My Ordinary Life: Little Miss Demanding

Lauren, my youngest, turned 12 in January of this year. Like me, she was born in the Year of the Water Buffalo. According to the superstitions of my culture, people born under this sign would likely struggle to make a living, just like the water buffalo, a beast of burden destined for a life of labor in the rice paddies. To head off trouble just in case, I gave Lauren an ameliorating Vietnamese name -- Thao Nguyen -- which means "grass meadow" in English. Hopefully, she would be self-supporting and never lacks for sustenance! :)

Lauren has an even stranger Vietnamese nickname, "Bau", which translates into English as "baby bump." She was the fourth child in our family and while her parents were undecided about what her nickname should be, her impatient siblings were not. They took to calling their little sister, "Mom's pregnant belly." That name has stuck!

Lauren was an extraordinarily good-natured baby who pretty much took care of herself if you let her. Instead of crying to get attention like other infants, she would endlessly babble in her crib to comfort and amuse herself. By chance a visitor to my home was amazed to hear all that was going on transmitted by the baby monitor from Lauren's nursery. She just could not believe it!

Lauren, sweet and docile up until age 5

Once Lauren learned she could assert herself to maintain her ranking in the brood, she quickly earned the title of "Little Miss Demanding". When she doesn't get her way, Lauren is prone to giving me what I call "The Tasmanian Devil look".

Grouchy Smurfette returning from a Christmas ski trip with Dad

Softening up as she hugged Mama

Very much a girly girl like her oldest sister, Audrey, Lauren loves to style herself and is quite talented with make-up and putting together different outfits. I would often find sketches for her look-of-the-day taped to her wardrobe door.

First Day of School Outfit

Second Day of School Outfit

Lauren channeling Mary Kate & Ashley Olsen's boho look
Slouchy sweater, check! Oversized tote, check! Gigantic sunglasses, check!

Wearing a borrowed kimono for our family fashion show

Following in Audrey's footsteps, Lauren ran for student council at her elementary school and got elected class president in the fifth grade. She was also voted "Duchess" shortly after she entered Pioneer Middle School this year. I know... I also thought "What the heck!" when I first heard that title, too! It simply meant she was chosen by her freshman class as their equivalent of "Princess" for the older sophomore class, or "Queen" for the senior class.

The "Duchess" in her room

There's a four-year age gap between Lauren and her older sister, Andrea, who happens to be a total tomboy, so the closest Lauren has in form of a soul sister is her cousin, Natasha. These two are tight!

On land...

Or in the water

Out of my four children, Lauren is the one with the biggest drive. She is self-directed, organized, and ambitious in a way that belies her years. You'd think I raised her on adrenaline instead of breast milk.