Staley is officially 12 years old. She is 5'0" tall (50th percentile) and weighs 90 lbs (44th percentile). Staley is wearing a variety of sizes. She is starting to outgrow most of her 10/12 clothes, but can wear size 12 pants up to adult XS/S tops. She wears size 5ish shoes. It's hard to know how much sleep Staley gets. She goes to bed between 9:00 and 9:30 on weeknights, but often is awake long after that. She sets her alarm for 7 on school days, but will sleep in on the week-ends, sometimes not getting up until 9 or after. Staley is in the 6th grade with Mrs. Selvey as her homeroom teacher. She is involved in a number of different activities. With NTA, Staley is involved in Stage Kids, Rising Stars, and Broadway Dance. Now that she is 12, she can also join Singapella (an NTA acapella singing group) and Tech Kids (learning behind the scenes skills). She also participated in their Shakespeare summer class and show. This year, Staley has also participated in the Penguin Project, EMS Drama Club, singing lessons, piano lessons, Student Council, EMS Library Board, band, youth group, and library volunteering at the public library. Some of these activities are during the school day, which is very helpful in keeping her extracurricular schedule somewhat manageable.
Staley's love of theater and participation in theater activities keeps her schedule full!
Likes: Staley loves singing, dancing, theater, and anything that involves performing. Although she is not currently participating in any organized sports, she plays volleyball at recess every day and likes to go for runs. She is planning to run cross country and track in 7th grade. Staley spends much of her free time reading, listening to showtunes and audiobooks, drawing, and doing calligraphy. She also enjoys making videos/movies with her siblings, cousins, and friends. Board games are another favorite activity.
Staley is creative and enjoys using her creative talents for school projects and gifts.
Staley loves to read. Fantasy still seems to be a favorite genre, but she reads a little of everything. Staley has enjoyed watching some older kid movies like Guardians of the Galaxy, the Harry Potter movies, and the Lord of the Rings movies. However, she still enjoys movies we watch as a family and episodes of Bluey, a family favorite TV show. When listening to music, Staley has a variety of songs/albums she likes, but Taylor Swift songs and showtunes are favorites. Current favorite musical soundtracks include Matilda, Les Mis, Six, Dear Evan Hansen, and (of course) Hamilton, although I have been hearing less Hamilton lately as other shows have arrived on the scene.
Show tunes are the best tunes!
Staley has become a very good eater. She eats anything we make (except veggies) and prefers to share an entree off the adult menu at restaurants. It's hard to list her favorite foods since she generally eats whatever we make, but her birthday meal of choice is always cheeseburgers on the grill and no peas. Staley still has a preference for comfortable clothes. Sweatshirts, t-shirts, and leggings are staples, but she also now regularly wears jeans and sweaters. And when she can't find something in her closet that she wants to wear, she looks in mine.
Sweaters and jeans? We've come a long way!
Staley enjoys having a full schedule and lots of activities, but she also needs her alone time at home. Although social at school and with all her friends in her activities, Staley sometimes asks to just stay home to relax. Staley has a lot of different friends. At school she eats lunch and spends recess with Charlotte, Lucy, Morgan, Opal, Anna, Annalise, Jerzie, and a few other girls. Kaitlyn is who she spends the most time with at church and youth group. Because Stella and Adelie spend a lot of time together, Olivia is a friend that Staley does a fair amount with outside of school. But Staley also has friends from different schools and in different grades through NTA and Penguin. And her cousins remain some of her best friends as well. I love that Staley's friend circle is wide.
Penguin friends
Cousin time is always the best time!
Staley loves her NTA friends.
Dislikes: Staley does not like vegetables. She still has a little social anxiety in new or chaotic situations. She acts shy around some adults, especially adult males like her principal. Staley prefers to have some activities and social opportunities that do not involve her siblings. She still does not like the anticipation of anything painful like shots or pulling teeth, although no longer freaks out like she used to.
Skills: Staley continues to improve with her skills. Her skills with singing, piano, dancing, and flute all continue to improve with practice and lessons. Acting comes naturally to her. Staley is very responsible and independent with all her daily activities like getting homework done, completing household chores (although still sometimes needs to be asked/reminded), doing her hair, and preparing for her shows. She now does her own make-up for the shows she is in, memorizes her lines/songs/dances typically without help, and makes sure she's caught up with any schoolwork so it doesn't interfere with her busy extracurricular schedule.
Staley is now in Level 3 piano books.
Staley is very bright and does well in school without too much extra effort. She continues to get straight A's, typically gets all her homework done in study hall or throughout the school day, and has standardized test scores in the 97th percentile for math and the 99th percentile for reading. She is so blessed that school comes easily for her.
Personality: Staley is responsible, motivated, and persistent. If she wants to do something or sets a goal, she will work hard to achieve that goal. She also has a good head on her shoulders. She makes her own decisions about what she likes or what she wants to do, regardless of what others think. If she makes up her mind about something (wanting to do something, not wanting to do something, not liking something), she will not be swayed. I love that strong sense of self, although it can sometimes be frustrating as a parent when she digs her heels in about something.
But for the most part, Staley's stubborn streak has toned down a lot from her younger days.
Although social, Staley does best in her comfort zone and can get overwhelmed or shut down in new, busy, or chaotic environments. Sometimes after shows, she starts to get anxious and wants to leave the crowded theater to go change out of her costume instead of visiting with those who came to see her. Staley always wants to do things right and know the plan, so she will sometimes ask for help before trying something on her own or will ask questions she already knows the answer to just to re-confirm that she knows what is going on. She is becoming more aware of these tendencies, and we are working towards improved coping and independence in these areas. Life skills!
Penguin was a step outside of Staley's comfort zone...and it was so good for her!
Staley has a good sense of humor, sharing her own dose of the sarcasm that flows through our house. She is confident in herself and her abilities, although is also competitive in all that she does which sometimes makes her less likely to celebrate accomplishments of her siblings and others. Staley continues to grow in her faith, doing her own devotions and Bible reading on a regular basis. She is excited about getting older and doing "older kid" things. Staley enjoys helping out with younger kids/younger cousins and becoming one of the older kids at Stage Kids who helps the littler ones. It's exciting to watch her grow and mature, but is also a little bittersweet as I see her growing up so fast.
I love this 12 year old, and I love watching the amazing person she is turning out to be.
