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When you don’t want to grow up, it’s lucky to be small for your age. While most kids are rushing into the preteen years, some choose to relish the joys of childhood for as long as possible.
Julia who just turned 9 is in no rush to grow up. She oozes imagination and spends her days leading her 6 year old sister and cousin through fascinating worlds she creates and directs.
She loves Groovy Girls, My Little Pony and Disney Junior.
Julia and her little sister Sophia also like to dress the same so it’s a huge plus for her that she’s basically the same size as many 6 year olds. In fact, Julia and her 6 year old cousin Olivia are always measuring each other to see who is taller. They’re exactly equal in height at the moment.
Sophia is also tiny for her age, so when the three are together it looks like Julia and Olivia are the same age and like Sophia is their younger sister.
Since Julia and Sophia are so small, they even got away with riding in a double stroller for a couple of the days we were at Disneyland.
And this weekend, they had great fun still sneaking on to all the “little kid†rides at the local fair.
It helped that the folks managing the rides were being lenient on height restrictions, so Julia and Sophia both went on all the little rides they’ve been going on since they were preschoolers.
I laughed when Julia called out to me, “Mom! Take my picture because I probably won’t fit on this ride ever again.â€
2025 UPDATE
It’s now 2025 and Julia is 20 years old and Sophia is almost 18 years old. I love looking back at these precious memories and I’m so glad that I took the time to blog throughout their early years.
I stopped sharing most of our stories as they got older, but Julia continued to hold firmly to her imagination and is now studying illustration and animation at university. She’s brilliantly creative and I believe she will spend her life sharing her imagination with children of all ages.
Julia never did get very tall… she’s about 5’3″. Sophia caught up to her in height and is a tiny bit taller. Sophia has just graduated from high school with an “A” average while taking sciences, math, and calculus courses. She will be starting university in the fall to study environmental science. I’m beyond proud of my girls and being their mom is the best job in the world.
Here are a few of my favorite posts we’ve created together over the years…
Written by Susan Carraretto, co-founder of 5 Minutes for Mom
Talk with me: @5minutesformom and Facebook.com/5minutesformom
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Janice says
It is so cute and handy that Julia embraces the joys of being young! Livvie is usually in much more of a hurry to grow up. lol
Lisa-The Domestic Life Stylist says
I love that Julia realized that this was a special moment that deserved to be documented. You have to love how kids just live in the moment. We can learn so much from them.
Susan says
Exactly! I think my girls are so much more interested in having their photos taken than I was as a kid because they can see them right away on the phone or camera and then see me blogging and writing stories about them.
Tanya says
Its so nice when they want to stay young for a little while longer 🙂 They grow up way too fast as it is.
Susan says
I completely agree. I love how they still embrace play and live in their imaginations. I’m trying to cherish each moment because I know the teen years will come soon.
Emilia says
That’s so true. 🙂