This is Thirteen.

stories and snippets from the frontlines of age thirteen.

Child 1 (girl)

So we got a teenager. Guess what: I am excited. Very, very excited.

Staying up later and enjoying the benefits of getting to hang out with parents and watch films.

Wants a certain amount of structure when she’s ready to move to next thing: can we do __ now? Is everyone ready? Are we leaving yet?

Extremely diligent with studies and following through on assignments.

Loving theater and acting.

Loves reading - wide variety, from Ender’s Game and Jane Austen to Divergent and Maya Angelou.

More and more conscious of music - choosing the right music for the right time and ambience.

Very protective of Sabbath and its importance in our family.

Constantly working on new jewelry and accessory designs for her Etsy shop (started February).

Crosswords. People magazine, with a self-aware grin.

Child 2 (boy)

Wrestling with his younger brothers.
Growth spurt. Big time.

Loves theater and…chess.

Chess. It is all about chess. Morning, night, and in between. We’re trying to find…balance. We are incredibly supportive of his interests, and this boy, his interests are…all-encompassing. He has gotten really good, and it’s a really cool thing that he enjoys it so much. But it’s challenging for us to figure out the optimal way to help him also find balance with not only his responsibilities, but his other interests.

“There’s this one kid in my science class…”

Falls in love with Subway. Yes, the sandwich place, and comes up with a rating system for many things where he ranks them from Chris Pratt (the lowest) to Subway (the highest). Note: his feelings about Chris Pratt go back to Guardians of the Galaxy, which he was unimpressed with and finds Mr Pratt to be one of the world’s more incompetent actors. I’m sorry, Pratt and Schwarzenegger families, he seems like a decent human being, from the little I know of him.

Reading People magazine with his sister.
Perusing old yearbooks with his sister.

Voice is deepening. Arms and chest are filling out, getting tall. Others are noticing all these things. He gets self-conscious and giggly about it, and it makes it even more adorable. 10-19

Interesting in learning Photoshop. Doing very well with math. Conscientious with getting schoolwork done, albeit not always with excitement. Champion sweeper. 10-19