Was there a time before I became a scheming grandmother? I'm not so sure. Of course there were once pictures and sculptures proving I was a child, but those are long gone, much to my mother's chagrin. I can't mourn overmuch, though. There's so much to plan for now. So much to ready ourselves for.
In the days leading up to Mata Hari's adult birthday, all of us were practically buzzing in anticipation. Mata, rather annoyed by this, kept to her room most of the time.
I am a bit concerned that she's overdoing the weight training. I ambushed her while she was having a soak after one of her very long workouts, and mentioned that her impending pregnancy might soften her frame a bit. She began violently splashing the water to the point where I'm not so sure she could hear me anymore. I'll have to try again later.
I'm quite proud of our girl. She's found a father already for the final child. A boy in town named Percy. I don't know his parents or anyone who may be of relation, but that's quite all right.
Unfortunately, he aged up ahead of her, still with the most questionable fashion sense. For whatever reason, they can still go on dates, but when Mata Hari attempted to take a romantic photo with her beau, she got a brotherly forehead kiss instead. She grumbled about it all the way home.
Her aggression was later taken out on a school athletics competition, which she won many times over. She came home to take furious notes on her tablet and we all avoided her, lest the stormy mood get blown our way.
My daughter and I ate our weekly ambrosia together regularly now. It is so nice to spend time with her, to feel her warm body next to mine, to smell her earthy scent, and to hear her sweet laugh. There are many downfalls to immortality, but this is not one of them.
My granddaughter, the least mysterious of my family to me, confided a secret recently. She's met the 8th. She's spoken to her.
And perhaps that's what started the scheming. The preparations.
After all, it was a way to pass the time in those dragging final days of Mata Hari's teen years. And finally, bright and early on a Monday morning, it was time for her to become a young adult.
This is a girl who never hesitates. Who never worries. Who loves the approval of the masses. Who also understands that Granny doesn't
do birthdays.
She was absolutely ready for her sparkles.
We had cake in near silence. The end was so close. The final Classic was ready to be made. Allegra accompanied Mata to her room for wardrobe changes. She came out sometime later wiping away slight tears. I imagine it's due to Mata's style choice for her adulthood.
Our Mata Hari has never quite been of this world. She's never been quite satisfied with Monte Vista. Seeing her all grown up just confirms that. Her everyday wear:
Formal:
Sleep:
Sports:
Swim (I
told her she was doing too much weight training!):
and Outerwear:
We, none of us, know what she's up to with her career or her plans for Percy. It's up to us to wait and see and just feel confidant that Eureka knows what she saw.
While we wait for Mata to seal our fate, we all must be feeling something different. Granny, I think, worries the most about what she'll be if she's no longer a granny.
Allegra worries that she'll not be a rock star until she's too old to look good in the costume. I don't think she worries about much else. Allegra is not a worrier.
Eden wonders how many love interests she can have if everyone comes back.
Eureka has moments of ... eureka.
Mona Lisa, my mother, is just as mysterious to me as them all. Who knows what she could be thinking of. What she wishes for or fears.
As for me, there's Hiram. There's endless possibility. There's the promise of a dream I may one day fulfill ... if we succeed.
