30 Years in 30 Weeks - edition 12

Alrighty...on to the least favorite stage of my life. You know - the 'tween years...that awkward time of life when you are trying to figure out who the heck you are and where exactly you fit in. And, if you are lucky enough to be a girl, you spend every day of your junior high life deciding who your new best friend is. Of course, she just might be your enemy tomorrow and then your BFF again on Friday so you can spend the night at her house.

This picture was taken in the summer of '89...just before I entered junior high and at the very beginnings of the "big bangs" days. Notice both my mom and I had on the ever-popular KEDS. And super-huge earrings for both of us! My personal favorite, though, are my acid-wash pleated knee-length shorts. Who thought that was a good idea???

We were on a family vacation to Central Texas that summer. We had been to Fredricksburg, Gruene and then on to San Marcos where this picture was taken. Once upon a time, Aquarena Springs was a mild attempt at a tourist attraction. The only thing they had to offer was a swimming pig named Ralph and a "submarine" that only partially went under the water's surface for you to view the "mermaids" that would swim around and drink Dr. Pepper underwater. Talk about hours of family fun! To the dismay of dozens of families worldwide, none of that happens at Aquarena Springs anymore - it's an educational facility owned by Southwest Texas...ahem...I mean Texas State University now. I think this vacation definitely had a hand in my college decision...I was going to be a mermaid to earn rent money. Sigh...