I was emotional the whole day and couldn't wait until she got home to see how her day was. My husband bought her flowers, gave her the biggest hug, and said he was so happy for her. I took her to the store to buy her a little present (she picked out some yarn because she just learned to knit), and our neighbours made her a "welcome to womanhood" card and gave her a handmade bracelet. A friend at Thinx also sent her a cute little first period kit.
My dad's reaction was actually my favourite because I don't remember him saying one word to me when I got my period, but it was his idea to send Sadie flowers and a sweet note.
After baking a celebratory cake, she wanted to call Mike's family to share her exciting news — it was her idea, and our family is so open, I knew they'd be excited for her. She didn't feel quite comfortable telling everyone herself and wanted me to say the words, but she loved seeing everyone's reactions — they were so happy and supportive of her.
It was so awesome to see everyone making this such an awesome, positive experience. One relative did make a comment like, "Oh that's really young," and I didn't want Sadie to feel self-conscious or upset at all, so I quickly commented, "yeah some girls get it as early as nine, so Sadie was just lucky!" She couldn't stop smiling, and I just felt so proud that I nailed this part of parenting!