T-minus 31 days, 3 hours, 51 minutes...

Until our Child thing #3 turns 12. Yes, the girl is actually counting now, including the minutes.
She thinks 12 is a big deal and that her whole life will change. I guess if you think about it, she's right.
Turning 12 means she graduates from the children's Primary program in the LDS church and she enters the Young Women's program, (much to 16 year old Alice's dismay). It means...hmmm... what else does it mean?
It means she can no longer get a child ticket in a movie theater. According to Leslie it means she is a "pre-teen."
She also thinks it means she needs to have a birthday party. But, the grand pubah is she thinks she should be able to initiate this birthday by getting her ears pierced.

Her Dad says no way, absolutely not! However, I am torn about it.
As I recall, I was about her age when I got my ears pierced. I thought it was sooooo cool! My mom had no problem with taking me to get my ears pierced, but I thought it was grosely unfair that I was not allowed to wear "dangly" earrings. Mom thought those were "too grown up." I remember having to practically beg her to get tiny little loop earrings that barely hung below my earlobe. Earrings were a big deal.
But I also remember my ears getting infected all the time, and my hair getting caught in them and I also remember losing my earrings all the time.
I eventually stopped wearing them and the holes in my ears grew over.
I had them pierced again years later when I was an adult, but for some reason I had the same problem with my hair getting getting caught in my earrings and I lost a few earrings here and there. I just didn't find them comfortable.
So once again my ears are ringless.

Let's weigh the pros and cons here:
If Leslie gets her ears pierced that just means she'll start wanting earrings and we will have to buy more, and she doesn't take very good care of the jewelry she's got.
Most girls Leslie's age have pierced ears, so she will have something in common with her friends.
She has long hair too, I'm seeing hair getting caught in earrings in her future and infected ear lobes. Been there, done that!
(Knowing this kid, this is possibility is conceivable).
Looking for another pro.... thinking...thinking...thinking...
Ok, yes it would make Leslie very happy. There, I found one.

I don't know, she may have to find something else to dedicate this birthday.
I do know that the Primary President made sure she gets to give one more talk in Primary before she leaves for Young Women's. According to Leslie though she is "a little sad" about leaving Primary. But not as happy as she is about going into Young Women's!