Madeleine the Rebel Girl

One of Madeleine's favorite gifts she received for her 8th birthday is this book from Auntie Shannon:

The book is made up of one-page stories of history's most influential women, with an illustration and salient quote opposite the text:

Madeleine recently finished the entire book, and was delighted to find that the last page is a blank entry for the reader to write her OWN rebel girl story.  And boy, did Madeleine go to town on hers:

Madeleine Rowe

Swimmer

Once upon a time, there was a girl named Madeleine.  Madeleine loved to swim.  But when she turned 8 things got hard.  The Tsunami swim team, the swim team she did not do in the summer, started doing things like 300s strait!  And they got pretty serious about flip turns.  But Madeleine's mind was buserk and creative.  She did things like sing songs in her head and make up games that helped her accomplish what her coaches asked.  Madeleine said she would be on the swim the swim team as long as her sister, Julia, was on it.  Madeleine's mind was so buserk that she aimed for a new, crazy goal: breathing only once and then NO TIMES on a twenty five.  She accomplished one breath - but then she wanted to do more.  Madeleine then accomplished no breaths on a dive twenty five!  She kept soing it and got new times on each one.  17.40.  17.8.  But Madeleine's best time was 17.5.  She told her mom every time she got a new time.  Madeleine's mom was so impresed every time she heard.  Madeleine is a great swimmer and is still swimming today.  And even when times get tough, Madeleine still keeps swimming.  She wants to insipe other young rebal girls who are just like you.

Born October 2, 2009.



Well, I'll tell ya, this *definitely* insipes me.  How about you??