My New Friend

Emily's wall

I spent Thursday with a new friend Emily. She is 10 yrs old going on 30. I met her at my very first art show Chateau de Fleurs. She kept me company and made me feel welcome, not the new outsider that I really was. She saved my day. She made me feel like maybe, just maybe I belonged there.
So on Thursday, I went to Emily's home and was in awe of the magic there. Her mother Lisa, is one talented lady. Lisa has been featured in many of the Stampington family of magazines and it was easy to see why. Her home was filled with her whimsical creations. So inspiring! I had the pleasure of drawing with Emily on my first day at Chateau de Fleurs during the slow times and I'm pretty sure she has picked up on her mother's talents. She's got the sketching bug for sure.
Anyway, Emily greeted me at the door in her brand new navy blue coat and sporting a very cute headband with flower attached. She reminded me a bit of Madeline minus the straw hat. She looked very grown up but with a teensy bit of little girl still there. I liked that. I think all girls need to keep that bit of little girl still there for good measure. I wished I had brought my camera, but of course I forgot it.
We went antiquing in Ontario and Upland. She and her mom know of all the good places to go and know of all the good things to look for. Me? I'm new at all this vintagy stuff. I'm not an antique buff but I love looking at all the goodies that remind me of my childhood, all the while being upset that these things are called antiques! Really...it hasn't been that long!
After one huge store, we were ready for lunch. We went to a delightful little place called Molly's. Emily announced in her most grown up voice that she was buying. Now you can imagine the thoughts going through my head. How could we possibly expect her to pay and of course she probably doesn't really mean it anyway. Molly's is located in an old house in downtown Upland. Very cute and old fashioned. We ordered and Emily's drink came in a little teapot and teacup. Too cute...I too wanted mine in a cute little cup! When the bill came, Emily picked it up and proceeded to pay for it. I so wanted to protest but I felt like she needed to do this. If we took it away from her we would be treating her like a child and take that wonderful feeling of well, feeling grown up away from her. So I let her pay but offered to tip. We told her it was customary for people to tip when others pay. Just a little bit of grown up advise for her.
We trekked through a few more stores. She spotted an old tin dollhouse that she bought with birthday money. It was exactly like the one I had when I was little. I offered her $50 for it but she wouldn't budge! I don't know how but that dollhouse ended up on her lap and she was halfway in it on the ride home. She was so excited about it. I was relieved that the grown up  girl dissappeared for awhile and the little girl came back to play.
I loved seeing both sides of Emily that day. It's not easy being 10. Teenage years are so close you can touch them. I remember how excited you are to be a grown up and you just can't wait. But then there's the dolls...it's hard to let them go. Keep the dolls for just a while longer Em. If you're anything like your mom and I, you will never let them go. For some reasons, they keep appearing in our creative lives and that's a good thing.
Thank you Emily, for a wonderful day and a girly lunch. I had so much fun!