big hint of sadness. Parents have to stay focused on every milestone, every event, and every little moment, because they will be gone before we know it, and the kids will be all grown up.
Alice is still a great big sister and growing into a beautiful young lady. Still, while her love for her family remains the same, many of her opinions and attitudes are changing. She is, after all, a teenager in a 10-year-old’s body!! Like the “terrible twos,” the teenage years creep up on you when you aren’t looking, and they often begin around ten or so. It’s not that Alice is sassy or anything, just getting so mature. She is a very sweet natured girl, and I really love how she interacts with her family, and especially her siblings. Isabella and Jaxx look up to their big sister, 
and she is always very good to them. It is a great blessing to their parents, and I love to see it too.
Alice and her stepdad, Jake have a unique relationship. It is really very little like a stepdad/stepdaughter relationship, and very much like a goofy kind of daddy/daughter relationship. They love to play random acts of rudeness on each other, both knowing that it’s a joke and all in good fun. Her mom thinks that’s what keeps the relationship so close. Alice is also very close with her mom too and very much Melanie’s mini-me…in looks and in personality. She is also a big help to Melanie with the younger children. Today is Alice’s 10th birthday. Happy birthday Alice!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
So much has changed over the past thirteen years. My grand niece, Jaydn Mortensen has gone from being a shy little girl to a confident young lady, who really excels at anything she puts her mind to. Jaydn lives in Rawlins, so we don’t get to see her as much as we would like, and that was probably why she was a little more shy at first, but once she knew that we are her family too…well, that settled it. Jaydn was always a bubbly little girl who was always on the go, and the fact that her parents, Sean and Amanda lead very active lives, made that the norm for Jaydn too.
They love spending the summer weekends at Seminole Reservoir, and that has made Jaydn…for lack of a better word…a bit of a fish. She has grown up on that lake, and she loves to swim, ski, and go boating. The lake is practically her home away from home. When Sean and Amanda go to the lake on the weekends, there is always a big group of friends who go too, so there are always other kids for Jaydn to play with, although she is getting to old of “play” exactly. Nevertheless, she not to big to have a great time hanging with her friends and family at the lake.
All that aside, Jaydn’s first love is horses. She loves to ride, and loves to compete. She competes in rodeo, and 
other riding events too. She has become quite an accomplished horsewoman, and we are all very proud of her accomplishments. She is so completely at home with her horses and in the arena. Nevertheless, she is growing into such a beautiful and graceful young lady, and I am always amazed at the changes in her, but then I guess I shouldn’t be. She comes from great parents, who have given her the freedom and the means to fulfill her dreams, and have cheered her along all the way. Today is Jaydn’s 13th birthday. Happy birthday Jaydn!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
