My "Little Women"

My three nieces are the children in my life.  I'm not going to use their actual names, to protect their privacy.  But I can match each of them with a character from "Little Women" based on their personalities.  The oldest is eleven now.  I will call her "Meg" because she is the more serious, practical one, true to her role as the oldest sister.  The middle one is nine, and I will call her "Jo" because she is the "free spirit", the one with the delightfully off-beat view of the world.  The youngest, who just turned seven will be "Amy".  She is the little "girly-girl",  the little charmer.  

Meg is a teacher's dream.  She always has her homework done on time, and she is super organized.  In her school, each student keeps a notebook containing all their assignments and homework.  Last year she was the only one who didn't lose her notebook during the year.  She is the one who reminds the babysitter of what the rules are, when bedtime is, etc.  Not only does she pack her own lunch; she also packs lunches for her sisters' lunches.  She can be a bit bossy at times, which doesn't always sit well with the other two.

Jo is an original.  She has the quirkiest sense of humor of any child I have ever known.  She is also deeply intuitive and the most generous soul.  She writes hilarious stories, the latest about "killer sofas from outer space".  She is smart and the only one in our family since my late father who is good at math.  She is perhaps best known for this:  one Thanksgiving the family was hosting dinner.  Jo got it into her head to play a trick on the guests.  Without telling anyone, she took all the ice out of the automatic ice maker (you know, the kind on the fridge door) and filled it with M&M candies.  So when the unsuspecting grandma came to get a glass of ice, she got a glass of M&Ms instead.  That's Jo!  Life is never dull with her around.  

Little Amy in the closest to a "princess".  She loves her hair long and her clothes pink.  She changes outfits several times a day, twirling in the mirror to admire the effect.  She is also very smart (they all are).  She can keep up with her older sisters no problem.  (Oh I forgot... she just turned seven.)  She makes up the most fantastic stories.  She has a grown-up sense humor.  You can use a pun that you expect will go over her head, but she gets it!  She rolls her eyes and groans.  One day I took them shopping and they each picked out a toy and a book.  I told them "no more shopping today, Aunt Judy is broke now".  When we got home she had received a birthday card in the mail with a $5.00 bill in it.  She handed it to me and said, "Here, you can have this, since you are broke".  

That is my introduction of my nieces to you.  Since we moved here they have become major players in my life.