Be kind to your body, because it's the only one you are going to get'
Miranda Weber has always had to deal with high expectations.
At six feet 11-and-a-half inches, the 18 year old from Regina is the tallest of a very tall family. Her grandfather and mother both stood six feet eight inches tall. Her uncle is six-foot-ten.
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I was a body positive mom — until I wasn't
Miranda's mother Kathy says she always knew her daughter was destined for great heights.
"She was never going to be a point guard or a setter, she was destined to be someone who had stature," she said.
A doctor had once predicted Weber would peak at five-foot-nine, then it was changed to six-foot-five.
"Here I am," Miranda said with a laugh.
Early expectations
In Elementary school Miranda stood six to eight inches taller than her classmates.
"In grade three I was the size of a seventh grader," she said.
Know who you are and be kind to your body because it's the only one you are going to get.- Miranda Weber
That additional stature brought heightened expectations from adults.
"She'd be playing at the playground and someone would come over and say she's too big for that. People would expect her to act older than her age," Kathy said.
Miranda became accustomed to the tell-tale tingle in her legs, a sign that she was about to have another growth spurt.
"I would be very clumsy and unbalanced, think of it as being on a pair of stilts," Miranda said.
She has used her height to her advantage for volleyball. She played with the Saskatchewan Renegades volleyball team. Now she is studying kinesiology at the University of Regina with the hopes of one day becoming a sport psychologist.
She admits the world wasn't designed for tall people, but says positive thinking plays a big role in her life philosophy,
"I've hit my head on doorways or light fixtures more times that I can count," Miranda said. "I have a hard time fitting into my friends' cars and it's nearly impossible to find pants or jackets that fit."
She and her mother have turned to using a seamstress for custom-made clothing, including her grad dress.
Following in her mother's big footsteps
Kathy smiles as she listens to her daughter talk about wearing cowgirl boots to her graduation ceremony. For Kathy it's a sign of confidence, something she herself has worked hard to develop.
"Thankfully I've embraced being a tall woman. I'm really proud of who I have become and I'm able to showcase that with my daughter," Kathy said.
That confidence shines through in the advice Miranda offers to other young women.
"Believe in yourself, know your talents, know who you are and be kind to your body, because it's the only one you are going to get."
Nichole Huck · CBC News