One of my favorite things to see as an adult and a parent, is the awkward-in-between stages teens go through while growing.
Ironically, that was one of the most painful things to deal with while a teen. Or in my case, a preteen.
In 5th grade, I was 5'4. I was by far, the tallest person in my class. I played basketball (of course) and since the coaches all thought I was going to be huge, I was trained as a center.
Which was a shame, because at 39 years old, I am now 5'6. That's right, I've only grown 2 more inches since I was 11 years old. Sigh.
It was hard being 11 years old and being so tall. Gawky. Awkward.
But it's been a hoot watching all the kids go through that with different eyes.
Long legs. Gawky walk. Girls with no hips yet. Girls who hunch over trying to hide their height. Boys who haven't quite figured out how to manage their big ol' feet yet.
I know, it's a terrible thing to experience, but I promise, if you survive your own growth spurt--you'll live to really enjoy watching others suffer through theirs.
My poor daughter is the shortest in her class (the same as I was in school)...she's watching her friends shoot up around her! LOL
ReplyDeleteWhen I think back to my elementary and grade school days, it seems I was always the tallest. And we lined up by height, so I was always last. *sigh* I'm sure things changed around 8th or 9th grade, but even then I towered over a good handful of the boys.
ReplyDeleteNow, however, I love being tall!
I stayed at 5'4" (though I used to have a 1/2 inch added to that that seems to have disappeared).
ReplyDeleteAnd I am not having so much fun watching my kids get taller than me. I don't likey.
OMG I so feel your pain. I was the tallest girl in my class right up until 7th grade. Everyone pulled even... by high school I was my height now-- 5'6" (actually 5'5 3/4" but tough).
ReplyDeleteMy brothers were all tall, and so was my dad. Everyone assumed.
I'm not even quite 5'4" today.
ReplyDeleteI was a lot shorter when I was younger though. Now I'm just average, but I was teeny tiny as a kid. I didn't hit 5 feet until I was a freshman in high school (and then grew an extra 3 1/2 inches while in high school).
My brother, on the other hand, was always tall. He's 2 years younger than me, and the last time I was taller than him, I was 5 and he was 3. By the time we were 6 and 4, he was the same height as me. When I was 7 and he was 5, he was already taller than me. I kid you not.
He hit 6'1" at age 13 (which, come to think of it, is about the time I broke 5 feet...around age 15, when he was 13), but only grew another 2 inches since then. He's 6'3" now. I'm 5'3 1/2". Yes, he's almost a foot taller than me.
I never quit being the tallest. In 8th grade I was 5'8" and grew another inch by the time I graduated. My mom used to scream she was going to put me in a back brace if I didn't quit slouching!! As painful as it was, I'm estatic I'm tall now. But height doesn't even come close to being flat-chested all those years! Now THAT was agony!
ReplyDeleteI really shouldn't complain. I actually liked being the shortest. I always got to do stunts in cheerleading. I was a "flyer", which is fun.
ReplyDeleteOf course, it's painful when you get dropped. And yes, I did get dropped sometimes.